My DNA Genetics test results are back. I’m surprised and amazed.
Here is my matrlineal breakdown (from my mother’s side of the family: I didn’t get the patrilineal breakdown yet):
I am (most recently, generation-wise)
44.1% English
18.5% German
8% Tuscani Italian
7.6% Scandinavian
6.8% Spanish
6.5% French
8.5% South Asian (Punjabi)
For a more granular breakdown, I am (farther back in my geneology)
EUROPEAN TOTAL 89.10%
British Isles 22.70%
NW European 17.40%
Iberian 10.40%
Toscani/Tuscani Italian 9.90%
AdMIXED AMERICAS total 4.10%
Peruvian 2.0%
Colombian 1.30%
Mexican .50%
Puerto Rican .30%
EAST ASIAN total 1.20%
Chinese Dau .50%
Kinh Vietnamese .30%
Japanese .20%
Southern Han .10%
Northern Han .10%
AFRICAN TOTAL .10%
Esan in Nigeria
My ancestral origins are all over the map!
I am related to Eva Longoria and to an Inca/Peruvian mummy named “Juanita” who was sacrificed to placate the volcano gods in about 1450.
My English roots go back 11 generations.
My German roots go back 28 generations.
My Italian roots go back 32 generations.
What surprises me most about these findings is that my ancestors managed to circumnavigate the globe during times when there were no planes, trains or automobiles, which leads me to believe that they were very likely tradespeople (navigating along trade routes) and/or colonizers (navigating to new worlds and ousting or subjugating the indigenous people that they found there). Probably both, during different timelines.
I know I have Viking blood in me, and they were not nice people; they were invaders and rapists.
My Peruvian “cousin” (the mummy Juanita) was an indigenous native whose apparent sacrificial death (to appease the local volcano gods) was culturally defined and celebrated. It appears she was “prepared” for her salvation mission for a full year before her murder at age 12 or 14. I wonder how she felt about it. I wonder if she felt powerful and proud or like an unwilling but obedient pawn in a religious game of deity appeasement.
It’s amazing how I’m suddenly fascinated by the only “fossil” relative I have been able to find and can acually look at! I’m intensely interested in learning more about Inca customs and spiritual practices, suddenly — and Celtic and Sri Lankan, too, although those have always intrigued me (perhaps as a result of genetic memory?).
It’s when we realize that our ancestors came from nearly everywhere that we know we’re all related in some form or fashion, not just symbolically but by DNA and destiny. It’s hard to hate when we know that we are fellow sojourners on this unique Spaceship Earth. My ancestors originated in Africa and spread to Asia, Europe, Central and South America, and beyond! And those are just my Mom’s side of the family, so I only know half of my genetic story and origin.
No wonder I feel such a connection with all kinds of people. They’re MY people, just once or five or ten or 28 times removed!
