---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think history is inextricably linked to…"
description: "\"I think history is inextricably linked to identity. If you don't know your history, if you don't know your family, who are you?\" — Mary Pipher"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f5/mary-pipher-10060_family_i-think-history-is-inextricably-linked-t_304919.png"
---

#  I think history is inextricably linked to identity. If you…

![“I think history is inextricably linked to identity. If you don't know your history, if you don't know your family, who are you?” quote by Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f5/mary-pipher-10060_family_i-think-history-is-inextricably-linked-t_304919.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f5/mary-pipher-10060_family_i-think-history-is-inextricably-linked-t_304919.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f5/mary-pipher-10060_family_i-think-history-is-inextricably-linked-t_304919.png)

> “I think history is inextricably linked to identity. If you don't know your history, if you don't know your family, who are you?”

[Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Understanding personal history and family roots is essential for personal identity and self‑knowledge.

**In simple terms:** Know your past to know yourself.

Key Takeaway

Explore your heritage and family stories.

Themes

identity history self‑discovery

Mood

thoughtful introspective

Type

psychological inspirational

When to use this quote

- genealogy research
- family therapy
- personal journaling

Key Concepts

Psychology cultural heritage

Questions to Reflect On

- What parts of your history feel unknown?
- How does family shape your sense of self?

A Different Perspective

People may resist confronting painful histories.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Identity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/identity/) [Our family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/our-family/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/)

## Related quotes

> [If you are active online or texting, there is a good chance I could look at what you do and know more about you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-cuban/if-you-are-active-online-or-texting-there-is-a-good-chance-i-could/)

[Mark Cuban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-cuban/)

> [When you are in a new country, and you are alone and know that your family don't stay here, it is not simple.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-conte/when-you-are-in-a-new-country-and-you-are-alone-and-know-that-your/)

[Antonio Conte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-conte/)

> [I know enough of the family life of officers. I scarcely know my own children or they me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zachary-taylor/i-know-enough-of-the-family-life-of-officers-i-scarcely-know-my-own/)

[Zachary Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zachary-taylor/)

> [I know for my family, the only question that we will be answering is how many people are in our home. We won't be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michele-bachmann/i-know-for-my-family-the-only-question-that-we-will-be-answering-is/)

[Michele Bachmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michele-bachmann/)

> [Every family has chinks in their armour. I don't know of any family that is perfect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shefali-shah/every-family-has-chinks-in-their-armour-i-don-t-know-of-any-family/)

[Shefali Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shefali-shah/)

> [I know, as a family, we'll continue to learn from one another, making each other wiser and stronger by sharing lessons not just from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-germanotta/i-know-as-a-family-we-ll-continue-to-learn-from-one-another-making/)

[Cynthia Germanotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-germanotta/)

> [I hang around a core group of people, a small group of people. They've been around me for a long time. They know my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-rendon/i-hang-around-a-core-group-of-people-a-small-group-of-people-they-ve/)

[Anthony Rendon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-rendon/)

> [Love and this close-knit family structure really helped to give me the confidence. To know that you have family to go back to is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauryn-hill/love-and-this-close-knit-family-structure-really-helped-to-give-me/)

[Lauryn Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauryn-hill/)

> [“Chil', there things in this world you don't know about yet. We your family, that never change. Even when you find a white boy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-grissom/chil-there-things-in-this-world-you-don-t-know-about-yet-we-your/)

[Kathleen Grissom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-grissom/)

> [A family can be the bane of one's existence. A family can also be most of the meaning of one's existence. I don't know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keri-hulme/a-family-can-be-the-bane-of-one-s-existence-a-family-can-also-be-most/)

[Keri Hulme](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keri-hulme/)

> [ The overall goal \[of counseling\] is to help family members become 'systems experts' who could know \[their\] family system so well that the family… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-bowen/the-overall-goal-of-counseling-is-to-help-family-members-become/)

Murray Bowen

> [“And you don't even know my family. We're like rabies, we fester, make you go crazy, and most of the time, my mother is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/inda-herwood/and-you-don-t-even-know-my-family-we-re-like-rabies-we-fester-make/)

Inda Herwood

> [I know who in the family is a great cook. I know where the great recipes are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irma-s-rombauer/i-know-who-in-the-family-is-a-great-cook-i-know-where-the-great/)

[Irma S. Rombauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irma-s-rombauer/)

> [If you don't know what your family stands for and what your life situation is, you're in trouble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-lencioni/if-you-don-t-know-what-your-family-stands-for-and-what-your-life/)

[Patrick Lencioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-lencioni/)

> [People really care about Kim Kardashian: they know her, they watch her, they follow her on social media, they know about her whole family.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perez-hilton/people-really-care-about-kim-kardashian-they-know-her-they-watch-her/)

[Perez Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perez-hilton/)

## More by Mary Pipher

> [Teenage girls are extremists who see the world in black-and- white terms, missing shades of gray. Life is either marvelous or notworth living. School…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/teenage-girls-are-extremists-who-see-the-world-in-black-and-white/)

[Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/)

> [We live in a world filled with language. Language imparts identity, meaning, and perspective to our human community. Writers are either polluters or part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/we-live-in-a-world-filled-with-language-language-imparts-identity/)

[Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/)

> [“Finally I teach the joys of altruism. Many adolescent girls are self-absorbed. It's not a character flaw, it's a developmental stage. Nonetheless, in makes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/finally-i-teach-the-joys-of-altruism-many-adolescent-girls-are-self/)

[Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/)

> [“It's virtually impossible in America to be heavy and feel good about oneself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/it-s-virtually-impossible-in-america-to-be-heavy-and-feel-good-about/)

[Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/)

> [If there's a therapist who wants a writing project, I think there's a need for a book about how the culture affects the mental…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/if-there-s-a-therapist-who-wants-a-writing-project-i-think-there-s-a/)

[Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/)

> [We tend to value military heroes and Schwarzenegger types who are physically courageous. The heroics of doing the right thing every day even when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/we-tend-to-value-military-heroes-and-schwarzenegger-types-who-are/)

[Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/)

> [People come here penniless but not cultureless. They bring us gifts. We can synthesize the best of our traditions with the best of theirs.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/people-come-here-penniless-but-not-cultureless-they-bring-us-gifts-we/)

[Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/)

> [“Young men need to be socialized in such a way that rape is as unthinkable to them as cannibalism.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/young-men-need-to-be-socialized-in-such-a-way-that-rape-is-as/)

[Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/)

> [Something dramatic happens to girls in early adolescence. Just as planes and ships disappear mysteriously into the Bermuda Triangle, so do the selves of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/something-dramatic-happens-to-girls-in-early-adolescence-just-as/)

[Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/)

> [Adolescence is when girls experience social pressure to put aside their authentic selves and to display only a small portion of their gifts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/adolescence-is-when-girls-experience-social-pressure-to-put-aside/)

[Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/)

> [Therapy isn't Radio.We don't need to constantly fill the air with sounds. Sometimes, when its quite, surprising things happen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/therapy-isn-t-radio-we-don-t-need-to-constantly-fill-the-air-with/)

[Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/)

> [“The battle for popularity is won, but the war for respect as a whole person is lost.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/the-battle-for-popularity-is-won-but-the-war-for-respect-as-a-whole/)

[Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/)

> [Real friends require honesty, openness, and even vulnerability. They also require attention and simple acts of kindness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/real-friends-require-honesty-openness-and-even-vulnerability-they/)

[Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/)

> [I think anorexia is a metaphor. It is a young woman's statement that she will become what the culture asks of its women, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/i-think-anorexia-is-a-metaphor-it-is-a-young-woman-s-statement-that/)

[Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/)

> [“Simone de Beauvoir believed adolescence is when girls realize that men have the power and that their only power comes from consenting to become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/simone-de-beauvoir-believed-adolescence-is-when-girls-realize-that/)

[Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/)

[Explore all 68 Mary Pipher quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/)

## More Family quotes

> [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/)

[Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/)

> [One can put some trust in the gratitude of a sovereign, and also in that of his family; under certain conditions, one can even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-von-bismarck/one-can-put-some-trust-in-the-gratitude-of-a-sovereign-and-also-in/)

[Otto von Bismarck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-von-bismarck/)

> [Social responsibility above the level of family, or at most of tribe, requires imagination-- devotion, loyalty, all the higher virtues -- which a man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/social-responsibility-above-the-level-of-family-or-at-most-of-tribe/)

[Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/)

> [“ever day Maureen is Selfish To her friend and Family One she get mad at her friend and family and She need to Grad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-andeson/ever-day-maureen-is-selfish-to-her-friend-and-family-one-she-get-mad/)

Maureen Andeson

> [Our concept of a family holiday was going to a guest house in the Lake district or Wales where walking was part of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-bannister/our-concept-of-a-family-holiday-was-going-to-a-guest-house-in-the/)

[Roger Bannister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-bannister/)

> [“So Jace is my actual family," Kit said. "But I can't go live with him, because him and his hot girlfriend are going off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/so-jace-is-my-actual-family-kit-said-but-i-can-t-go-live-with-him/)

[Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/)

> [I have friends and family that identify as LGBTQ.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-mace/i-have-friends-and-family-that-identify-as-lgbtq/)

[Nancy Mace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-mace/)

> [Her dignity consists in being unknown to the world; her glory is in the esteem of her husband; her pleasures in the happiness of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/her-dignity-consists-in-being-unknown-to-the-world-her-glory-is-in/)

[Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/)

> [It's not just that families can't buy a home or start a business without some savings tucked away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cooper/it-s-not-just-that-families-can-t-buy-a-home-or-start-a-business/)

[Jim Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cooper/)

> [“She knew how to play him so very well. He slipped his hand around hers. "Friends," he repeated roughly. Her smile was bright enough…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-smith/she-knew-how-to-play-him-so-very-well-he-slipped-his-hand-around-hers/)

[Kathryn Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-smith/)

> [As a family, we all loved the Flyers. To me, rooting for the Flyers were how I bonded with my dad especially.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-f-goldberg/as-a-family-we-all-loved-the-flyers-to-me-rooting-for-the-flyers-were/)

[Adam F. Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-f-goldberg/)

> [The people have always been family to me here in Las Vegas. The people have always been very, very kind to me, and it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-cunningham/the-people-have-always-been-family-to-me-here-in-las-vegas-the-people/)

[Randall Cunningham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-cunningham/)

> [“Your relationship with your brother will be, in many ways, the most complex and bewildering of all the interpersonal connections you will form. An…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-currie-jr/your-relationship-with-your-brother-will-be-in-many-ways-the-most/)

[Ron Currie Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-currie-jr/)

> [I've long believed one of the mainsprings of our own liberty has been the widespread ownership of property among our people and the expectation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/i-ve-long-believed-one-of-the-mainsprings-of-our-own-liberty-has-been/)

[Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/)

> [Family over friends, because real friends are family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/family-over-friends-because-real-friends-are-family/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

[Browse all 36,913 Family quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I think history is inextricably linked to identity. If you don't know your history, if you don't know your family, who are you?",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Mary Pipher"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/i-think-history-is-inextricably-linked-to-identity-if-you-don-t-know/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Family"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/i-think-history-is-inextricably-linked-to-identity-if-you-don-t-know/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f5/mary-pipher-10060_family_i-think-history-is-inextricably-linked-t_304919.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f5/mary-pipher-10060_family_i-think-history-is-inextricably-linked-t_304919.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f5/mary-pipher-10060_family_i-think-history-is-inextricably-linked-t_304919.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I think history is inextricably linked to identity. If you don't know your history, if you don't know your…” — Mary Pipher",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Mary Pipher",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I think history is inextricably linked...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/i-think-history-is-inextricably-linked-to-identity-if-you-don-t-know/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/i-think-history-is-inextricably-linked-to-identity-if-you-don-t-know/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
