# Changing genealogical symbols on Grampsweb version **URL:** \ **Category:** Gramps Web\ **Tags:** websolutions\ **Created:** [October 6, 2024, 3:03am UTC](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/changing-genealogical-symbols-on-grampsweb-version/6175 "2024-10-06T03:03:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Learnandgrow](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/gramps.discourse.group/learnandgrow/32/5261_2.png) [@Learnandgrow](https://gramps.discourse.group/u/Learnandgrow)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2024, 3:03am UTC](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/changing-genealogical-symbols-on-grampsweb-version/6175/1 "2024-10-06T03:03:31Z")
Gramps 5.2.2 Gramps Web API 2.4.0 Gramps Web Frontend 24.7.1 Gramps QL 0.3.0 locale: en multi-tree: false task queue: true Is there a way in Grampsweb to change the genealogical symbols? Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![DavidMStraub](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/gramps.discourse.group/davidmstraub/32/7_2.png) [@DavidMStraub](https://gramps.discourse.group/u/DavidMStraub)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2024, 11:32am UTC](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/changing-genealogical-symbols-on-grampsweb-version/6175/2 "2024-10-06T11:32:39Z")
Hi, Not right now. Feel free to create a feature request. ---
**Author:** ![Learnandgrow](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/gramps.discourse.group/learnandgrow/32/5261_2.png) [@Learnandgrow](https://gramps.discourse.group/u/Learnandgrow)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2024, 2:58pm UTC](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/changing-genealogical-symbols-on-grampsweb-version/6175/3 "2024-10-06T14:58:01Z")
> [@Learnandgrow](#): > > Grampsweb to change the genealogical symbol Thanks. Created a feature request. - [Feature request: Provide the ability in Grampsweb to change the genealogical symbols · Issue #507 · gramps-project/gramps-web · GitHub](https://github.com/gramps-project/gramps-web/issues/507) Do you know if there is a configuration file behind the scenes that could be changed on the server to change the symbols? ---
**Author:** ![Irnazar](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/gramps.discourse.group/irnazar/32/6134_2.png) [@Irnazar](https://gramps.discourse.group/u/Irnazar)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2025, 5:57am UTC](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/changing-genealogical-symbols-on-grampsweb-version/6175/4 "2025-06-21T05:57:53Z")
Good afternoon! There may be people of different religions in the same tree. The symbol next to the date of death should change according to the person’s faith. At what stage is this problem working, is there a link to the request? ---
**Author:** ![DavidMStraub](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/gramps.discourse.group/davidmstraub/32/7_2.png) [@DavidMStraub](https://gramps.discourse.group/u/DavidMStraub)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2025, 8:59am UTC](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/changing-genealogical-symbols-on-grampsweb-version/6175/5 "2025-06-21T08:59:46Z")
> [@Irnazar](#): > > , is there a link to the request? It’s in the post above. ---
**Author:** ![Irnazar](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/gramps.discourse.group/irnazar/32/6134_2.png) [@Irnazar](https://gramps.discourse.group/u/Irnazar)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2026, 3:32pm UTC](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/changing-genealogical-symbols-on-grampsweb-version/6175/6 "2026-01-31T15:32:30Z")
Local solution: Replacing Birth/Death symbols with neutral alternatives Hello Gramps Web community! I wanted to share a local modification made to Gramps Web that others with similar needs might find interesting or useful. While working on my family tree, I found that the default symbols in Gramps Web (✝ for death, \* for birth) does not match our pedigree. The real challenge: mixed heritage families Here’s the practical problem many of us face: in a single family tree, we often have ancestors of different faiths and cultures. To implement religion-specific symbols properly, we would need to: 1. Add a “religion/faith” field for every person 2. Create a mapping system: religion → symbol 3. Handle cases of changed beliefs during a lifetime 4. Decide what to show for agnostics/atheists 5. Account for interfaith marriages and children 6. … My solution bypasses this complexity entirely by using universally neutral symbols. I replaced the symbols with maximally neutral, logical choices for the digital age: / = birth (the opening “bracket” of life) \ = death (the closing “bracket” of life) Example: BEFORE: John Doe \* 1900 † 1980 AFTER: John Doe / 1900 \ 1980 Why these symbols work well 1. Culturally & Religiously neutral – no associations with any faith or tradition 2. Universally recognizable – ASCII characters work everywhere, in all fonts and systems 3. Logically Meaningful – `/` = start/entry, `\` = end/exit 4. Simple & Clear – Intuitive without explanation 5. Solves the mixed-family dilemma – one respectful symbol works for everyone, regardless of their beliefs Questions for the Community 1. Has anyone else faced similar issues? Do the default symbols ever feel inappropriate for your ancestors? 2. Would anyone be interested in this as an optional setting? Or is this solving a problem most people don’t have? 3. How do you handle mixed-heritage trees where ancestors had different beliefs? I’d be curious to hear others’ perspectives. The changes are minimal (just a few files). For now, this works perfectly for my needs. Here’s how it looks in the interface: ![2026-01-31_20-14-37](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/free1/uploads/gramps/original/2X/c/c3d353afa1cc13bc8bb76573eb94c1d7a3f2e25b.jpeg) ![2026-01-31_20-12-30](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/free1/uploads/gramps/original/2X/3/3c7c6ff8ab39274952033ffc5f4cf32ce2e494ff.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![comeng](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/2acd7d/32.png) [@comeng](https://gramps.discourse.group/u/comeng)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2026, 6:21pm UTC](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/changing-genealogical-symbols-on-grampsweb-version/6175/7 "2026-01-31T18:21:13Z")
Why use symbols at all “b” and “d” meet all your requirements without introducing more symbols. phil ---
**Author:** ![Netuser-Py](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/gramps.discourse.group/netuser-py/32/5884_2.png) [@Netuser-Py](https://gramps.discourse.group/u/Netuser-Py)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2026, 8:28pm UTC](https://gramps.discourse.group/t/changing-genealogical-symbols-on-grampsweb-version/6175/8 "2026-09-19T20:28:25Z")
Hello All, I have been working on my own family tree migration on to the generic [grampshub.com](http://grampshub.com) platform. I totally agree that the existing symbols do not work for everyone. I would support the generic / date \ date and it looks like this could be implemented under the updates in v 5.1 [https://gramps-project.org/wiki/index.php/Customize\_the\_Genealogical\_Symbols\_lookup\_table](https://gramps-project.org/wiki/index.php/Customize_the_Genealogical_Symbols_lookup_table) This seem to operate at the implementation/server level with customized or self hosed versions of Gramps. Can these options be made available to the online administrator using the GrampsHub fnctions?