Questions · Family history
Family history questions for the relatives who remember
Questions to ask relatives about family history: the stories everyone repeats, the places and homes the family came from, people worth remembering, and what you want passed down to the next generation.
- 16 questions
- EN + TL on every card
- Free in the app
Kumustahan is a bilingual conversation card app: 1,200 questions in English and Filipino across 7 decks, with a short reflection on the back of every card.
Tell us the funny memory your friends or family still bring up.
Ikuwento yung funny memory na binabalikan pa rin ng friends o family mo.
Some stories become part of a group's archive. If people still bring it up, it probably earned its place.
May stories na parte na ng group archive. Kapag binabalikan pa rin, malamang deserve niya yung spot.
The questions
16 family history questions
Every question in English and Filipino/Tagalog, word for word from the Kumustahan decks. Open “Back of the card” for the reflection printed on the other side.
The stories everyone repeats
4 questions
Every family has legends. Get each relative’s version.
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Tell us the funny memory your friends or family still bring up.
Ikuwento yung funny memory na binabalikan pa rin ng friends o family mo.
Back of the card
Some stories become part of a group's archive. If people still bring it up, it probably earned its place.
May stories na parte na ng group archive. Kapag binabalikan pa rin, malamang deserve niya yung spot.
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Share one food rule your household still follows.
Mag-share ng isang food rule na sinusunod pa rin sa bahay niyo.
Back of the card
House rules around food can be funny, practical, or oddly sacred. They carry the flavor of how people grew up.
Yung food rules sa bahay, minsan funny, minsan practical, minsan oddly sacred. May flavor siya ng kinalakihan natin.
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What detail do you notice first in an old photo with a friend?
Anong detalye ang una mong napapansin sa lumang photo kasama ang friend?
Back of the card
No need to show it. Would you keep that detail in a photo taken today?
Hindi kailangang ipakita. Gusto mo bang makita pa rin ang detalyeng iyon sa photo ngayon?
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If your old phone could save only one, would you keep the photos or the messages?
Kung isa lang ang mase-save sa lumang phone mo, photos o messages ang ititira mo?
Back of the card
Imagine giving the saved memories a title. No need to show any photos or messages.
Isipin na bibigyan mo ng pamagat ang natirang mga alaala. Hindi kailangang magpakita ng photos o messages.
Places and homes
4 questions
Where the family lived, and what it sounded like there.
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Tell us about a place that left a memory or feeling you still carry.
Ikuwento yung lugar na may iniwang memory o feeling na dala mo pa rin.
Back of the card
Some places stay with us quietly. You may not notice it right away, but later you realize you carried something from there.
May mga lugar na tahimik lang ang iniiwan sa atin. Hindi mo agad napapansin, pero may dala ka pala mula roon.
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When you enter a new place, what’s one small thing you notice right away?
Kapag nasa bagong lugar ka, ano yung isang maliit na bagay na una mong napapansin?
Back of the card
What you notice first can hint at what makes a place feel interesting, calm, or welcoming to you.
Minsan clue yung una mong napapansin kung ano ang nakaka-curious, nakakapagpakalma, o nagpapagaan ng pakiramdam mo.
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Which everyday sound reminds you of home right away?
Anong everyday sound ang nagpapaalala agad sa'yo ng home?
Back of the card
Home is not always a place first. Sometimes it is a sound you recognize before you even think about it.
Hindi laging lugar agad ang home. Minsan sound siya na kilala mo na bago mo pa isipin.
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Which language would you learn instantly if you woke up fluent tomorrow?
Kung paggising mo bukas ay marunong ka na ng isang bagong language, ano ang pipiliin mo?
Back of the card
Choose the first person you would like to talk to in that language.
Piliin ang unang taong gusto mong makausap gamit ang wikang iyon.
People worth remembering
4 questions
The teachers, storytellers and quiet heroes in the family.
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Who is someone you respect for the way they live, even in small things?
Sino yung taong nirerespeto mo sa paraan ng buhay niya, kahit sa maliliit na bagay?
Back of the card
Respect often begins with small, steady things. A simple habit can show a lot about how someone moves through life.
Madalas nagsisimula ang respeto sa maliliit pero consistent na bagay. May simpleng habit na maraming sinasabi tungkol sa isang tao.
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Who taught you a useful skill or habit you still use in daily life?
Sino yung nagturo sa'yo ng useful skill o habit na gamit mo pa rin sa daily life?
Back of the card
Practical lessons are easy to overlook, but they stay close. They show up in the small ways you move through a day.
Madaling ma-overlook ang practical lessons, pero dala-dala mo pala. Lumalabas sila sa maliliit mong galaw araw-araw.
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Think of someone in your circle who can turn anything into a funny story.
Isipin yung tao sa circle niyo na kayang gawing funny story kahit simpleng bagay lang.
Back of the card
Every circle has someone who makes ordinary stories funnier than expected. Naming them is also a tiny thank-you.
May tao talagang nagpapasaya ng simpleng kwento. Kapag naalala mo siya, parang small thank-you na rin.
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Tell us about a friend who made you feel like you belonged.
Ikuwento yung friend na nagparamdam sa'yo na belong ka.
Back of the card
Inclusion can happen through one seat saved, one question asked, or one person making room on purpose.
Minsan isang upuang tinabi, isang tanong, o isang taong sinadyang magtabi ng space ang nagpaparamdam na kasama ka.
What gets passed down
4 questions
Habits, values and the things worth keeping.
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From when you were younger, what habit or interest do you still carry now?
Mula nung bata ka, anong habit o hilig ang dala mo pa rin ngayon?
Back of the card
Some parts of us do not disappear; they just grow up with us. It can be nice to notice what stayed.
May parts tayo na hindi naman nawawala; lumalaki lang kasama natin. Nakakatuwang mapansin kung ano yung naiwan.
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As you got older, which habit at home started to make more sense to you?
Habang tumatanda ka, anong habit sa bahay ninyo ang mas nagme-make sense na sa'yo ngayon?
Back of the card
Getting older can change the way you see home. A habit may look different once you know more of the story.
Habang tumatanda, nag-iiba rin minsan ang tingin natin sa bahay. May habit na mas naiintindihan kapag alam mo na ang kuwento.
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If a friend asked what matters to you lately, what is the first thing you would mention?
Kung tanungin ka ng friend kung ano ang importante sa'yo lately, ano yung una mong sasabihin?
Back of the card
You do not have to list everything. Starting with one honest thing is already enough for a real answer.
Hindi mo kailangang ilista lahat. Sapat na magsimula sa isang honest na bagay para maging totoong sagot.
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Pick one value you want to show up in your week.
Pumili ng isang value na gusto mong makita sa week mo.
Back of the card
A value becomes real in small choices. One week is enough space to practice it gently.
Nagiging real ang value sa maliliit na choices. Sapat na ang isang week para i-practice siya nang gentle.
How to use them
Before you ask
Family history questions are how the stories in a family survive the people who remember them. Records and DNA tests tell you where relatives were born. Only relatives can tell you what home sounded like, who made everyone laugh at funerals, and why the family never eats a certain dish on Sundays.
Start with the stories everyone already repeats. Ask three relatives for the same family legend and you’ll get three versions, and the differences are history too. Then ask about places: the detail of a house they still remember, the sound that meant home. Sound and smell memories bring back details people didn’t know they had.
Finish with what gets passed down. Ask which habits and values each person wants the kids to keep. That turns a history project into something the family is still writing.
Good for
Tips
- Bring old photos; ask what the photographer couldn’t capture.
- Get several relatives’ versions of the same story.
- Record the answers, with permission, and label them by name and date.
- Let kids ask some questions; elders answer children differently.
- Follow names: ask “who was that?” every time someone new comes up.
Decks for this
Family history
Frequently asked questions
What questions should I ask about my family history?
Ask about the funny memory the family keeps bringing up, a food rule the household follows, a place that left a feeling they still carry, the person who taught them a skill, and what habit they hope gets passed down.
Who should I ask about family history?
The oldest relatives first, but also aunts, uncles and cousins, who often remember different versions. Each adds a piece.
Can kids use these for a school family-tree project?
Yes. The questions are simple enough for kids to ask grandparents directly, which often gets better stories than an adult asking.
Bring a better question to the table.
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