How do you get your second cousin "removed"?

Cousinectomy. It’s painful, but necessary.

From this site:

When the word “removed” is used to describe a relationship, it indicates that the two people are from different generations. You and your first cousins are in the same generation (two generations younger than your grandparents), so the word “removed” is not used to describe your relationship.

The words “once removed” mean that there is a difference of one generation. For example, your mother’s first cousin is your first cousin, once removed. This is because your mother’s first cousin is one generation younger than your grandparents and you are two generations younger than your grandparents. This one-generation difference equals “once removed.”

Twice removed means that there is a two-generation difference. You are two generations younger than a first cousin of your grandmother, so you and your grandmother’s first cousin are first cousins, twice removed.

I always assumed it meant there was a marriage inbetween (ie your cousin’s wife’s cousin, or your cousin’s brother-in-law)

@dynamicduo does that mean that “cousin, once removed” is the same thing as a second cousin which is what I have always considered by mothers cousins to be?

No, first cousin once removed would be your mothers first cousin. Their kid is your second cousin (see, same generation like @dynamicduo said)

@kfingerman : is there some criterion beyond “difference between my number of generations from common ancestor and the other person’s number of generations from common ancestor? for instance, is my child’s cousin also my “first cousin once removed” (besides being my niece or nephew)? Is a grandparent that i have in common with a first cousin a “first cousin twice removed”?

It often turns out not to have really been a first cousin once removed—the murderer of the French hippo’s lover sometimes is a homosexual identical twin from whom the French hippo was separated at birth and who is now insanely jealous.

Lol. Going off just the question you asked, it sounds like you are trying to off your second cousin.

For some reason I am the only person in my family who can remember this. It’s easy. To restate what dynamicduo said:

My first cousin is Kathy. My kids and her kids are second cousins. So what is my son’s relationship to Kathy? They are first cousins once removed.

My grandchildren (when I ever have any) and Kathy’s are third cousins. We’re first, our kids are second, their kids are third. So what is my grandchildren’s relationship to Kathy? They are first cousins twice removed.

@Jeruba Nicely put!

@Jeruba Great answer :) This is very relevant in my family, as my grandma had 5 daughters who each in turn had between 2 and 5 children each. Each of those children now all have children and one now even has a granchild them selves at 40!

I have cousins that are younger than my daughter which is weird and one of my cousins is older than my aunty! Which landed my Grandma and aunty in the paper, as it was so unusual in those days (Both Aunty and cousin turn 40 this year!)

Very big and complicated family so to cut it short your answer helped heaps!!

You want a cousin removed? I know a guy who can take care of things like that.

@daloon does he also do brother-in-laws?

@Jack79 I think if you got enough money, he’ll take care of whatever you want. Brother-in-laws probably cost more than cousins. Or maybe not. Be interesting to get a price list for such things. Purely as a matter of curiosity, of course! ;-)