Guys! Remember this post and how I decided to try DNA testing with 23andMe? Well, I got my results back! I was so excited about this. It’s amazing how easy it is. Sign up online, spit in the vial they send you, mail it back, and a month or so later, get an email back with your genetic results and breakdown of your ancestry from 31 populations around the world! My mom has always been really into lineage and we have this giant family tree book back at home… years ago, she actually went so far to trace some of our ancestors back to the Mayflower. Fun/weird fact: My parents both had ancestors on The Mayflower and my dad’s ancestor worked for my mom’s ancestor. Weird, right?
Anyway, I just think it’s really cool to know a little bit more about my roots and where I came from. I was also sort of secretly hoping for something a bit exotic in my DNA… something that would make for an interesting conversation starter. Alas, no such luck. My own DNA is 100% European, the majority of it being British + Irish! So there weren’t any big surprises there, except that I’d thought I had German in there somewhere (not sure why, just did!) and I likely don’t. It’s all British and Irish with a bit of French and Scandinavian mixed in. What was really interesting was mapping out the timelines. My earlier (1770 – 1860) relatives were French and Scandinavian, and then the rest were British and Irish.
So, while I wish I could tell you that I had a distant ancestor from some far away, super cool place, that is not the case. This does, however, help to explain my obsession with both England and Ireland. I was just there, and now both places feel even more special to me, knowing that my distant relatives walked the same streets.
This was such a cool and interesting experience – if you are interested in learning more about your own DNA and lineage, I could not recommend 23andMe more!!
Photography by Carter Fish; Created in Partnership with 23andMe.
I think it’s pretty amazing how they can work out all this information! And I find it so interesting how your Dad’s anscestors worked for your Mum’s, ha!
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
http://charmainenyw.com
It really just is so cool!!!
This is so freaking cool! I totally want to do this. I’m heading over to the website now 🙂
It’s really awesome, I’m so glad I did it!
My dad and my sister and I did this. Dad’s side is Armenian, we thought there was German in there too( his grandfather and family escaped the genocide by hiding with German farmers) and some very German sounding names. Anyway, he’s 100% Middle Eastern. I was excited to find out I’m 17% Italian. Italy being one of my favorite countries/cultures! The rest some Greek and Northern European from mom’s side ( mostly, Norwegian, Irish). The ansester connection with your mom and dad, brilliant!
That is so cool, thanks for sharing your experience!!!
When my mom was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, my dad immediately bought us all kits to test our DNA to see what any of us might be carriers for. (We found out that you shouldn’t test if you’re undergoing chemo.) The BRCA isn’t included in the normal reports they give you, but there is still a way to access: resqua.com/702188759/how-can-i-find-my-results-on-the-brca1-and-brc2-gene-results-tested-by-23andme (I also found by exporting my entire genome and re-uploading to another site.)
Also related to this: a friend who’s adopted did a similar one and found her half-siblings!!
That is SO cool! Thanks for the tips.
I did this too and was also hoping for something more exotic and was kind of bummed to find out I was 99.8 white AF (excuse me, Northwestern European). 😉
Mine was 30% French & German and 22% British & Irish.
The really weird thing is the only ancestry I knew before taking the test was the my Dad’s grandfather came over from Greece. But Greece didn’t show up at all! A little Italian did though (4%). So I don’t know if that’s like…close enough? Or a family mystery waiting to be solved…
But totally into this stuff too! And I got the genetic/medical part done as well… Did you do that?
I haven’t done the medical one yet – I want to do that next!!!!
Welcome to the family!! 😀
trying to locate & check out my DNA test results Need to get the free “get on” web sight for results for DNA. thanks