Per stirpes is a legal way of designating life insurance beneficiaries. It means "by branch" in Latin. Using that term will pass the death benefit onto your beneficiary's descendants, if the named beneficiary had predeceased the insured person. Otherwise, the death benefit would be split up among the remaining beneficiaries.
E.g. If you have designated your three grown daughters as primary beneficiaries, and you want the death benefit to go to your daughters' children if any of your daughters are deceased at the time the policy pays out, you would state the Primary beneficiary as "“All children, equally, per stirpes”.
E.g. If you have designated your three grown daughters as primary beneficiaries, and you want the death benefit to go to your daughters' children if any of your daughters are deceased at the time the policy pays out, you would state the Primary beneficiary as "“All children, equally, per stirpes”.