noun

extraction

A person's family or ethnic origin.

The author is of Korean extraction.

Etymology

Extraction literally involves drawing something out. Its ancestry sense concerns the stock from which people are drawn or derived, hence their family or ethnic origin.

More examples

Her grandparents were of Polish extraction.
The essay explores his mixed extraction.
Several families of Irish extraction settled nearby.

Forms

extraction

Similar words

ancestry: Directly emphasizes family descent.
heritage: Includes inherited traditions as well as family background.