Ancestry.com DNA testing

We must be watching the same TV show with the same commercials. I want to do it too. There is also 23 and me, I think. I am curious about my background.

Ancestry.com is run by a cult. Do you want a cult to have your DNA information? Use 23 and Me instead.

relative did 23 and me, put him in contact with some distant relatives. think it may be cheaper than ancestry

how do you test for "reliability" if it says you're .5% neanderthal? seriously

I did 23andme. It was kind of neat but pretty vague. It tells you percentages like 60% northern european 1% sub saharan african etc. As far as matching with relatives, if you opt into their database you can connect with other people who also have but it is all like 6th cousins so they're total strangers.

Don't! It's a scam overseen by the Church of Latter Day Saints. Their plan is to steadily take control of the US government. Possession of an extensive DNA database is a powerful weapon.

Mormon company.

I'm from Canada and my brother and mother sent her DNA to be analyzed over to some place in Ireland for $150. I wondered why they couldn't find some place closer.

All those Autosomal DNA tests do is compare your DNA results to sample ethnic populations. They are only rough estimates. You are better off just researching your family tree and seeing where your ancestors descended from.

What difference does it make? Even sons and daughters of brilliant or beautiful people don't usually have their traits. We are mostly shaped by the individual genes we inherit and the culture we are raised in. So what if some other ethnic group contributed genes long ago? It tells you nothing about who you are.

I considered it but decided not to do it because in the terms you have to agree to you have to give them the right to resell your DNA to third parties. Fuck that. Ancestry.ca can get paid by me or the third party I'm not signing off on them doing both.

I meant 'you have to agree to give them the right to resell your DNA to third parties. '

And the need to do this is?

"Of the major companies, organizations and sites, the only three, as best I can tell, that do not share or sell your autosomal DNA (or reserve the right to do so) and specifically state that they do not are National Geographic’s Genographic Project , Family Tree DNA and GedMatch."

Rubbish. One need only stroll through the National Portrait Gallery.

R13) Good info.

I have used 23andme. The results are fascinating. It is pretty amazing that you can have your genes sequenced for $100. They use your results and voluntary surveys to do research, if you agree. I learned I am predisposed to want to physically harm someone when they make loud chewing noises.

My father was adopted, and I've have several people show up as 2nd and 3rd cousins. They are all from the area where my father was adopted (Wisconsin in 1918). We have been in contact.

If you have the money, you should do it. I don't have a good understanding of genetics, but 23 and me has a lot of informative articles and it is an enjoyable field of self study.

23andme has patented tests that will factor into eugenics and designer babies, eventually. 23andme is evil.

Ancestry has the absolutely largest pool, so if you're looking to find matches, use Ancestry. It also has the resources you would need to build your tree (censuses, draft records, SSDI).

FamilyTreeDNA is the purest, most scientific (and is partnered with NatGeo). They offer mitochondrial and Y DNA tests as well as autosomal.

Autosomal tests cannot do more than provide rough estimates of ethnicity. It's still interesting, but the regions are large (British Isles vs Liverpool). Finding relatives is the other benefit.

I've used Ancestry and FTDNA and had more matching success at Ancestry due to the larger pool. However, if you need to drill down into the data more (segments, centimorgans) FamilyTree is better. Plus the mitochondrial and Y DNA tests are useful and interesting.

My father was adopted, too, and using Ancestry matches and research, I've figured out who his parents were. His newly discovered half brother is visiting next month.

My 23andme profile was pretty accurate. Found out I'm not so much Italian as thought. Only about 20%. The rest is an interesting mix. Oh I've got northern European, and Iberian, and Ashkenazi. And 2.5% Neanderthal which explains my delight in fucking shit up and breaking things.

Then of course in the haplotypes there's a guy in Ireland of all places that's almost a dead match for me. Now I know I have a half brother who was born in Scotland. I gotta wonder if that might be him.

Oh and the best part - I found out how the Native American got into my DNA too. Apparently some of my ancestors didn't like the predominant society and so went native. And that ancestry goes back to the 17th century in New England.

Thank you R11. I'm very curious but I'm also suspicious of handing over my DNA because you lose all control once you do. But them clearing the way to sell it by getting the release confirms that it is a bad idea.

no, 23&me. See the youtube vids, especially adopted Asian people.

I'm black and so I'm pretty sure that there is only so far I can go back with an ancestry search. But I am curious about my ethnic makeup and that's why I'm interested.

R8, people had affairs and nobody talked about adoption years ago. Good for understanding potential health problems.

The African American result Youtube vids are wild! I try to predict and am usually right. The best part? Most US blacks have not just white genes but really white genes, lots of Scandinavian. Their faces! Cut to DeShawn with a laurel wreath lit with candles on his crown this coming holiday season. So damned Swedish that DeShawn.

No really, search Youtube and see the amount of Norwegian/Swedish genes running through so many US African Americans. Bet they'd love to go over to Sweden and burn those Muslim interlopers to the ground for fucking with THEIR heritage. Charter jet, anyone?

[quote]I'm black and so I'm pretty sure that there is only so far I can go back with an ancestry search. But I am curious about my ethnic makeup and that's why I'm interested.

R22, Ancestry is really good when it comes to African American ancestry. They've done a neat job compiling that information into their database to give you breakdowns of specific areas.

Where they lack is "Native American" which will show up anywhere on the North or South American Continents with no specific areas.

R22) I haven't done Ancestry, but my cousin did Nat'l Geo. We're black, and they were able to trace back to the tribe.

I'm a chick, and I wonder does it matter on the gender of the DNA donor. I heard it does.

Who would these companies sell your DNA info to?

What would anybody want with your DNA information??

R28 in case you're serious, imagine if insurance companies knew which applicants were predisposed to develop expensive diseases and had the option of rejecting their application, or putting them in a more expensive "at risk" category...

I will never do it, hacking ur DNA is the latest thing

My sister did it and found out she is part Finnish. I am extremely fair by comparison, have hazel-green eyes, and was dirty blond as a child. From the youngest age everyone thought I was adopted. Now I know why as I must have gotten a much, much larger share of Finnish DNA. Who knew?

I will never do it either, mainly for the reason r29 posits.

Imagine if there is another Hitler. No thanks. Imagine if a new Hitler wanted your DNA. I don't like it that they can sell your DNA. Besides, maybe some things I want to remain a mystery to me. That, and I don't want some person knocking on my door saying they are a long-lost cousin.

R28, to insurance companies! Ur so fucking stupid.

There was a movie about this starring Jude law ages ago, at least15 years ago, think it was called gattica

Gattaca (1997)

Futuristic tale of only "gene-pure" folks allowed to emigrate off the planet. State-controlled discrimination by DNA. Ethan Hawke was the lead, Law played a man whose DNA Hawke wanted, to use to get in the off-planet liners. Uma Thurman was the love interest. Good movie.

I did 23andme and have allowed them to use my DNA for research. I've dealt with debilitating depression and figure if it can aid someone someday, all the better. I refuse to live in fear of a fucking insurance company.

The "you are likely to" bit sounds a lot like astrological personality typing. Generalizations anyone could identify with - or not.

Willingly turning over your DNA (for whatever purpose) and not being sure what happens to the data about you that it reseals is just asking for trouble in our future dystopia.

Then again, there are millions of people who tell ALL their business on Facebook and post nude pix of themselves on the Internet, so I guess letting a health insurance company predict what diseases they will get (and charging accordingly) means NOTHING to them.

You are not protected by HIPPA laws when you send your DNA off to these ancestry companies.

You have no recourse with what they do with your data.

Do some of you realize that a person can get your DNA just by shaking your hand?

Yes, but why make it easy for them, r41?

Pinhead!

It just pisses me off that I'm paying the company to resell my dna and make money off me again.

It's one thing for someone to secretly acquire my DNA , it is quite another for me to sign the rights to my DNA away and willingly hand it over to them.

i did it and I think I posted my results here in DL on a different thread a few months ago. I do recommend it because the results can be very surprising,for example, I was born in cuba but all my grandparents were spanish from galicia and the canary islands. I was surprise to see that my dna was more than 50 % iberan and british island plus 2% of what they call trace region that belongs to north africa and italy/greece. the thing is that I dont know any British in my family tree,well it turns out that everyday I'm getting more and more people that matches my dna,most of them distant cousins who are showed as"moderate" and they are surprisingly all from England,I also have a lot of people frorm latin america,spain,italy and portugal. now I currently have like 25 people who appear as extremely high and high. So far they don't seem interested in writing to me with the exception of two people I'm already in contact with ,so I do not communicate with them either. your relatives appear in your page and you can see how much dna you have in common with them,those who appear as extremely high are those with whom you share the most dna and the certainty that you have a common ancestor is 100%.

Thanks to one of my contacts I learned that my great-great-great grandfather in galicia had a wife and had five kids with that woman,the kids all die of listeria, then he got married again with my great great great grandmother who was 17 years old and he was 50,and they had 12 kids together.This story was proven by the birth and marriage records,which you can also get from ancestry if you pay.I don't know how they manage to have access to those records in Spain but they actually do, and on the other hand, my other relative that I'm getting to know, is a very good looking gay guy who lives in new york. I have a bunch ofgood looking guys as relatives,and because I'm very curious I searched their profiles on facebook,and some are straight,but to my delight some of them are also gay!!! So maybe I will contact the gays ones some day.

i get a real chuckle when my roman catholic inlaws do it and freak out when they discover their percentage "ashkenazy" and/or "sephardic" dna. all those forced (or convenient) conversions didn't change the dna.

almost as amusing as when american blacks find out how "white" they are.

i understand why people are reluctant to give their dna to these companies who could use it for nefarious purposes, but i think if more people knew how mongrelized we all are it might dissipate a lot of this "racial purity" nonsense

Here's what the results look like for. 23andMe. This is partial. I'm Latino so not really a surprise -- well the 6% ashkenazi Jewish was a surprise

very happy r45 that you have "good looking" genes in you dna, and don't want to rain on your parade, but procreation is a genetic crap shoot and beautiful people do not always produce beautiful offspring (see, "mastroianni, chiara")

How much coverage or information do they have in Mexico and other Latin American countries??

I would love to do the DNA thing but since both parents are from MX what are the chances that they could have any information from or about relatives/people there?

Their records would be beyond spotty and iffy. I'm sure they've not digitized records or anything like that there. 😉

R49 see my post at r47 -- you would probabky get something similar on 23 and Me. Most Mexicans and other Latin Americavs are a combo of Iberian and Natuve American (or some countries Iberian and African) It's not very detailed.

Your Dad just wants to see if you are really his kid.

I don't mind my DNA being used for research. It might not benefit me, but who knows in the future it might benefit someone.

"Research" -- um, yeah, OK.

But what if a health insurance company wanted the information so they could decide whether or not sell you heath insurance, and if so, what rate they would charge you based upon the information they derived about you from your "willingly donated" DNA. Sound fair?

[quote] R23: [R8], people had affairs and nobody talked about adoption years ago. Good for understanding potential health problems.

Depends on where and when, and you might be surprised. I've seen a couple different graves of adult girls from different families (including my gr-gr grandmother) that note that someone was "the adopted daughter of so-and-so". I think it was a way of giving the girls lineage, proper respect to her birth parents, and also to her adopted parents.

[quote]All those Autosomal DNA tests do is compare your DNA results to sample ethnic populations. They are only rough estimates. You are better off just researching your family tree and seeing where your ancestors descended from.

No you you are not, I did one and they are very accurate match to what I know. Researching the family tree is very time consuming and difficult. In many cases records were kept in places like churches which burned down or other disasters that destroyed paper records. Plus most will involve trying to search no English speaking country for records. Have you ever tired to do that? Old records like that are not online most of the time.

[quote]I will never do it, hacking ur DNA is the latest thing

TIN FOIL HAT. Do you avoid ATMs and Microwaves as well? And what pretell would they do with your special brand of conspiracy sperm DNA anyway? Clone more paranoids? Doubt it Tut's .

[quote] R45: Thanks to one of my contacts I learned that my great-great-great grandfather in galicia had a wife and had five kids with that woman,the kids all die of listeria, then he got married again with my great great great grandmother who was 17 years old and he was 50,and they had 12 kids together.

Is it possible he had a son or even grandson, named after himself, who married the young chick? That's common.

In my home town, there were four couples with the same first and last names, living at the same time. I had to find three graves to, by the process of elimination, identify (tentatively) my gr-gr-gr-gr grandmother's grave.

It's not just TODAY that the DNA threat is there, but what about in ten or more years? That data is out there forever.

I'm thinking of getting my parents tested but not myself

Here's a problem, if your cousins or siblings give up their DNA, it's almost as revealing as you doing so. Anyone who cares can connect you and figure out whatever they want to know.

[quote]It's not just TODAY that the DNA threat is there, but what about in ten or more years? That data is out there forever.

There's quite enough out there already about most of us. Ever have surgery? Take a blood test? Take a urine test? Brush your hair with a brush? Drink out of a glass?

You don't need a DNA company for your DNA to fall into the wrong hands. It's everywhere. An insurance company wouldn't have to go through Ancestry or another company to get it. They'd be happy to run a test themselves and charge you for it using what you've already given them.

You just can't live your life being paranoid about all of these things. As a friend of mine who works for the government put it, "No one is worried about what YOU are doing" because unless you're going out to commit a crime, most of us are not going to be on anyone's radar anytime soon.

[quote]imagine if insurance companies knew which applicants were predisposed to develop expensive diseases and had the option of rejecting their application, or putting them in a more expensive "at risk" category

Lame argument. If it ever got to that, the insurance companies would just require you to spit in a tube and take a DNA test as part of your background search for all job applicants.

In fact, it would be more accurate since they would know the DNA really came from you and went to their own test facility and not some 3rd party from somewhere on the intenet.

[quote] Gattaca (1997)Futuristic tale of only "gene-pure" folks allowed to emigrate off the planet. State-controlled discrimination by DNA

Why are you bitches so scared? And if you remember the actual moral of the story, turns out pure DNA does not determine success. It does not hold back the main character from reaching his dreams.

I didn't think there was really a moral to that movie.

My sister got tested. Found out that along with English, French, German, Dutch, Irish, Welsh, and a few others we're also Spanish and Finnish. I am thrilled to be 11% Finnish. Did some research, Finland was settled by Swedes to create a buffer state between Sweden and Russia.

I recommend 23 and ME, its not run by the Mormons. That aside, it's really great info, they lay it out really well, easy to read, even show you spots on the map where your relatives came from. They also can find the Haplogroup both your parents came from. It's a gene that gets passed down from generation to generation without being destroyed by mixing. So on one of my parents side I am in a group that goes back 20,000 years. There are whole groups of people in the internet and Facebook that hook up under the same DNA Haplogroup as a common ancestor. If you know the group, you can trace the path out of Africa. It's quite facilitating.

They also can tell you if you have any Neanderthal DNA in your background. Apparently, most of us share about 2% percent with our common ancestor. The only exception is people who remained in Africa. They never left north through Europe, ergo, they never met up and did the nasty with that big bruit.

Just be aware, its more general then people think. They will not find your long lost mother. They will not know the name of your great, great aunt. All they can say is someone in your family tree passed some genes down to you, and based on mathematical data driven productions estimate when that person may have been alive going back up to 7 generations. The only way you can find that long lost cousin is by allowing to make your results public with all the other people who took the test through that company. The more that take the test, the better chance you have at finding a new relative.

OK, Ms. Blasé @ r61 & r62-- you go right ahead.

Remember this thread.

The free Mormon website family search.org helped me tremendously putting my family tree together. I found pictures of many of my ancestors when they were young from passports photos and whatnot. Ancestry.com charges about 20 bucks a month to research U.S. records only, more for international records. Mormon people aren't all horrible.

R64, watch that move again, it has a lesson. Basically, DNA does not determine the kind of person you really will become.

[quote]OK, Ms. Blasé @ [R61] & [R62]-- you go right ahead. Remember this thread.

Who cares, I am old by DL standards. Besides, if they steal my DNA and make clones, chances are they will be gay, come right back here and troll you bitches.

"Mormon people aren't all horrible."

you do understand dearie that the reason they support all this genealogical research is so they can find their (and our) heathen ancestors and baptize them posthumously into their faith?

R40) That's not true DNA. It's skin cells, and that type of DNA is not upheld in a court of law. Since, skin cells fly everywhere, and you don't necessary have to shake hands with anyone.

I think they would use the DNA for research to create a drug to make billions. That's the obvious answer. Why would they care about the random DNA out there other than to make money?

Why are you guys so paranoid and simpletons at the same time? 99.9% of the US population has not had a DNA test. If they did like some small country opted for with a very pure bloodlines, they could find all sorts of diseases and possibly cures. Places like 23 and Me have over 1 million people who agreed to donate their results to science. They do not tie your ID to the results. Because of this high number, they can use that info to invent possible cures. Now lest say a drug company wants to do they same thing, even if they pay people to donate their DNA, a typical sample is less than 500 people. Maybe a 2,000 if they spend the money. That is still minuscule compared to millions. They have much less chance of making a real discovery or breakthrough then the group with 1 million people.

So yes, it's to make drugs that make billions of dollars. But drugs none the less that cure cancer or some other horrible disease.

Well, it isn't an exact science. It can be fun and intriguing, but it only gives you a sort of 'ball-park' estimate of your make up. But as I said it can be fun and intriguing.

[quote] R71: you do understand dearie that the reason they support all this genealogical research is so they can find their (and our) heathen ancestors and baptize them posthumously into their faith?

That is way down on the list of things I care about; however, the Mormons do consider it a gesture of well-meaning. I am perfectly happy for anybody to pray to their Gods for me, or otherwise wish me well. There certainly are enough people who wish me ill, and I prefer the former to the latter.

I'm from an old New England family. I got contacted (via DNA results) by some chick in England. Either my ancestor went back there, or she's from a branch that never left. In either event, our line split before 1650. It was just amusing swapping research with her via email for a few days.

Likewise, I have another e-friend who I occasionally swap info with (after a flurry at the start), when we come across something very cool. She found a colt revolver owned by a relative in the 1880s.

I just got contacted a few days ago by a sixth-cousin, a stranger essentially, though we share the same last name. Her ancestor went to San Quentin! It was quite a scandal, according to the newspapers!

R73, some companies you are right to be wary of. 23andme hopes to get into the eugenics game and has already filed patents in support of that goal. I do not trust 23andme and will never do business with them as they are shadier than all the shade people here are throwing at the Mormons.

Ancestry.com is great if you really want connections. It has the reference material, and the largest pool of DNA participants. Between the two, you can get a lot accomplished.

FamilyTreeDNA is all science. You can test with NatGeo and help the Human Genome project, then transfer your DNA into FTDNA. They are partners.

All of them anonymize the tests/data, as R74 notes. Your test does not go to a lab with your name associated with it. It's a number. All the data some of you are worrying about them selling is stripped of personal identifiers.

As another commenter upstream said, it'll be easier for employers or insurance companies to get that info via other means. In fact, if Congress has its way, testing might just become mandatory for coverage eligibility.

I'm a rabid genealogist. Most of your life is already chronicled, compiled, and very, very public. I have "stalked" and gathered info on lots of relatives via public records. Some of it probably shouldn't be out there (income), but it is.

Yeah, the Mormons want to posthumously claim you. So what. I doubt I'll care when I'm dead. The Catholic Church already has my soul, anyhow, and the Pope ruled that the Mormons can try but not actually successfully poach your soul (if you believe all that). Again, I doubt I'll care when I'm dead.

As a genealogist, I've been thankful for the Mormons' efforts to claim everyone. They microfilmed parish and civil registries all over the world, preserving records and making them available to all who had interest. (R45, you can probably find lots of info if you're willing to do the research.)

I spent several years and many backbreaking hours hunched over a microfilm reader at our local Family History Center, piecing together my family tree. It would not have been something I'd have been able to do were it not for those weirdos and their desire to baptize the dead. I'm grateful!

"All of them anonymize the tests/data, as [R74] notes. Your test does not go to a lab with your name associated with it. It's a number. All the data some of you are worrying about them selling is stripped of personal identifiers."

And you know this because they told you so ... ?

R53 I live in a country with free health care. I am not worried about health insurance.

We don't hire people with a sketchie genome, R52!

It's not my place to tell anyone else what they should or shouldn't be paranoid about. I just want to know my ethnic breakdown. If it comes back to bite me in the ass during the Clone Wars of the year 2121, then I'll deal with it then.

Um is there DNA in your fucking hair? Because if so I work in a salon and could sell a shit ton of fucking DNA lets get this party started.

R83, you need the root to get the DNA. I think you don't need the root to determine what they've been eating or smoking, though.

"you do understand dearie that the reason they support all this genealogical research is so they can find their (and our) heathen ancestors and baptize them posthumously into their faith?"

Thanks for the heads up, dearie, I appreciate your concern, but I'm not the least afraid of Mormons somehow stealing my ancestors souls, or changing their religion posthumously.

Nor do I have any difficulties having friendly communication with Mormons, as I am not intimidated or insulted by people who have different moral or religious beliefs as myself, because I personally do not have an inferiority complex.

I am glad my Mormon ancestors in my family tree worked hard to preserve all the information, and photos of their beautiful faces for me to see. Thanks again dearie, signed R68.

[quote] 23andme hopes to get into the eugenics game and has already filed patents in support of that goal.

R78 = Mormon

Bitch please, freaky Mormons believe they will each rule a different planet when they die. How can you trust their science if that is what they believe.

23 and me filed many patents, as do ALL the DNA places hoping to strike gold. Besides they got turned down, stop spreading Tin Foil Hat conspiracies. 23 and me is way more secure and non religious then Ancestry = Church of Latter day Saints.

DNA testing seems like something mostly white people do in the vain hope they'll find out they're part Native American or Spanish or something else a bit spicy (but not too ethnic!) so they can brag at dinner parties.

It's just kind of déclassé to me. Who cares where you came from, you're here now and your ancestors are fucking dead. Just be yourself.

R79, yes. They did tell me so, and it's legally binding. Just like every other service that aggregates and anonymizes data, they do as they say they will, because the consequences of not doing so are catastrophic/financially ruinous. You're worried about your DNA? You _should_ be worried about the data all your credit card companies, browsers, ISPs, social media platforms, etc. are collecting. Far more revealing and dangerous. And future employers will probably be after that very soon.

R86, R78=Catholic (work on your reading comprehension skills), and if you read the link you'd also know it's no tinfoil hat conspiracy. (Unless you think the LA Times is fake news?) And no, Ancestry and FTDNA have not filed such patents. And 23andme was not turned down, the PTO issued them patents for gamete selection in 2013.

I have no idea if Mormons think they're going to rule their own planets (news to me), but I can trust their science because it's the same as everyone else's science. That is the nature of science, you dumb fuck. Doesn't matter what the religious ideology of Ancestry is anymore than it does FTDNA or 23andme. 23andme's philosophical and ethical beliefs are suspect, though.

Bottom line, you do (and believe) what you want, numbskull.

Well R88 Its odd that you have some chip on your shoulder about 23 and Me but totally gloss over the cultist belief of the Mormon church. They are not apples and apples, one is a science based secular research facility with profit as part of their goal. There is nothing wrong with that. The other is a religious organization, which has been know to over step their bounds into politics and religion running a business masks as genealogy. Out of the two, the Mormon church is the only one proven to be unethical. Want an example? Google what they did to swing the gay marriage vote in California the first time. They were even taken to court over it. If you cant trust them to keep their religious beliefs inside the church, you cant trust them to be objective or ethical with guarding your DNA.

And by the way, there is nothing unethical about "designee babies". How many people chose a dog based on its breed? Its color? It's instinctive abilities? Only a fool would think a gene selection of a child will promise desired results. Everyone knows its the interment they grow up in that has a far greater impact on who they become. We cant even pick the desired sex yet.

[quote]It's just kind of déclassé to me. Who cares where you came from, you're here now and your ancestors are fucking dead. Just be yourself.

Its actually a little more complicated then that. With a DNA test you can also tell what kind of diseases you might get. There are genes for things like Alzheimer for example. 23 and Me is a test for genealogy. But, should you want to take it further (for an additional fee) they will give you the medical version as well.

How is it declasse? Dont the wealthy upper class and royals all tout their linage? It's the common people who don't know or care where they are from.

Yeah, I don't get the whole declasse thing. The wealthy tout bloodlines all the time. There are certain old line clubs and groups that won't allow you admission without a full family tree.

Because our ancestors weren't as open about things, we can now get a complete picture of who we are. And quite frankly, if you grew up thinking you were 100% Italian, but learn that you're 80 percent Native American, does it really change anything?

r77 I'm glad your experience was a good one, but I had a similar one that didn't turn out well. My y-chromosome test exactly matched about seven men in a village in Wales. I knew my father was of Welsh descent but this DNA test proved it. I was contacted by the female cousin of one of these men that I was a match to, and she wanted a complete genealogy from me going back centuries! I told her I had about nine generations done here in the U.S. on my father's side but hadn't gotten back any further. Well, the bitch threw a total fit: why hadn't I found the missing generation going all the way back to her village; all Americans were con men anyway including the American DNA company who did the testing, and on and on. She e-mailed me three times with this diatribe before I blocked her, and I then e-mailed one of her male cousins and told him if I ever found these 'missing' generations, she'd never find out about it.

R92, so, you met a nutcase. That has nothing to do with genealogy, I am sure you realize.

Nobody wants to hear about your genealogy at a coctail party. My own siblings, and nieces and nephews, don't want to hear about their own ancestry. So just forget that.

lol r92 now you know why your side of the family left wales. There was crazy on the other side.

Has anyone done both Ancestry and 23 & Me? Were the results the same?

I opened my profile in ancestry.com and I was pleasantly surprised that they changed the website. Now they added what they call genetic communities, and I was stunned to see how accentuate it is,as I wrote here my grandparents were from galicia and canary island, and they show a map of spain showing yellow circles that represent the areas were my ancestor lived. the map shows some small yellow circles in diameter scattered all around spain,but the regions of galicia,asturias and cantabria are completely yellow with big yellow circles,which means that not only was ancestry.com able to figure out the country of my ancestors but also the provinces were they were born as well.

I can say it is 100% accurate, OP. I had a seance and all of my dead relatives confirmed the results.

R55, R60, Going back to the point I made earlier, I always wondered why I looked so completely different from other family members that I was treated like an outsider from the time I was a very small child. An eldest sister's DNA testing after an ancestry conference attended with friends provided the most likely answer. She has a small amount of Finnish blood and I have much, much more. Makes sense if you look at both of us. However neither would have guessed that fact based on our own knowledge of relatives from the "old country" although they had records for several generations.

23 and Me just sold their database. Can't remember who it was to?

I did it 100% accurate

Ancestry is having a sale. $79 instead of $99. FamilyTreeDNA is terrific, the best of all three, but if you're looking for matches with living people, Ancesty is your best bet.

Ancestry works best if you already have a tree created on their site. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to know you're German if you already told them your family is from Berlin.

I did Ancestry DNA and the results placed me overwhelmingly (66%) in England and Scotland -- that is purer than a native living there now-- so I am thinking of doing LivingDNA next as they are UK based and break things down more specifically.

Yesterday, I drop some coins on Ancestry, because they were running a sale. They say they don't sell your DNA and no identifying info is linked to your DNA. Plus, they destroy it.

RE 22 ancestry is particularly helpful for african americans. People did not talk about slavery and the aftermath so it is hard to link back through slave masters etc. We were able to find the missing link in my family through ancestry. The key is to couple the DNA with your tree. and then share your tree with other people of close dna. It really helps fill in the gaps.

R106) Thanks, I'm black, so that important to know. My cousin did his w/Nat Geo, so I want to compare notes.

23 and Me gives you the option to keep your info completely private, or share it with them or share it with other people on the same site. They also let you chose to have your sample destroyed after the results are given or held for 10 year of research. In theory as they discover more disease on the DNA chain, you can find out if you have that without taking the test again.

This week my father's half-brother that we discovered through Ancestry has been visiting. We had the most luck with Ancestry. We also used FamilyTreeDNA, which is great, but there are simply more people on Ancestry, so you'll make more connections. All three services will give you rough estimates, all very similar, of your ethnic composition. If that's all you want, any of them suffice and the differences are negligible. If you want to make connections, Ancestry is the clear winner. FamilyTreeDNA also offers more advanced testing options.

Yes R109 but as discussed here, Ancestry is run by a cult. AKA the Mormons.

Your bias is extreme R109.

I'm wondering how Finnish genes would give you such an odd appearance, that the family would practically ostracize you, as R99 described. Is the family otherwise genetically Chinese or something?

You don't have Finnish or English or African or whatever blood. You have Finnish or English or African or whatever alleles on your chromosomes.

There have been quite a number of studies following male chromosomes (the Y one) of African-Americans and as this can only be handed down from male ancestors, once its in the family tree, its in the family tree. The Y (male) chromosome for something like 70% of African-Americans is non- African, most often European i.e. white. Its harder to trace with X chromosomes because its a lottery which you get.

What that all means is that most African women brought to the Americas at slaves were raped or forced into agreeing to sex with overseers, which means the male descendants of their sons from those unions will always carry 'white" genes, or white y chromosome if you like, even if they never had children with another "white" person in following generations.

Don't some follow the maternal line and some paternal? They don't do both?

They do both if you are male r114 XY, women can only get their X maternal line tested, unless their father submits a sample too.

From my understanding, Ancestry only does autosomal DNA. That test looks at the 22 pairs of autosomes and not the one pair of sex chromosomes.

Meaning, they no longer look at the gender of the DNA donor. Everyone gets autosomal checked opposed to one set of sex chromosomes.

I called them, so my mom and I will need to take the test in order to separate my lineage from my maternal and paternal sides. She flatly refused, when I told her it would be like Maury Povich to reveal whether or not she's my real mother.

Unfortunately, I no longer believe I am adopted. People tell me that I look too much like my older sister, who is 19 years older than me. Hmm.. China Town anyone?

Regards 23andMe - there's one guy in Ireland whose haplogroups pretty much align with mine. I suspect it could be my half brother. You see dear old dad was in the Navy and was based in Scotland for a bit. So I suspect my brother may have migrated into Ireland. Haven't reached out yet.

You should probably research the company's data sets/reference populations. I've read that Ancestry.com has larger data sets than some of the other DNA testing companies and for that reason it tends to be the better option for non-whites (and of course whites too). I've read that this is also true for familytreedna.

Data ARE, not data IS.

Use 23 and me. Ancestry is owned by Mormons.

There is no way but no how that I am willingly handing my DNA over to anyone without a court order.

I'm an amateur genealogist, and the snipes the Mormons are totally off-base. They are singularly generous and welcoming people when you meet them at Family Research centers, which are located in their local temples. No judging, no soliciting, and they freely give you access to all the knowledge they have collected in the last 100 odd years. Ancestry.com, of course is a corporation, and therefore to be treated judiciously, but their affiliation with LDS is not a problem. And they're really GOOD at what they do. R65 Not to nitpick, but your "research" is badly flawed. Most Finns are not ethnically Swedish, or even Scandinavian. The Finnish language is nothing like Swedish -- in fact it is only linguisticallly related to Hungarian.

Of course they are welcoming and generous. They are brainwashed to be creepily happy all the time.

No R125 , a whole faith group is not creepy. Judgmental DLers throwing shade on whole classes of people is creepy. In my day that would be called bigotry. Assuming someone born into a certain religion is evil. But do go on.

I just checked my 23&me.

The feedback has changed so much. Now I'm more French'German when before they said I was more Swedish.

My 0.1% sub-Saharan African disappears and re-appears.

My brother did Ancestry and it made out we had different fathers. Then 23&me said we had the same father.

I'.m fed up with it. But glad I did it. The more relatives you can get to do it the more interesting it is.

Real DNA testing is very expensive. $100 is nothing. This is more of a superficial gimmick. Fun but not worth much.

I got a 23andme for Christmas. The cool thing was, that I connected with some relatives, I didn't know I had. You can take your genome from 23andme and upload it to My Heritage, and they will analyze it for free. The interesting thing, is that my ethnic makeup, outside of being predominately British, is very different between the two services.

Perez Hilton, right R45? That Mario guy.

There is little to no real regulation on what uses the DNA testing data can be used. Company policy regarding what they will and won't do with the data, to whom they will and won't sell it, or when and how it will be made available to law enforcement agencies can all change at the drop of a hat. Have you noticed how frequently you receive notices on changes to privacy policies from companies or changes to the credit agreement on credit cards or a host of other "changes" companies have made to their policies?

From criminal cases to insurance coverage, it may not be a good idea to have your DNA out there for purely entertainment value like finding out your ancestry.

I did 23andme. It said I was part cougar and part fox!

Ancestry and Family Tree is better.

I’ve got black in me

OP, Ancestry DNA is on sale now.

The results have significant accuracy. Before doing the DNA test, I had done extensive research into my family tree. The DNA results exactly conformed to the research I had done.

Over the course of a few years, a number of distant relatives have done the DNA testing on Ancestry. You set your own privacy settings, but many have made their results public. When they do, I get the notification. Many of the names I know. I can see that Ancestry's FNA program is correctly reading and matching the test results.

Found a half sib through 23/Me.

[quote] R135: The DNA results exactly conformed to the research I had done.

If you had a tree Ancestry, they match that up with your DNA and tailor your DNA report to show a match, which they learned about from your tree. The DNA results are not independently reported.

Ya better not be a criminal! See thie related thread:

"... snipes [at] the Mormons are totally off-base. They are singularly generous and welcoming people when you meet them"

Yeah, R124, except for the fact that they were the majority funders of the Yes on Prop 8 bill banning same-sex marriage.

My father did testing through FamilyTree. He is Scottish, but his results also showed Scandinavian and Iberian ancestry. He is trying to trace the family tree, he even hired a retired detective who now does genealogical work and went to the tiny village in the Outer Hebrides where the ancestors came from, but the records only go back so far, and the DNA test wasn't helpful in finding relatives who could fill in the blanks.

23andme seems better than Ancestry to me. As for the price, all the DNA companies have sales pretty often for holidays, so wait until mother's day and several of them will have their tests on sale for like 30% off.

I did both 23andme and Ancestry. With Ancesrty there is an ongoing account subscription fee if you want to use your DNA for genealogy research. Ancestry is the best for adoptees.

what is the one that the police use, because criminals, for some reason, think it's a good idea to put their dna in a database?

R143, for the Golden State Killer that was GEDMatch. There was no legal process protecting their samples.

However, both Ancestry and 23andMe have said they'd turn over information if they got a court order but 23andmMe said they'd "resist" it first.

Last year Ancestry got 10 requests for information from law enforcement and fulfilled 7 of those requests. They were all for identity theft.

23andMe got (this quarter) 6 requests and they gave away nothing. Keep in mind that their reports are listed quarterly and Ancestry's are listed yearly. 23andMe has gotten multiple requests in the past and some of them they have fulfilled.

Both sites have transparency reports on them.

Criminals aren't the ones using the database. The [italic]relatives[/italic] of the criminals are.

If they find DNA at a scene and they don't have someone in their CODIS database that they can match it to, they'll first get a court order and then turn to 23andMe / Ancestry and ask them to check the DNA to see if the person is related to anyone in their database.

So if they find, say, you. They'll know it wasn't you but then they'll ask since the person is related to you about your siblings, cousins, etc. They'll likely know if it's any of those or a parent from the information they get.

Totally would not rely on family tree crap. Babies switched at hospitals. Adoptees kept in the dark back then. Who knows who was sleeping with anyone then. So many stories of people believing they were one thing only to find another with testing. Fraternal twins can even have different dads. It has happened!

Looking at this dna profiling site is mind blowing. They even have it down to the region. Getting better all of the time with more people getting screened. Interesting is when someone is a variety of phenotypes.

^ Looking at all of the various ethnicities in some of those people being profiled kind of proves that mixing it up results in better looking people. Some variations just seem to work out so well together. Even America's criminals are strikingly beautiful.

R145 Were you there when the CIA laid the explosives to bring down the Twin Towers? And by the way, you're not sending a telegram where you get charged by the word. Just type full sentences.

R144, that's not correct. Given a court order, any corporation would hand over the documents demanded. The companies doing DNA testing would certainly do it, too. But they do not run tests of DNA samples against their data bases for law enforcement. And if they did, none of it would be admissible in court.

There is a site named GEDMatch, owned and operated by a genealogy non-profit organization, where people voluntarily and anonymously load their own results, fully knowing the results can be searched by other users. That's the site law enforcement has been using. It works. I found a half brother from my father's first marriage.

R65 well, your research methods need review. Finns and Swedes are unrelated. Their languages are unrelated, Finnish is so unusual, it’s only related to one other language- Estonian.

Finns are a tough, blunt warrior nation. Historically, they fought Russia to a stalemate despite being smaller. It wasn’t until the Winter War of the 20th Century when Finland fought Russia with Germany that it lost. It also lost significant territory which Russia still occupies.

r150, you're incorrect. Western Finns and Swedes are fairly closely related. However, eastern Finns are more closely related to Siberian Asians from the region near Mongolia. You're correct that the languages they speak are totally unrelated however. But the same could be said of Welsh and English - unrelated languages, but the people who live in Wales and England are closely related. The key is in what groups settled what parts of of Finland. Eastern Finland was settled by people coming up from Russia and the Baltic area as part of a big migration from the steppes and spreading into Europe from the east. Western Finland was under the reign of the Swedes for a long time, and Swedish people settled there. When the Russians took over Finland from the Swedes, and allowed the Finns to be ascendant over the Swedes, many Swedes took Finnish names and started to intermarry with Finnish people.

I'm linking a map of blue eyes and blond hair below. It's clear that all the people who carry these genes are closely related

The contrarion tiresome troll who only deflates our readers. Please shift your m.o. demoralizing.

I did it with Myheritage

If you were born in Central Indiana in the early 1980's, you might want to get yourself DNA tested.

Or, after you read the article linked, you reeeeally might not want to.

Did 23andme and the results were inconclusive. Lots of "broadly European." Also had one Italian grandfather who came straight from Italy, where his family had lived in the same small inland village for generations, but was only 9% Italian. I don't think they've worked out all of the kinks yet.

My siblings I did it and thinking we were all 100% italian , it came back 82% italian, 12% Greek , and 6% Turkish, all the results were the exact same.

My siblings and I were all variations on a theme, with different percentages in the mix. That's another reason why I think it's not precise in all instances.

Unless you have an identical twin, R155, you and you siblings each came from different eggs and from different sperm cells. Your DNA would not be the same. Variations on a theme is what you should have.

RESIST!

Thanks, r158. I do understand that. But even though the basic ethnicities were the same, the numbers were divergent enough to make us question the accuracy of the results.