Right around Thanksgiving I ordered DNA tests from 23andMe for both Mr. Ferrero Rocher and I. We were just curious to see what our genetic make-up was and, in my case, to see how diverse it is. It’s no secret we both love our ancestors and as much as possible tell our children their stories. We thought knowing some ancestral DNA would make our family tree even more fun. Take a look at my ancestral DNA breakdown below.
This first graph shows my global resolution – the basic areas of the world where my DNA comes from.
On the right you can see the basic percentage of my DNA make-up, mostly European but there is a much higher Native American than I thought! In researching more I learned it is not uncommon for Latinos to have a high Native American DNA percentage. When I change the view to Regional Resolution I get a more detailed breakdown of my ancestral DNA.
Now I can see most of my European DNA comes from Northern Europe with a tiny fraction of Ashkenazi Jew. The nonspecific means that the DNA comes from Europe but isn’t specific to any one region. Same thing with the East Asian & Native American. 10.2% is specifically Native American the rest is common in both peoples.
The 2.8% Sub-Saharan African is also very interesting. We were guessing I would have some African in my DNA mostly because the Moors would travel across the Mediterranean Sea and try to invade Spain or kidnap slaves and take them back to Africa. Also there is a good chance I have Sephardic Jews in my ancestry and they would have settled there and maybe migrated back to Spain after it was safe to move back again. Something to dig deeper into for sure!
I can further see which European countries my ancestral DNA comes from when I look at the Sub-Regional Resolution. I already knew I have British ancestors and of course my paternal grandfather is from Spain or the Iberian Peninsula, where Spain and Portugal are.
Instead of a world map view I can look at my chromosomes and see which ones contain DNA from the various parts of the world. Chromosomes 3 and 4 contain the highest of the West African DNA while Chromosomes 2, 6, 11 and 16 had quite a bit of Native American DNA. Isn’t that cool to see?
One of the neatest aspects of all of this is my maternal mitochondrial DNA. Go ahead and click on that link to learn about my specific haplogroup. No matter who my daughters marry or what their spouses’ ancestry are my daughters will pass on this mtDNA to their daughters, and their daughters will pass it on to their daughters just as I have inherited it from my mother, who received it from her mother, and so on.
I want to know more about the Native American composition. Actually, I think Mr. Ferrero Rocher is even more curious than I am, if that’s possible. Can it be traced to a specific tribe? I know that Family Tree DNA can show more specific results so we are contemplating getting that DNA test as well.
Mr. FR’s results weren’t as flavorful. ☺ He is 99.9% European with 0.1% unassigned. Most of his ancestral DNA is British & Irish with a tiny fraction of Scandinavian, French, and German.
Using DNA is becoming more and more popular among genealogists. It can give clues to one’s ancestry when you become stuck. It is also helpful for those who are adopted to find out more about their ancestral roots. I have a friend who is using ancestral DNA to help her adopted Chinese daughters find out more about where they come from. With 23andMe you are also able to connect with distant relatives 2nd – 5th cousins to learn more about different branches of your family tree.
Have you gotten a DNA test? Were you surprised by an of the results?
P.S. This is not a paid endorsement for 23andMe. It is the company we used and were so happy with the results I couldn’t help but blog about it!
That is so cool. I am adopted so I should totally do something this. But I’m also super white so I wouldn’t be surprised if I was like, 99% polar bear.
I was just thinking it would be neat for someone who was adopted to have this testing done.
I never knew this could be done. So interesting.
How interesting! I have also considered doing this, but I can’t decide between the different companies…23andMe, Family Tree DNA, or Ancestry.com…Do you mind if I ask you how you decided to go with 23andMe?
I had a hard time deciding which company to use too! In the end we decided on 23andMe because we were also going to do the health analysis they offered. Then they stopped because of an issue with the FDA. This was after we bought the kit. They offered us a complete refund but in the end we decided to stick with them anyway. The prices of all DNA companies are pretty close together.
Here is a DNA Testing Comparison chart that might be helpful. You can see what each offers or doesn’t and decide which one would be best for you. I will be ordering a kit from Family Tree DNA to see if we can get a more specific Native American DNA.
That is so neat. I think ours would be similar to yours. Mine – England/Ireland and my husband’s – Mexico and Spain. It would be fun to see though.
I have been thinking about doing this. We have 2 adopted children and they would love to know their backgrounds. I was looking at the DNA tests from Ancestry.Com. Do you know anything about theirs?
Oh, sorry, I don’t know anything about Ancestry.com’s DNA testing.
Wow. This is fascinating! My mom is a super genealogist. She hasn’t done this herself, but has been finding more info lately based on dna stuff others have done. Cool to think of the doors and research paths this might open to help people find their families. Super exciting (although, yes, you have some fun blood in you . . . mine would likely be similar to your husband’s).
You are a stew, and he is vanilla ice cream for dessert!
Hi, 23andme does not register Sephardic Judaism in their tests. The scores they assign for Native American is always much lower. When siblings test, unless they are identical twins, DNA genes are never alike, only by 50 % as you know. I did this test. Lucas Martin at DNA@dnatribes.com will give you a good ancestral clarification if you zip him results on DNA, but the fee is paid first and if you had the names, birthplaces of all four grandparents, then there is a discount. I know he gives discounts during holidays, like cinco de mayo. I do not know if there is a special on St. Patrick’s Day. I tested at 23andme and I am maternal A2 and Paternal G2a. If you get the test at the dnatribes.com (ask when there will be a discount), you will have test results based on 23andme test, but using more research that will breakdown your ancestral lands more and it is a beautiful test with over 20 or over 30 pages. I thought this info might help you. Thanks for sharing. Annette
Thanks so much for the great information, Annette! I will look into DNATribes and see if that’s something I’d like to do. So far, it sounds like it is.
I bought the DNA Tribes SNP and got my results already!
My Native American was mostly Maya Mexico, Aymara La Paz Bolivia, and Totonac Mexico. Very cool! Thank you so much for your recommendation!
PS May I ask what your maternal haplogroup is? Mine is Native American, A2 and paternal is from the Russian Caucuses, G2a. Thanks. Annette
My maternal haplogroup is B2 a sub group of B4’5 which is most common today among Native Americans of the U.S. Southwest and northern Mexico. It is also found in Polynesians and Han Chinese.
None of my brothers or my dad have tested yet so I don’t know the paternal haplogroup.
There’s a link in the post to a page explaining my maternal haplogroup. It’s right under the last photo with my chromosomal DNA ancestral map.
There are DNA companies that charge hundreds. I like 23andme best, but I did follow ancestral with dantribes,com. Oh, I strongly recommend it. There are individual tests on Native America and other tribes. In order to know your father’s ancestral group a brother, if not your dad or his father should test. My brother tested for mine. I have been using 23andme, DNAtribes.com and Dr. Doug McDonald and have tested others in my family. Glad you did yours. It helped me greatly with the health issues and inherited conditions.
Very cool!! The chromosome “map” is quite interesting too. I also have Native American ancestry as well. My great-grandmother was born in Chiapas, Mexico. I believe that’s where my Native American ancestry is from. I also belong to the same haplogroup as you do – B4’5. How cool is that?
I am also B2 haplogroup I am from Peru but so many people moved to Peru.