There are many definitions of a family.  The most common sociological definition is any group of persons closely related by blood such as parents, children, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc.  These people usually share common physical characteristics and personality traits.  A broader definition would be all those persons considered as descendants of a common ancestor. 

In biology a family is a subdivision of an order and all members are related by common characteristics. 

In chemistry we have a similar definition.  Those elements that are located in the same group on the periodic table are considered to be members of the same family.  These elements are considered a family because they share similar characteristics and properties which are a function of how their electrons are arranged.

Click on the beakers to discover more about each family of elements.

Alkaline Earth Metals