Sunday, January 17, 2016

Ancestry videos

Disclaimer:
I realize this could be a sensitive topic so I will apologize in advance if any careless words offend anyone.  It is not my intention.

23andMe recently gave me a update on my ancestry.  It was nothing major but it did adjust my percentages a bit.  Here it is:
-100 percent European but an interesting mix nonetheless
-32 percent Eastern European- (mostly Polish)
-28 percent German
-20 percent British (Scottish)
- 3 percent Scandinavian
- 2 percent Balkan
- 1 percent Jewish (Ashkenazi Jew)
-14 percent Broadly European so probably add 4-5% to the top 3.
Note: I still have some "Broadly NW European" which also includes Austria, Swiss, etc. but I know it's German because there is documentation in my family

I have known ancestry from Poland, Germany and Scotland and the percentages seem about right but none of the populations were completely homogeneous when my ancestors came to America.  The Scandinavian likely came from Scotland and the Balkan came from Poland.  The trace of Jewish ancestry was a surprise but I've always had a lot of respect for the Orthodox Jewish community so I think it's cool.  I encourage everyone to do this test and you may find some surprises.  23andme gives more country specific data for Asians while Ancestry.com is able to give more specific African countries.  A couple people used both and found the results to be very similar (within a couple percentage points).

I've recently gotten hooked on watching YouTube videos in which people share their results.  I often guess the results before viewing the videos.  Sometimes I'm accurate but not sometimes not.  Here is what I've found among different ethnic groups:

On average, African Americans are about 75% sub-Saharan African with West African nations such as Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon/Congo, Benin/Togo, Senegal and Mali heavily represented.  They also average roughly 22% European, which is usually mostly British and Scandinavian.  Many also have some traces of Native American and Asian DNA.

According to 23andme, people tend to identify as "black" if their African ancestry is above 28%.
That sounds about right to me.  I met a couple people that have said they were "a quarter black" (1 grandparent) and I would not have known unless they said so.  Appearances can vary among those with 1 "white" and 1 "black" parent.  You can expect the identifiable features but the skin tones can vary considerably depending in large part on how much African ancestry is present.  Many people who are bi-racial report racism from both blacks and whites, which I find completely disgusting.  One of the nicest girls I met in college has a black father and white mother.  I always smiled when I saw her no matter what my mood.  Look at the heart instead of the outer appearance.

Latino DNA is also quite interesting.  Among those from South America and the Carribean, you can expect to see roughly 50-60% European, which usually comes from Spain/Portugal as well as Italy/Greece.  Most will have 10-20% Native American and 5-15% sub-Saharan African with traces from north Africa and West Asia.  I suppose that makes sense looking at history.  Those from Mexico can expect a higher percentage of Native American with less European and African.

I have also seen a few other cases of interesting mixes such as 2 cases of nearly 50% African and 50% Asian as well as a couple that had some representation from all over the globe, which I thought was really cool.  I can appreciate beauty in every ethnic group.

At the end of the day, be proud of your heritage but we are all members of the human family and made in the image of God.  Remember that instead of the external appearance.

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