Understanding the child / parent theme relationship

If you replace a template file using your child theme, then yes, your website will ignore those changes, because the child theme’s version will be loaded. There’s no way to merge the files. If you want those changes you will need to copy them into your child theme.

This fact has some important implications. If the parent theme changes dramatically enough, then the version of the template in your child theme could no longer be compatible with the parent theme. There’s nothing stopping theme authors from making incompatible updates to their parent theme, apart from best practice. However, this shouldn’t be too common. If a parent theme is ‘child theme friendly’ then the developer should avoid these types of updates.

Related Posts:

  1. Opinions and recommendations on the best barebones base theme [closed]
  2. How to move the sidebar in TwentyFifteen to the right?
  3. Override parent theme translation on child theme
  4. Starter Theme vs Parent Theme? Pros and cons
  5. How to set thumbnail image for a (child) theme
  6. Do Child-Themes automatically load the Translation from the Parent-Theme?
  7. Difference between stylesheet_directory and template_directory
  8. How to override the “inc” folder (or any folder) in a theme using child theme?
  9. Jquery in Child Theme
  10. Removing Shortcodes from Child Theme
  11. Edit theme wp_head
  12. Are custom inner theme folders in any way overridable by child themes?
  13. How to avoid loading style.css twice in child-theme?
  14. Remove action within a class in a parent theme from the child theme
  15. Getting rid of unused css directives [closed]
  16. Override parent theme translation on child theme
  17. Child-theme breaks site
  18. get_header(‘header2’) not working properly in child themes
  19. Is it possible to use child theme of child them?
  20. Change logo on each page of University Hub theme [closed]
  21. How do I copy my Parent Templates to my Child Templates?
  22. Can I create multiple instances of the BuddyPress Activity Stream with separate themes? [closed]
  23. Can’t Install Child Theme “The parent theme is missing. Please install the “Default” parent theme.”
  24. Can I rename a theme’s folder and still receive updates?
  25. Child theme not visible
  26. Overwriting templates in child theme and performance
  27. Themes—Child Themes
  28. How to load parent theme style.css?
  29. Child theme not using parent theme css/styles/formatting?
  30. Child Style.css not overriding parent theme style located in assets/css/main.css
  31. Does theme update also update a child theme zip
  32. What is the major difference between child theme and normal theme
  33. How does a Child Theme works?
  34. Should a child theme share the same theme options row as the parent, or should it have it’s own options row?
  35. Creating new templates in child themes breaks layout
  36. How to create child theme of already active and customized theme
  37. Inject widgets from one sidebar into another with PHP
  38. Where all are child themes recorded when they are created in WordPress
  39. I have some doubts regarding how to implement child theme
  40. How do I get rid of or change the footer in my child theme?
  41. How to change only one javascript function in wordpress child theme?
  42. Mobile issue – website isn’t properly detecting screen size [closed]
  43. Edited Child Theme’s “header.php” but it doesn’t appear to change the file
  44. Updating my free theme delete all my changes [closed]
  45. Switching to a child theme
  46. Getting 503 on various files
  47. Port existing Bootstrap site to WordPress?
  48. Do not show one specific widget on one specific page
  49. How can we hide the parent’s theme url at the child themes details on a multisite?
  50. Is it possible to create child themes using the WordPress Dashboard?
  51. how do i in ignore/disable/delete a javascript call from parent in child theme?
  52. Can I create a child theme from a premium theme without losing my posts and page etc that I already have?
  53. Enqueue custom css file on specific page
  54. Child theme’s stylesheet cannot load [closed]
  55. Color Options from Theme Customizer API not returning via get_theme_mod()
  56. Creating a child-theme: CSS not loading
  57. simplified explanation on child themes?
  58. How to override theme class function to child theme? [closed]
  59. What’s the default order used by WordPress to load CSS files?
  60. The requested theme does not exist. Stylesheet is missing – error after changing style.css name to my-styles.css in wp child theme?
  61. Why submenu item’s background color is not changing by css?
  62. How to add custom JS file in WordPress Child theme with get_theme_file_uri
  63. How can I remove all traces of a theme?
  64. WordPress activate theme error $pagenow
  65. Theme update deleted my custom page
  66. Updating WordPress Theme Files
  67. Child theme looks different from parent theme, and incorrectly displays parts
  68. Homepage showing a simple listing of title, featured image, then posted on
  69. Where did my Theme Editor go?
  70. WordPress Theme Breaking on Migration to Live Site [closed]
  71. Switching among theme customizations
  72. Child theme not activating despite success message
  73. How do I bring a page template into a new theme with separate styling?
  74. My theme is adding an unmatched end tag and outputting it to my screen
  75. Minor changes on theme per subdomain – same contents
  76. How to customize a section of a widget only on certain pages or page
  77. Custom homepage with recent blog posts
  78. Where to find child themes?
  79. Why does WordPress Editor Only Use Half the Box?
  80. Strange Theme Error – parent style occasionally showing though child theme
  81. How to allow users to switch to the child theme from front end without plugin?
  82. adding a unique page to an existing site
  83. How do you make your theme Child Theme-able? [duplicate]
  84. How to create a second index.php?
  85. Child theme after CSS modification
  86. Overwrite template-tags.php in child theme
  87. Divi theme including javascript
  88. how to add dynamic footer credit in Greatmag theme [closed]
  89. Obtaining the original unchanged Theme [closed]
  90. Why does twentysixteen take a free hand in dealing with longstanding usability principles? [closed]
  91. Remove Google Fonts from parent theme within a child theme [closed]
  92. Check if style is declared in child theme from within parent theme. if so, use that style in parent theme
  93. Custom Theme Additonal CSS “” are transformed to “&gt” and “&lt”
  94. How to style the post previews/links without it affecting the main posts?
  95. LESS not working in WordPress [closed]
  96. How to change wordpress gutenberg editor font to match default theme font?
  97. How to use my .mo file in the Divi child theme instead of file in a parent /builder directory?
  98. How to fix Gutenberg with SiteOrigin page builder deleting content when editing
  99. What security risk is not having “default” theme?
  100. Blocking Google Fonts in wordpress website