Monday, April 16, 2018

Ancestry DNA Test Results



I'm kind of skeptical about DNA testing, but David was curious to know about his, especially since Ancestry.com was offering a sale on the test.  So, he spit into the test tube provided, sent the box off and these are the results that came back today:

HIS TEST RESULTS

44 % Great Britain 
40 % Ireland, Scotland & Wales
11 % Western Europe
4 % Scandinavia

(No surprises on any of those, however, the one below is! Hum!)

1 % Middle East 

~~~~~~~~~~

HIS UPDATED TEST RESULTS ON 9.23.2020

54% England & Northwestern Europe
24% Scotland
9% Ireland
7% Wales
6% Norway

(9/2/2021)
England & Northwestern Europe 54%
Scotland 24%
Ireland 9%
Wales 7%
Norway 6%

(20 Sep 2021)
England & Northwestern Europe 45%
Scotland 17%
Ireland 14%
Wales 12%
Norway 10%
Sweden & Denmark 2%
~~~~~~~~~~ 

A cousin who has had the DNA testing done said: "Ancestry uses an autosomal DNA test. It's the best of both worlds in that it tests for maternal and paternal ancestors." 
Remember that the DNA test is a tool to further your genealogical research. For instance, if you have hit a brick wall and haven't figured out how to get over it or around it, this might give you clues as to where to go next in your search for the next piece of the family jigsaw puzzle. Your family tree will probably not be all laid out for you unless you happen to find the treasure of a genealogical book compiled by a relative. It will take a little work on your part, beginning with yourself and working backward to make your personal family tree. Of course, there will be cousins along the way who have been on a similar genealogical journey that you can exchange information with. That's the fun part - getting acquainted with cousins whose ancestors knew your ancestors and either died or moved and lost touch with each other. 

* * * * * * * * *

I finally received my test results from Ancestry.com.

HER DNA TEST RESULTS ON 4.16.2018. 
Born Brunette with Blue Eyes.

England and Wales - 70%
Ireland and Scotland - 27%
Norway - 3%

Additional Communities in the USA"
1. Lower Midwest & Virginia Settlers (includes northern Arkansas, Delaware, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Northern North Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia.) 

The closest DNA match was a previously unknown nephew. My match list grows longer day by day and has become overwhelming. Some of my matches have family trees, but many do not. 

I heard that the DNA results only measure back approximately 500 years, which for me would indicate the ancestors who lived about 1521. DNA may help with brick walls. One of our brick walls is James White. My grandmother said her parents told her that the Whites came over on the Mayflower (a Fletcher also). It would be nice to compare a known Mayflower White descendant's DNA with mine.
                          =========================================
MY DNA UPDATE (15 November 2019) 

1. English, Wales, & Northwestern Europe (66%)
Includes Belgium, the Channel Islands, Denmark, England, France, Switzerland and Wales.

2. Ireland & Scotland (24%)
Includes both North & South Ireland, Isle of Man, and Scotland.

3. Germanic Europe (10%)
Includes Austria, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands & Switzerland. 

                           =========================================
MY DNA UPDATE (17 September 2020) 

Supposedly my DNA doesn't change, but Ancestry's science results do, so here's my Ethnicity Estimate to date (you will see some overlap in the countries represented). 

1. England & Northwestern Europe 55%
Includes the communities of Belgium, Channel Islands, Denmark, Faroe Islands, England, France, Germany, Isle of Man, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Switzerland and Wales. 

2. Scotland 20%

3. Ireland 16%
Includes the Channel Islands, England, Faroe Islands, France, Iceland, Isle of Man, and Northern Scotland.

4. Germanic Europe 7%
Includes Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Czechia, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Slovakia, Slovenia and Switzerland. 

5. Sweden 2%
Norway and Sweden are on the same peninsula arm of Europe. Norway is on the West side and Sweden is on the East side. This Swedish DNA result includes not only Sweden, but also Denmark, Estonia, Faroe Islands, Germany, Iceland, Netherlands and Norway.

Now wait a minute. Why change it to Sweden when my first results said Norway? What gives? I'd say that their science ain't perfect yet. 

                             ======================================
MY DNA UPDATE (24 September 2021) 
England & Northwestern Europe 44%
Scotland 24%
Ireland 15%
Sweden & Denmark 9% 
Germanic Europe 5%
Norway 2%
Basque 1%

Well, the UK results are about the same, but they have thrown in Basque and we're back to Norway results. I have no idea who may be Basque in my background 500 years ago. 

                           =======================================
No.1 Blonde Sister's 23andme DNA results
British & Irish 78.5%
French & German 17.6%
Broadly European 3%
Italian .2%
Cypriot .7%
and
Neanderthal - less than 2%
                            =======================================
MY DNA UPDATE (20 May 2022)
Indicates distant origins (500 - 1,000 years ago).

Me:
England & Northwestern Europe 54%
Scotland 15%
Ireland 11%
Sweden & Denmark 6%
Germanic Europe 6%
Norway 4%
Wales 4%

The newest thing is figuring out which parent gave me what ethnicity without them ever haven taken a DNA test themselves. I got 1/2 of each of my parent's DNA that combined to make ME! I wonder how many different combinations can be created from just two people's whole DNA?  Here are my results. 

Parent 1
England & Northwestern Europe 33%
Scotland 3%
Sweden & Denmark 6%
Germanic Europe  6%
Wales 2%

Parent 2 =
England & Northwestern Europe 21%
Scotland 12%
Ireland 11%
Norway 4%
Wales 2%
                             =====================================
MY DNA UPDATE (26 Aug 2022)
My DNA Results Have Been Shuffled Around Again!  
England & Northwestern Europe 43%
Scotland 27%
Wales 9%
Germanic Europe 8%
Sweden & Denmark 6%
Ireland 6%
Norway 1%

                             =====================================
MY DNA UPDATE (18 Apr 2023)
This time they have added the two DNA matches that are closest to me and compared our DNA with each other. One is a nephew and the other is a maternal first cousin.
My results again:
England 43%
Scotland 27%
Wales 9%
Germanic Europe 8%
Sweden/Denmark 6%
Ireland 6%
Norway 1%

========================================
Fine Tuning My Test Results (8 Jan 2024)
England and Northwestern Europe 50%
Scotland 23%
Germanic Europe 8%
Ireland 7%
Sweden and Denmark 6%
Wales 4%
Norway 2%
========================================

If you are related to either one of us and feel comfortable sharing here, please feel free to tell us your results in the comments below.

Article updated on 1/8/2024.

Wednesday, April 11, 2018

Genealogy Etiquette

Have you ever stepped on a wad of freshly chewed gum on the sidewalk? And when you realized what was stuck to your shoe, you became disgusted at the thoughtless person who threw it down there? Tackiness, like that spit out gum, shows lack of honor and integrity and will reflect poorly on your roots, so it behooves you to become aware of basic genealogical manners. Following the GOLDEN RULE is a good beginning --

"So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you." ~ Matthew 7:12. 


That said, here are some gummy pitfalls to be aware of: 


1.  It is really tacky to use pre-1940's papers in mixed media paper crafting [excluding a family tree heritage scrapbook -- scrapbook archivists use vintage papers to accompany their ancestor's photos, not using it as a background paper layer to paint over]. 
As family researchers we use a paper trail to prove our ancestors lived. If it is an original document that has a name, date, and location on it, it is a primary document. If it comes from a biography, genealogy, or history book or magazine article, then it is a secondary document. I would love to have a photograph of my 3rd great-grandparents, but I have nothing personal of theirs except the story told by their descendants which I must pair with outside records to prove their life history.  You know,  if it wasn't for paper ephemera, we would know nothing about our USA and world history that we were taught in school because it comes from the very same type of primary and secondary sources that were saved

2. It's really tacky to create a memorial for somebody before they have had their funeral in order boost your memorial stat count on cemetery websites. So, unselfishly think of the grieving family's feelings and have a little respect and self-control. After the funeral, if a loving family member hasn't created a memorial, then go ahead and create it. 

3. It's also tacky to harvest surnames from somebody's family tree in order to find all the corresponding surname tombstones in local cemeteries in order to make memorials to boost your memorial stats too on interment sites and then refuse to add in information or transfer to family.

In addition, gleaning names from non-family trees to create an artificial family for yourself is really tacky! I believe it could be called identity theft or a mental disorder

4.  To find all the ugly stories about someone's ancestor and publishing them on a website whether they are true or not to publically humiliate the descendants is definitely tacky! Be  graciously kind! 

5. ASK before taking screen shots of photos from genealogy websites and family blogs to put on your family tree. I will appreciate that and will think more highly of you.  Credit me and/or other people as your source and thank us for sharing. (see my citation note up in side menu). 


6. Impatience is tacky and a bully! Kindly share what you know and then back off. Breathing down people's necks isn't conducive to loving family relationships. Building a family tree is time-consuming as good researchers must check and pair all the details with other documents, some of which may be harder to find.  Also mistakes may appear from time to time. Correct in love. 

7. Plagiarism is tacky too! For example, plagiarism is copying a poem word for word and sending it to a magazine to be published as yours. Call it what it is -- it's stealing. Write your own poem, using your own words! You never know, give yourself some credit; yours might actually be better than the one you wanted to copy. 

Also, cite your sources. It's tacky if you don't. 

8Playing games often includes taking turns. You throw the ball back and forth. Just as it is poor sportsmanship to hang onto the ball and not throw it to the next person, it is tacky to take and take and never return the favor. However, on the other side of the coin, it is also tacky to ask someone to fill in your family tree for you and then accuse them of hoarding information when they refuse, when you can very well find it for yourself, just as they have done. 

9If you make a mistake, it is tacky not to apologize and correct it. 

10. It is tacky to not respond as soon as possible to email or snail-mail, even if you don't know the answer to the question posed. At least, acknowledge that you received their query. We're all busy. . . 

11. And as I'm discovering by following hints on Ancestry, it's really tacky of you to borrow the information that I've presented here for your family tree and not stop and say howdy to your cousin. See that little "comment" word down below - click on it and introduce yourself. 

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable -- if anything is excellent or praiseworthy -- think about such things. What you have learned or received or heard from me or seen in me -- put it into practice." ~ Philippians 4:8-9

Don't be the gum stuck to somebody's shoe! 

More to Read:
1 Cemetery Etiquette
2. Christa Cowan's video of "Black Sheep in Your Family
3DAR Victoria Pratt's Genealogy Etiquette 
4. Everplans Funeral Etiquette
5. Family Reunion Etiquette
6. Kristen's Guide to Genealogy Etiquette

7.  Ted's Obituaries and Etiquette