Antecedent (Noun)

A preceding occurrence or cause or event.

Nouns denoting natural events.

The referent of an anaphor; a phrase or clause that is referred to by an anaphoric pronoun.

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents.

Someone from whom you are descended (but usually more remote than a grandparent).

Nouns denoting people.

Her great-great-grandmother was her most illustrious antecedent, a famous actress who performed on stages across the country.
Tracing back through centuries, historians identified a 14th-century noble as the direct antecedent of the current royal family.
Genealogists struggled to find records of the ancestor's antecedents, making it difficult to construct a comprehensive family tree.
According to legend, the ancient king was an antecedent of the modern-day dynasty, but the exact connection was disputed among scholars.
DNA testing revealed an unexpected antecedent from a different continent, forcing the researcher to revise her entire understanding of the family's background.