Fish in all the ponds
There isn’t a week that goes by that the question doesn’t come in to The Legal Genealogist.
“I am adopted,” the question begins. Or, perhaps, “I don’t know who one of my parents is.”
And, the question continues, “can DNA testing really help?”
The answer, of course, is yes.
In the vast majority of cases, it won’t be easy. It isn’t a panacea. Oh, there is the occasional case where a person takes a DNA test, goes to bed one night, and wakes up the next morning to find a match identified as a parent or a half-sibling.
But that’s the exception, not the rule. The general rule is that it’s going to take a lot of hard work just to understand what the DNA results are telling us, and even more hard work to make them give up the clues that we need to identify our target in an unknown parentage case. In almost every case, it takes careful, methodical, painstaking work to match paper trail evidence with DNA clues.
Many adoptees go months, even years, after taking a DNA test before getting that critical match that starts making the pieces fall into place. They spend a lot of time chasing rabbits down into holes the turn out to be dead ends. It’s easy to get frustrated. It’s easy to lose hope. Because what it truly is, is not easy.
That being said, it’s also one of the most powerful tools available today to identify and locate family members in unknown parentage cases. Where the paper trail runs out, DNA is often the only tool that has any hope of shining a light on the path.
And that of course leads to the rest of the question: “what DNA test should I take to try to identify my biological family and biological roots?”
And there’s only one possible answer to that question:
Take every DNA test you can afford to take that might shed light on the particular question you have.
There are three basic types of DNA tests: YDNA, the kind of DNA that only men have and that’s passed from father to son to son basically unchanged through the generations;1 mitochondrial DNA, or mtDNA, a kind of DNA we all have that’s passed down from a mother to all of her children but that only her daughters can pass on to their children, again largely unchanged through the generations;2 and autosomal DNA, the kind of DNA we all inherit from both of our parents, that changes not only in every generation but every time a child is created (which is why siblings don’t have identical autosomal DNA).3
YDNA testing can be done by any male who’s trying to identify his direct paternal line: his father’s father’s father’s father’s line. This kind of testing can often help identify a particular surname that’s worth a closer look, or rule in or rule out particular candidates for that direct paternal line.
Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) testing can be done by anyone who’s trying to identify a direct maternal line: a mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s line. This kind of testing can rule in or rule out particular candidates for that direct maternal line.
Both of those kinds of tests – YDNA testing and mtDNA testing – are done only by Family Tree DNA, a company out of Houston. Both tests have their limitations but can be very powerful and help prove or disprove particular theories.
Autosomal DNA testing is done by several companies, among them AncestryDNA, Family Tree DNA, 23andMe, and now MyHeritage as the new kid on the block.
And that raises the question: “what autosomal company should I test with?”
And there’s only one possible answer to that question:
Take every autosomal DNA test you can afford to take.
Here’s the deal.
When you’re adopted, you have two issues: (1) you want to identify family members — if not immediate family, then those closely enough related to help identify immediate family; and (2) you’re racing the clock because you want to identify them while they — and you — are still living.
So while the rest of us can sometimes afford to take a leisurely approach to DNA testing — testing the waters, so to speak, as we dip our toes into the various DNA database pools — adoptees have to dive in.
Think of it this way:
• DNA testing is like fishing for cousins. Cousins who share our genetic heritage, who share some ancestors with us, and who may be sitting out there with the answers to some of our most vexing genealogical questions.
• Our own DNA tests are the bait that we use to try to catch the cousin who has the information we need: for those of us with intact families, the cousin who has the family Bible, the cousin who has the photograph of those second or third great grandparents, the cousin who has that fourth great grandmother’s maiden name. For adoptees, it’s the cousin who can lead us to our biological families.
• The databases of the DNA testing companies are the ponds we can fish in.
• And the cousins — well, the cousins may be in any one of the ponds.
I can’t stress that last point enough.
It’s not enough to say that AncestryDNA or 23andMe has the biggest database of people who have tested — although that’s probably true. (The exact numbers aren’t public, so it isn’t possible to say which one is the biggest at any given moment; we just know that 23andMe crossed a million in 2015 and AncestryDNA crossed two million in 2016.4)
And it’s not enough to say that Family Tree DNA has the most dedicated genealogists as users or the best analytical tools for genetic genealogy — although that’s probably true too.5
If the person you need to connect with has tested with Company A and you’ve only tested with Companies B and C, the simple fact is that you lose.
Fortunately, the price of DNA testing has dropped to the point where testing with all three major genetic genealogy companies is in reach for most folks: you can test with all of the companies for less today than it cost to test with one when autosomal DNA testing first became available.
So… here’s the best way to proceed:
Step 1. Test with AncestryDNA for $99 (US pricing, occasionally a bit less on sale). Start here because it’s the easiest way to get into what’s probably biggest pool of people who’ve tested. (To see full matching data and the family trees of your matches, you have to pay a $49 annual subscription fee if you’re not already an Ancestry subscriber. You don’t need to pay that to test and get your raw data, but you will have to pay it to see everything AncestryDNA has to offer.)
Step 2. The minute you get your results from AncestryDNA — provided that the transfer system for new tests is up and running — transfer your raw data to Family Tree DNA. This puts you into another pool, this time of more active genealogists and with good analytical tools. When I say “transfer,” that doesn’t end your matches at AncestryDNA, it just gets you into the Family Tree DNA system with all of its benefits. You can do this for free but remember: “there’s no such thing as a free lunch.” The information you get with a free transfer is very limited, so either get four other people to transfer in their data or pay the $39 fee and unlock the information right away. The transfer system has been down for some time because AncestryDNA changed its test platform and that made its results incompatible with the Family Tree DNA database. Family Tree DNA is working on fixing that, but if you can’t wait, it’s not all that much more expensive to just go ahead and test with Family Tree DNA to get into its database — just $79, compared to the $39 transfer fee.
Step 3. When you can afford it, test with 23andMe for another $99 (U.S. pricing, Ancestry-only option), and with MyHeritage for $79 (U.S. pricing). These are last on the list because (a) 23andMe is really geared to health, not ancestry, and has had its share of problems over the years; and (b) MyHeritage is new, and doesn’t have an established track record yet. Both, however, may be critical for those with recent European ancestry, since both have appeal in the international and especially European market and, again, they may just be the company where that important match has tested.
To get the maximum exposure for your DNA, to have the best chance of finding that key cousin, fish in all the ponds.
SOURCES
- See ISOGG Wiki (http://www.isogg.org/wiki), “Y chromosome DNA tests,” rev. 4 Dec 2016. ↩
- See ibid., “Mitochondrial DNA tests,” rev. 3 Jan 2017. ↩
- See ibid., “Autosomal DNA,” rev. 19 Sep 2016. ↩
- See AnneW, “Power of One Million,” 23andMeBlog, posted 18 June 2015 (http://blog.23andme.com/ : accessed 7 Jan 2017). Also, Anna Swayne, “2 Million People Strong,” Ancestry blog, posted 22 June 2016 (http://blogs.ancestry.com/ : accessed 7 Jan 2017). ↩
- This is, of course, a matter of opinion on the tools. But hey… this is my blog, so my opinion rules. ↩
Don’t forget GEDmatch.
My deceased father was adopted and my late husband was Jewish. Both have my obsessed in finding out everything I could. I have now bought Ancestry.com, 23andme, FTDNA & my heritage on my son, myself and first cousin. My son is having a baby and I can’t wait to DNA on his baby. Is a baby to young to do DNA test on?
Other than the baby’s mother’s side, you can’t learn anything testing the baby that you don’t already have by testing the baby’s father (your son). Beyond that, the issue is that you must do a swab test with a baby; drool doesn’t usually have enough DNA to test.
FTDNA still isn’t taking the newer AncestryDNA files.
That’s stated in the blog post, Jason: “The transfer system has been down for some time because AncestryDNA changed its test platform and that made its results incompatible with the Family Tree DNA database. Family Tree DNA is working on fixing that, but if you can’t wait, it’s not all that much more expensive to just go ahead and test with Family Tree DNA to get into its database — just $79, compared to the $39 transfer fee.”
I reached out to FTDNA’s tech support in early December and was told they hoped to have the issue resolved this January. I have done the y-111 with FTDNA and I plan to order the autosomal from them. It really is just not worth waiting for them to get it right. Thanks for all you do Judy! I greatly appreciate it!
We have our fingers crossed that this will be coming soon… but yeah, I’m with you: I’d much rather pay the additional $40 than have to wait.
Is MyHeritage no longer taking transfers? I’ve got all my managed kits uploaded there. Hopefully, they will continue to show matches for the transferred kits as I’m not going to buy seven kits from them.
You can also mention that there are online groups that are dedicated to helping adoptees, et al. work their DNA matches.
Thank you for a simple, understandable “intro” to DNA testing for adoptees.
MyHeritage does still accept transfers; when and whether that will switch to a subscription service is unknown. And as to other services for adoptees, that’s another post for another day. 🙂
Thank you, Judy. It’s good to see the”fish in all ponds” message for adoptees reinforced. I would have put Gedmatch as step 2 because it is a really important accompaniment to Ancestry given the absence of a chromosome browser in Ancestry. Being able to work with the chromosomal data is hugely important to adoptees and was instrumental in my figuring out who my Father is prior to finding close family matches.
I’ve written about GedMatch separately, but of course the problem there is that no matter what you choose to upload to GedMatch, if your key match doesn’t, it’s not going to help… 🙂
Yes … for sure as with any of the other resources used in isolation. I think the solution always rests in how you use the range of available information (multiple sources)in combination with one another. That is why the “fish in all ponds” message is so important.
Agreed!
One observation: I recently compared my uploaded files from Ancestry and FTDNA at Gedmatch and ran the Diasgnostic Utility there. I discovered that I have 20,000+ more matches to my FTDNA file than to Ancestry. I’m now advising people to test at FTDNA; do not just transfer.
Testing at every company is the best choice, if you can afford it. If the choice is between transferring and not being in the database at all, however, transferring is fine.
Are you hearing from international adoptees too? If so, what advice do you give them? I’ve had the impression that 23 and Me may have the largest percentage of people who are Asian testing through them than with the other testing services. One of my adult adoptee daughters and two of my adult adoptee sons tested with 23 and Me. My daughter, born in Korea with an American father, immediately connected with an American first cousin: his adult children had given him the test as a Christmas present (living in CA may be why they chose 23 and Me). Through her cousin, my daughter has come to know her half-sister. My two adult adoptee sons, from Vietnam as babies, found… each other! 5th cousins. One has a 3rd cousin match, but that person was also adopted from VN as a baby, with no known birth relatives. It seems that 23 and Me has more specific ancestry data for those of Asian ethnicity too.
An important article as most people have no idea about how DNA is being used by adoptees and their families to reconnect. Archaic laws which injected the government into personal relationships are being discarded for laws which restore access to original birth certificates for Adult Adoptees. Science wins over outdated laws. Here in Texas SB329 has overwhelming support with eleven joint authors. The bill allows adults to have their first medical record, gives birth parents a choice for contact and allows descendants to obtain documents for deceased adoptees. #OBC2017
In case it’s of help to your readers there is a page in the ISOGG Wiki on DNA testing for adoptees which includes useful links to resources for many different countries: http://isogg.org/wiki/DNA_testing_for_adoptees
Thank you Judy for another wonderful insight.
How convinced are you that each of the genealogy testing companies has its own sampling database?
My understanding, from way back when the “Human Genome” project first started, was that ALL known gene patterns (suitably “anonymised”) would be held in a common pool, with access being granted by approved application. (Also requiring a deposit of data to obtain the approval.)
My concept comes from a long time ago, and I have nothing concrete to back it up – except that I cannot imagine how anyone would go about developing a pool of genetic data of sufficient size and diversity without it being a product of something like the Worldwide Human Genome Project (The Project)!
My assumption has been that these private companies are being allowed access to this universal pool on payment of a fee – which is helping to maintain The Project. (On this basis, their would allow the testing company to randomly match their “deposit” sample (i.e., the customer’s swab analysis result, plus the anonymised donor data) in return for the statistical matching data which is then returned to the customer. ) The size of “their” database, then would correspond to the sampling access they have “bought” from The Project.
None of this – of course – need change any of your conclusions since we have no idea about the individual deals the testing companies have with The Project as to what specific characteristics the sampled pool should have (or not have.) What it does do is make the testing results that much more valid since they are actually drawn from a very large sample pool, not the one or two million sample sizes claimed which are far too small for what they are claiming to provide!
The Human Genome Project is entirely different, and the genetic genealogy companies are not using it to compare data. They have their own labs and do their own analysis entirely independent of the Human Genome Project.
I have tested with all three majors, mainly to see if I got the same results. All three were very,very close telling me their QA is excellent.
I am trying to break down a 1724 brick wall with FT’s Big-Y, without success so far. GEDmatch is also a great tool. Patience is a needed virtue in this process of hunting. I am not looking for my parents, but have done my best to help the several who are looking.
Judy you mention early on in this post about waking up and finding someone. My half brother took a test for me along with quite a few of us working on the 1724 issue. I looking soon after his results came in, on my own account and saw a daughter that had just competed within a week or so of his, that he never new of and he is 80 years old.
Patience is usually needed, Gene — but wow for your family finding your niece like that!
Judy, I forgot to mention, even though his daughter showed up, I have only been in contact with her older sister who manages the account. The daughter is concerned about impacting both families, including not telling her mother as of yet. Her sister indicated she has had a good life. Our family would love to know her, but again we all need patience.
Gene, I completely understand from her side. I am an adoptee searching for my biological family, but also don’t wish my parents to know as I feel it would hurt them greatly. They have been wonderful and from what I have been told, this was the best thing for me. I love them dearly and am the primary caregiver now, so wouldn’t want them thinking that I am planning on abandoning the family I have. I just want to know my biological family as well.
I have been told throughout my life that I am the daughter of a celebrity that gave me up for adoption. I was raised by her half sister so I always thought that this celebrity was my aunt .. however I found out throughout the years that she actually was my mother . I took the DNA test and now waiting for results to determine my roots. Can this test determine if she is actually my real mother?! I cannot get my adoption records because they are sealed in the state of New York?
DNA testing works by comparing your DNA to the DNA of others. To make a determination as to exact relationship, you’d have to be able to test other family members such as the woman who raised you.
Judy,
Taking the test is only the first step. It does not answer the “I’ve tested now what question”.
To address the Now What question, recommend adding a final step to your guidance:
Join DNA search groups like DNAadoption and DNA Detectives in order to learn how to use your DNA to search and also avoid key mistakes that my negatively impact your search or reunion.
Cheers
Richard Weiss
DNAadoption
That’s a topic I’ve already written on — and for another day. The question here was limited to the “do I test and if so which test.” But yes, I agree.
One question in to what Judy said stating that I have to get DNA from the woman that raise me she passed away how can I get her DNA??
If she has passed, you need to look for other family members to compare to — and it will be a lot harder to determine since your theory is that your biological mother and the mother who raised you were related. You’re going to need some help and guidance, so look at the resources under the post Help with DNA for adoptees.
One of my spouse’s 2nd cousins (by adoption) sent us a link to your site. I just finished reading – most informative. I have been doing the research via Ancestry.com for probably 4 years now on my spouse’s DNA search for his biological family. We uploaded his raw data to GEDMATCH. We will definitely test with all the other companies. The closest matches that have surfaced via Ancestry.com & GEDMATCH is 2nd – 3rd cousins. Has been an interesting journey. He was adopted in Tampa FL in ’42 and many, many of his DNA matches hail from SW VA where we now live! Your information helped tremendously in my understanding autosomal DNA and the YDNA & mitochondrial DNA.
Best of luck to you.
I know my birth family but my birth father is adopted. I am curious as to our basic heritage. Can all of these companies tell me where my paternal ancestors come from? (I am a female.)
Yes, autosomal DNA testing detects genetic heritage from both parents. It will help if your Dad tests rather than you, or if someone from your mother’s side also tests (to help you identify which of your matches are from your father’s side rather than your mother’s). But in any case if you have paternal cousins out there who have tested it can help lead you to your father’s family.
I have the exact same scenario. How do I have my mother and I tested to exclude those genes? Which website would be best if I start with just one?
Thank you!
I’m unclear what you mean by “exclude those genes”.
Thanks for a very useful post. I’ve been counseled by some folks to not waste my money on multiple tests, but I share your fish-in-every-pond strategy. I started with 23andMe and was amazed to find a half-brother who was also an adoptee (birth mother side). Just below him were six paternal cousins whose trees helped me identify my birth father. DNA is an amazing tool.
For an adoptee or anyone in an unknown parentage situation, the only reasonable advice is fish in every pond.
My father, 84, was adopted. No paper traill (long story). All who might have known something specific are obviously long dead. We chose to use Family Tree DNA first and then Ancestry. The results in terms of ethnicity are similar.
On Family Tree DNA, we did autosomal and both his Y DNA and mtDNA. Anyhow, the science at FT DNA is great and the Y test and mtDNA were interesting, but it didn’t turn up anyone close.
Ancestry, however… we started with two second cousins and a very cooperative third cousin. I was able to find some overlap. Then another second cousin and third cousin (related to each other) popped just before Christmas, and that cracked everything open. (It helped that there were some limiting geographic parameters.)
Now I believe I’ve figured out who his parents were, and have found a living possible half brother. We’re waiting for his test results in Ancestry, and then (provided the results are what we expect) he’s coming out to meet us. It’s very exciting!
Anyhow, Ancestry just passed the 3 million mark and it has proven much more useful to us. I would never discourage anyone from using the other services, and recommend the deeper Y and mtDNA tests. However, Ancestry has the volume that others lack.
None of this guarantees anyone will cooperate, though. On both platforms I reached out and heard nothing back from some people. I find that odd, and frustrating, but you can’t do anything about that.
Testing as broadly as possible ensures the best results, for sure.
A lot of experts put 23andMe as the last place, I think it deserves first place. If you’re in the US, you can get the $99 ancestry only version, and I’d venture to say that a lot of Canadians (and folks from other developed countries) have a trusted friend or relative in the US who can order a kit, mail it to the adoptee, and receive it back to mail to 23andMe. I’ve already done that for one Canadian adoptee who matched me.
23andMe is the only place (besides GEDmatch, of course) where you can match any two sharing matches against each other, to see how they relate, and with the Relatives In Common feature being useful for finding other matches’ relationship to each other, it is a superb way of identifying a match’s parents, siblings and children, even if all have different surnames. Just today, I came across a mutual match for a new match, and while going through the list of Relatives In Common, I found that this fellow was the uncle of another match I already had a family tree for!
Clearly, 23andMe is trying to poise itself for an IPO, and when that happens, the publicity from it will bring in a lot of testers. The very best time to contact a match is when they are new to genetic testing, after a few months, they lose interest, and an adoptee who can show them the ropes with 23andMe is likely to be met with helpfulness on family tree information, which is vital to our search.
Be there when the rest of the world discovers the place, and be prepared to work the bounty that is there to be harvested.
You’re pretty close to the only person I know who’d put 23andMe first for genealogy.
Why not? You get not only full chromosome browsing for not only you and your matches, but for any two people who have either shared genomes with you, or have selected open sharing. You can’t do that with FTDNA’s chromosome browser. And you can’t do more than two people at a time with GEDmatch’s one-to-one matching, I like being able to see where five people stack up against me at once. I make composite screenshots of them, then offer to email them to my 23andMe matches, and that often gets a dialogue started, and at least a real email address.
Ancestry has a lot of people, but after they’ve swapped their kilts for lederhosen, you will probably never see them again. It is impossible to search for most practical purposes, and rather than solid DNA analysis tools, they give us gimmicky things like “shared ancestor hints” and “ancestor circles” and all that “trust us, you don’t need no stinking chromosome browser” attitude.
I’ve been at this for nearly two years now, and I have zero results from AncestryDNA, a few from FTDNA (and not including the 2nd cousin there who will not tell me anything about her tree) and the vast bulk and majority of my positive contacts and common ancestors have come from 23andMe.
Yes, there are anonymous people at 23andMe, but they’re no worse than people who hide behind obscure made-up names at Ancestry who won’t write back.
Glad it’s working for you, and that’s really all that matters. But your experience simply doesn’t mirror mine nor that of most folks I know who use the various testing sites. But whatever works, that’s what matters. If this works for you, terrific.
I’ve got so say, from working with DNA cousins, Ancestry.com has been my biggest frustration. The lack of chromosome browser coupled with the kilt/lederhosen phenomena, the messaging system, and the lack of trees (for a company which has as it’s primary facility to make family trees) make it frustrating.
23andMe’s website workability devolved enormously after FDA approval, but messages get through and the tools are better than Ancestry’s. And I agree with D.R. Hunter’s description of the tools at 23andMe. Ancestry has the size, but it’s what you can do with it that counts.
What I did find most useful about Ancestry.com was once I found my birthparents and had trees built (based on data from matches elsewhere), the additional matches were then useful in further exploration. But not until the most important puzzle was solved elsewhere, first.
That’s just my experience, anyway. Regardless – test at least the big three.
23and me does provide YDNA, that’s passed from father to son and the mitochondrial DNA, or mtDNA. I received my haplogroup from them and my son has his paternal haplogroup.
It does provide the haplogroups, yes, but often at a higher level than specific testing and without the data that can then be used in surname and matching projects. For that you must test at Family Tree DNA.
Do you have any information on wegene? Any thoughts? Where are there the most Asian people?
Only what SNPedia says (“as of June 2016 there is a high rate of miscalls in their data, so it is not yet useful”). There is as yet not a great deal of data from Asia by anyone.
By the way, nothing to do with my last question,which was for my daughter, But I was found by an 82 year old woman on 23&me when I popped up as her first cousin. We are not first cousins, tons of marriages between cousins and aunts and uncles I guess, lots of genes in common, but we have figured out who her birth mother was and since her birth mother isn’t alive and we know the last name for sure, from some papers at the orphanage, and the year of birth, we figure we can go to the NYPL and find the birth record. Exciting.
No more. As of 2016, the birth indexes were removed from the NYPL on the grounds of privacy.
Greetings, I was just wondering as an adoptee, if I know the age of my birth parents and the hospital/small town in L.I. NY I was born in, does that put me in a better position than the average adoptee searching once I’ve performed the DNA tests and have access to their databases? Sorry if that’s a ridiculous question. Thanks
Only in the sense that you have more basic genealogical information to combine with your DNA results. DNA itself is merely a matter of whether you’re related to someone else and, within a range of relationships, how closely. Determining who the common ancestors are requires genealogical information.
Thank you for such a timely response. I’m on it and will let you know my experiences and hopefully success soon. I appreciate your counsel on everything. A blessing for sure.
Luke, consider a Y DNA test, it hasn’t helped me yet, but if you find a lot of men with the same surname, it could well give you a clue as to which matches are on your father’s side. Also, both Family Tree DNA and 23andMe will tell you who you share X chromosome DNA with, those people are always on your maternal side, even though there’s a chance that they could be on both sides in a small isolated town.
My goodness THANK YOU for taking the time to help me. It is Huntington Long Island “general hospital” at the time so hopefully, I wasn’t whisked away to be birthed (in potential shame/secrecy) and she is from there. In 1969 it wasn’t half of what it is now so it was very small then for sure, though still small even today by most standards. On thing’s for certain, we’ll see and I will take your counsel on this matter. God bless and thanks again.
Why would I have an X match to a first cousin who is the son of my father’s sister? My parents were not related to each other.
As a female you have two X chromosomes. One you received from your mother, and it is a mix of the X she received from her father and mother. The other you received from your father, and it was passed down intact from his mother, your grandmother. So… your grandmother also passed on an X chromosome to your aunt, and your aunt passed an X chromosome to your first cousin. So it makes perfect sense that you and your first cousin match on the X. Take a look at the charts here and compare the people in your female chart to the people in his male chart and you’ll see the ones who overlap.
My nephew-in-law had a DNA test done through Ancestry.com to see if he could determine his birth parents [he is adopted]. When the results came back, I was really surprised. They showed he had a close relative who had also had Ancestry.com analyze their DNA. The match turned out to be a close relative and he was able to find his birth parents. He and my niece will meet them in person next month.
After my nephew-in-law had his DNA tested, my niece encouraged my parents to have theirs analyzed to see where their ancestors came from [neither are adopted]. While there were no surprises on the countries of origin for my parents ancestry [100% European], there was a close relative match to my mother who we did not recognize. The person contacted us and based on common matches, we narrowed down he must be the son of one of my mother’s cousins on her mother’s side. He shared the closest match on his DNA test results, who is not a common match to my mother. It turned out that that person has the same surname as the husband of one of my grandmother’s sisters. The close match is a first cousin to some of my mother’s first cousins, but on their father’s side. From that, we have narrowed it down to two cousins, one of whom is probably the father of the man. The sister of the two cousins is having Ancestry.com analyze her DNA to see if she is the man’s aunt. The man was adopted at birth in 1967.
The man sent me a copy of his high school graduation photo and it was like, I recognize this person. He looks a lot like my sister and me. If the DNA results show he is a nephew to my mother’s first cousin, he and I are 2nd cousins. We should know more in a few weeks.
I never would have guessed, that DNA analysis would have been able to help an adopted person find their biological parents, but seeing is believing.
Absolutely: the proof is in the pudding.
Bryan, for a lot of us who were born in and adopted out of places that are stubborn in releasing information on bio-parents who are probably already deceased, DNA is the only way that we have. When someone is as lucky as your nephew-in-law to find a close match right off the bat, it looks miraculous, but the majority of us have a tough slog with distant matches that hint at the backgrounds of our bio-parents.
Think of it this way: If you have a jigsaw puzzle that has only eight pieces, how long would it take to put together? Now, imagine someone working with only fourth cousin matches, that’s like a 1000-piece puzzle, it’s not going to come together quickly. But, eventually, after building the puzzle around the edges, the middle starts showing up.
I was adopted as a baby. I am fairly certain of who my birth parents are. Normally, it is enough that we’re fairly certain, but recently, I have had some health concerns that my doctors need to know my biological familial history. However, none of us are really financially able to get DNA testing done. Is there any way to get it done for a reasonable price?
DNA testing is not unreasonably expensive. For medical purposes, you could (a) test with a company like AncestryDNA (if you get it on sale you can occasionally get the test for as little as $79); then (b) run your raw data through Promethease.com for $5 and give the results to your doctor for analysis and evaluation.
I agree completely with Judy. Sometimes, you can wait for a sale, and get a $59 price on an AncestryDNA test, but I wouldn’t wait if you’ve got pressing health concerns,Promethease.com is a great site, I forwarded my results to my doctor, and she was amazed by all of the things she could identify from there.
The best five bucks you;ll ever spend.
My husband was adopted as an infant. We are pretty certain his adopted mother’s sister was his birth mother. She left NJ, moved to Buffalo, NY for the year he was born, left the area when he was four months old. His adoptive brother tested ancestry DNA and came up as his first cousin. This along with his aunt listed on “newspaper.com” as the only sister that lived in that area-shown on his birth certificates (2)including the one with adoptive parents listed. He has tested on FTDNA, ancestry and 23 & me, also Y-FTDNA. The contacts on ancestry seem to have one common ancestor for several people. I need to download the raw DNA to one location. Someone told me “Gedcom file” is best? Not sure how to do that.
The site is called GedMatch (https://www.gedmatch.com/) and once you go there and register an account (for free), it will give you very specific instructions on how to download the raw data from the various suites and upload it there. You can only compare the autosomal results (not the YDNA results).
I am adopted. I am unable to get my birth certificate but know the number of it and my name before the adoption. I really want to know my nationality primarily. I am dark skinned more like American and my parents adopted are blonde,?. English French, Dannish. What would be test for me to I’d my nationality?
As long as you understand that the test results are not reliable below the continental level (European versus Asian versus African is very reliable; German versus English versus Danish is not), the ethnicity estimate (and it is ONLY an estimate) that’s generally regarded as most accurate is the one from 23andMe.
I am an adoptee. I have my mothers ethnic information, but not my biological fathers. I am not able to get any info from her. My biological father is deceased. He was also adopted. I am trying to find out about Hispanic/Latino or Native American erhinicity? Is there any way to do this without YDNA? I donor have access or knowledge of any make bio relatives.
By testing your own autosomal DNA, through tests like AncestryDNA, 23andMe or the Family Finder test from Family Tree DNA, you can get an idea of what your father’s ethnic background was. You would look at your results versus what you know of your mother’s, and what you have that you didn’t get from her must have come from your father. In evaluating ethnic origins, this test is very good at the continental level (Europe vs. Asia vs. Africa) but only marginal at the country level (England versus France versus Denmark). In general the ethnicity results from 23andMe are regarded as most accurate.
For Intercountry Adoptee’s, specifically for Korean Adoptees, HAPA’s or their biological families (Korean families and US Servicemembers with Korean children) that are searching or need to confirm their relationship there is free DNA testing through an organization called 325KAMRA.ORG and we have tested to over a dozen countries and thirty cities across North America, Europe and Korea. We are willing to fly and do group DNA testing that is comprised of at least 100 individuals and they are actively searching for biological families in South Korea to test. Their benefactor is Thomas Park Clement and he purchases the kits to be distributed through this NGO. Please share this information with as many people as possible so that we can continue to help in uniting all 200,000 Korean adoptees across the world with their biological families. Thank You!
My 11 year old daughter was adopted from Guatemala. She and I are interested in having DNA testing to learn more about her ethnic origins. Is information about the continent she comes from the best we are likely to get? We’d love to know more about her indigenous side as well as what amount of Spanish blood she may or may not have.
Is it true that some tests detect Native American heritage but that there is no ability to break that down further (i.e. Eskimo vs. Mayan)?
If determined that someone is of Native American heritage, are DNA testing results considered to meet criteria to apply for college scholarships that are based on such heritage? (That’s a very random question but something I’ve wondered about.)
Although curiosity about ethnic origins is the primary motivation behind testing, finding others that my daughter is biologically related to is also of interest! It sounds like Ancestry may be best for leads on relatives due to the size of the pool while 23 & Me may provide the most accurate ethnicity information. For the ethnicity information, is the accuracy pretty close between the two providers of DNA testing?
That’s a lot of questions, I know! Your responses to all or any of it is very appreciated!
Thank you!!
Is information about the continent she comes from the best we are likely to get?
You will get more detailed breakdowns, but their accuracy is the issue.
Is it true that some tests detect Native American heritage but that there is no ability to break that down further (i.e. Eskimo vs. Mayan)?
Correct, no tribal information is available. But I’d expect some greater Asian influence for Eskimo than for Mayan.
If determined that someone is of Native American heritage, are DNA testing results considered to meet criteria to apply for college scholarships that are based on such heritage?
Not that I’m aware of.
Although curiosity about ethnic origins is the primary motivation behind testing, finding others that my daughter is biologically related to is also of interest! It sounds like Ancestry may be best for leads on relatives due to the size of the pool while 23 & Me may provide the most accurate ethnicity information. For the ethnicity information, is the accuracy pretty close between the two providers of DNA testing?
I think 23andMe is still the better choice for pure ethnicity information, while AncestryDNA is the better choice to have a chance of matching relatives. Fortunately, the cost of doing both is well within reach for most folks these days — I remember the days when one test was $300 plus $10 a month!!
My sister and I were both adopted in Germany and both of us came to America, unfortunately we were adopted by different families. Our adoption papers are detailed, at least mine is. Birth mother’s name, dob, occupation,birth father’s name, address, and country. This month I will be doing the testing. I am hoping to find my sister we have the same parents. The reason why my oldest daughter wants to know more about me after she had the test done on her daughter surprising results. One advantage or it could be a disadvantage is I have pictures of my birth mother, I look just like her, also pictures of my sister. Neither of my two older daughter’s share that resemblance but my younger daughter shares some of her resemblances. I am so hoping I can find her! Wish me luck.
Best of luck to you.
Is it best to register with 23and Me under your adopted name or birth name? Do researchers even look at your name when doing the analysis?
The name is realistically much less important than the strength of the match. If I see someone who matches me at 1000 cM (just as an example), the name is a lot less significant than the closeness of that connection. If you want to alert folks to the fact that you’re adopted you can always put (Adoptee) after your name.
My nephew was contacted by a lady who believes she is my brother’s daughter. He was deceased in 1994. He never gave DNA nor has either of his 2 brothers or his 2 sisters. How does this work? How can her DNA be connected to him?
Since everyone descended from the same grandparents or great grandparents or even great grandparents will share SOME DNA in common, anyone who has tested can compare to anyone else from the same family who has tested (even second or third or fourth cousins) and then it’s fairly easy to then narrow down the candidates to men who were in the right place at the time. If your nephew has tested, and it’s his father who is the believed father, then he and the other person can compare their DNA results and can easily determine if they are half-siblings. If it’s a distant cousin who’s tested, then the other person will likely ask a more closely related person to the believed father to test, to be sure.
Am I right in thinking that if a reasonably close DNA match (say, common ancestor back to great great great grandparent or sibling) does not appear against your known maternal ancestors, it is likely they are related through the “ghostly” father of the adopted person?
Any hints on how to pinpoint him?
That far back, you can’t say that it’s likely to be through the paternal side. The problem is that the match may simply have lost the genetic lottery and not gotten segments in common with others who descend from folks that far back. You’re talking fourth or fifth cousin level here.