Has anyone taken Genealogy DNA tests?

EmmaT2008 wrote:

Could anyone recommend a place that does DNA testing? I am interested in finding more about my ancestors as I am doing my family tree. I know I have Polish and English blood in me but was interested in a test to determine what else and more information. I want to find a place that won't rip me off.
Thanks

witekThreads: 2 Posts: 739 Joined: Apr 1, 07	Edited by: Administrator Apr 5, 07, 00:33 / #
This is pretty interesting, Polish, Hungarian, two good friends is the short form of the popular bilingual proverbial rhyme about the historical friendship of the Polish and the Hungarian people. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pole,_Hungarian,_two_good_friends

witekThreads: 2 Posts: 739 Joined: Apr 1, 07	Apr 5, 07, 00:40 / #
Polish Haplogroup is R1a Haplogroup R1a is believed to have originated in the Eurasian Steppes north of the Black and Caspian Seas. This lineage is believed to have originated in a population of the Kurgan culture, known for the domestication of the horse (approximately 3000 B.C.E.). These people were also believed to be the first speakers of the Indo-European language group. This lineage is currently found in central and western Asia, India, and in Slavic populations of Eastern Europe

DaveInCalThreads: - Posts: 21 Joined: Jan 28, 07	Apr 5, 07, 03:07 / #
That is so cool! Thanks, Witek, I'm so glad to know that. Some day I'll get my genetic test done to see if I have R1a, too.

shewolfThreads: 5 Posts: 1,829 Joined: Dec 23, 06	Edited by: shewolf Apr 5, 07, 11:08 / #
Quoting: witek Polish Haplogroup is R1a What about the maternal lines? Isn't R1a paternal?

witekThreads: 2 Posts: 739 Joined: Apr 1, 07	Apr 5, 07, 11:52 / #
According to Bennett Greenspan of Family Tree DNA, which is analyzing data for the project, the Y chromosome had a genetic profile, or haplotype, called R1a, which is believed to have originated in Northern India and Pakistan some 30,000 years ago. Wells said information about the migrations will become more detailed as more people participate in the project, contributing their own genetic history. Kits may be ordered at: nationalgeographic.com.

DaveInCalThreads: - Posts: 21 Joined: Jan 28, 07	Apr 6, 07, 03:03 / #
Those kits are kind of expensive, aren't they? Over $100, I think. I'm too poor to afford it.

Patrycja19Threads: 76 Posts: 3,877 Joined: Oct 31, 06	Jan 1, 08, 17:19 / #
DaveInCal wrote: Over $100, you spend more then that on a cell phone with all the gadgets and accessories..

DaveInCalThreads: - Posts: 21 Joined: Jan 28, 07	Edited by: DaveInCal Jan 2, 08, 03:26 / #
Which is why I don't own one! Before I die, though, I want to get that DNA test done somehow!

PeterThreads: 5 Posts: 291 Joined: Mar 31, 07	Jan 2, 08, 18:22 / #
ArturSzastak wrote: Quoting: shewolf I think Polish people are concerned that if they take a DNA test it will reveal something other than Polish. But my own test matched me up with Northern Poland and Belorussians. Yeah. It's weird thinking you might not be Polish Kinda scary....... I guess it's a question of defining what or who is Polish. The geographical boundries of what was Poland over the centuries has varied widely.

Patrycja19Threads: 76 Posts: 3,877 Joined: Oct 31, 06	Edited by: Patrycja19 Jan 6, 08, 17:48 / #
DaveInCal wrote: Before I die, though, I want to get that DNA test done somehow! me too.. plan to actually here before spring.. and also want to have another Possible cousin take it, just to see if we are cousins.. I heard some good feedback on it.. Peter wrote: I guess it's a question of defining what or who is Polish. The geographical boundries of what was Poland over the centuries has varied widely. Wasnt Poland formed kinda like the United States was with people from other slavic countries?

Lady in red	Jan 6, 08, 18:00 / #
That's really interesting information. I think I shall get mine done ...... :)

carolnThreads: - Posts: 2 Joined: Jan 13, 08	Jan 13, 08, 08:46 / #
Hi everybody, I am new to this forum and just received the results of DNA testing: Paternal R1a Maternal H Carol Researching Solecki, Jezierski

osiolThreads: 59 Posts: 4,714 Joined: Jul 25, 07	Jan 13, 08, 10:47 / #
caroln wrote: Paternal R1a I had a quick peek of Wikipedia (source of all knowledge!) and I thought I'd just post the link and recommend that anyone interested takes a look at the accompanying map to this page. It seems R1a is found to varying degrees from Iceland and Ireland, all the way across Asia. How can this genetic information tell you you're Polish? URL

Patrycja19Threads: 76 Posts: 3,877 Joined: Oct 31, 06	Jan 13, 08, 11:11 / #
osiol wrote: It seems R1a is found to varying degrees from Iceland and Ireland, all the way across Asia. How can this genetic information tell you you're Polish? it showed this across europe and of course this would be true, people do not stay in same area.. now or even then.. but I agree, this is theory still. so how can it be proven.. but apparently DNA can be extracted from people that were mummys thousands of years ago and we can learn from it, and possibly some of the evidence they put before us in theory is more then likely scientific tests which have been concluded as evidence of these DNA markers. I just find it amazing that whomever was the first survivor of my DNA - who is probably my 80th great grandfather, how did he do it? what did he witness? and what struggles he endured..I would love to know, but this is impossible.

osiolThreads: 59 Posts: 4,714 Joined: Jul 25, 07	Edited by: osiol Jan 13, 08, 11:20 / #
The DNA data show how population movement of a very long time ago. If you're wondering if you're really Polish (or whatever) then researching your family tree will give you much more interesting results, as long as you can get your hands on the information you need. Searching for it looks like the fun bit - it may be a very good excuse to travel. The only problem with researching genealogy the traditional way is the fact that people can be unfaithful to their spouses. There will be cases where the stated father is not the true father (even if you believe your family to be a morally upstanding one). So I wouldn't want to stop anyone having their DNA looked at, but just the two tests mentioned by caroln a couple of posts back really doesn't give anything away. EDIT: caroln wrote: Maternal H I hate to take a leak on caroln's bonfire, but again, according to Wikipedia, about half of all Europeans carry this genetic marker. I know Wikipedia is not the most reliable source of information, but sometimes I trust it more than other times. I can't see any agenda someone might have to lying or misrepresenting this information. So I'd say it is absolutely useless knowing whether you carry this mT DNA or not. I hope this test was either not very expensive or yielded some more precise results.

carolnThreads: - Posts: 2 Joined: Jan 13, 08	Jan 13, 08, 22:03 / #
I did not have the DNA tests done to determine if I am Polish. I already knew that. I was just stating what our results were and a poster had said in a previous post that the predominate Haplogroup for males in Poland is R1a. The tests were done as part of genealogical research. The more markers that match with another person, the more likely it is that you share a common ancestor. As I am having difficulty in finding ancestors beyond my great-grandfather, I thought that having the tests would be helpful. As far as the maternal side, I am still awaiting for the final results to come in and to see what matches I may have with someone else who has had the tests done.

Patrycja19Threads: 76 Posts: 3,877 Joined: Oct 31, 06	Jan 13, 08, 23:24 / #
caroln wrote: As I am having difficulty in finding ancestors beyond my great-grandfather, caroln sometimes the name was changed,, this was the case for my grandmother, and so I called a cousin, she told me about the name change ( americanized) or just spelling error too on her part .. writing and spelling in english were very hard for my grandmother.

JoomaThreads: 1 Posts: 24 Joined: Dec 20, 07	Feb 5, 08, 15:15 / #
My family roots are from Lwow and Malopolska, I am R1a1, maternal HV*

zaleskiThreads: - Posts: 10 Joined: Oct 22, 07	Edited by: zaleski Feb 8, 08, 21:16 / #
Here's the link to the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth Dna Project . You can select either the Y-chromosome or mitochondrial results. I'm represented by my great grandfather Nikolaj Zaleski under haplogroup G (Central Asia/Caucasus). Be patient, the spreadsheet takes a little time to generate.http://www.familytreedna.com/public/polish/

Patrycja19Threads: 76 Posts: 3,877 Joined: Oct 31, 06	Feb 8, 08, 23:34 / #
zaleski wrote: Here's the link to the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth Dna Project . Thank you for the link it will be helpful for those re-searching.

Filios1Threads: 15 Posts: 1,953 Joined: Nov 13, 07	Feb 8, 08, 23:36 / #
Well, I am getting this done as we speak... I hope to have results back sometime early next week. Will let you guys know what I get back..

EmmaT2008Threads: 8 Posts: 35 Joined: Dec 28, 07	Edited by: EmmaT2008 Feb 9, 08, 12:25 / #
Could anyone recommend a place that does DNA testing? I am interested in finding more about my ancestors as I am doing my family tree. I know I have Polish and English blood in me but was interested in a test to determine what else and more information. I want to find a place that won't rip me off. Thanks

shewolfThreads: 5 Posts: 1,829 Joined: Dec 23, 06	Feb 9, 08, 12:51 / #
EmmaT2008 wrote: Could anyone recommend a place that does DNA testing? I am interested in finding more about my ancestors as I am doing my family tree. I know I have Polish and English blood in me but was interested in a test to determine what else and more information. I want to find a place that won't rip me off. Thanks The company Family Tree DNA is good because they keep your records in their database and they tell you when you have a match with someone. Other companies just do the test. FTDNA even has a Polish project that you can join. Someone gave the link the other day (see zaleski's post)

polski_zydThreads: 2 Posts: 87 Joined: Feb 19, 08	Feb 26, 08, 13:22 / #
Thread attached on merging: DNA testing to prove your "Polishness" or whatever Would you like to do it? I must admit I'm quite curious... incidence of haplogroup R1a and all that. :) Bet it costs a fortune, though.

Patrycja19Threads: 76 Posts: 3,877 Joined: Oct 31, 06	Mar 10, 08, 09:22 / #
polski_zyd wrote: Bet it costs a fortune, though. as much as a cell phone with all the goodies.. its actually reasonable..

Czerwony LisThreads: 1 Posts: 34 Joined: Mar 23, 08	Mar 24, 08, 20:03 / #
OK guys and gals. Witek has presented a lot of good information regarding haplogroup R1a. However, that is not the only haplogroup in Poland. There are many others and even if you find out that you are N, J, Q or any other group even R1b, if you consider yourself a Pole, then you are! I am Y-DNA R1a1 (at 67 Markers) and MtDNA H2b (HVRI and II). My parents are from Poland. I was also curious to see if I was "Polish" genetically. Go to the family tree dna website ftdna.com and search for the Polish Project. I'm a friend of the co-adminstrator and can tell you that he is extremely helpful to everybody. Right now there are two people working on subgroups of R1a1 to determine even more deeper ancestral information. Currently I fit into a subgroup that may be the oldest and possibly related to the Sarmatians that lived around 500BC to 450AD. R1a is widespread but there are historical reasons for this widespread group including alliances with the Vikings and Romans to invade other countries. Ladies (and men also) you are able to have a mitochondrial test done to determine you ancestral haplogroup (clan). The results are not as sharp as for YDNA. My matches at high resolution resulted with people from Ireland, Norway and France. Costs are relative to how much you want to get into this whole thing. Shy away from the cheapest test as they provide the most ambiguous information.

SoftsongThreads: 6 Posts: 587 Joined: Sep 2, 07	Apr 1, 08, 13:34 / #
Well, I just got my MtDNA results back. I had the test done by Sorenson where the kit is free. and they eventually post the information without revealing who you are. Most people can figure out who they are from surnames and location and round about get their results...or they have GeneTree who partners with them, for a fee send you personalized results. I chose the later. Anyway, I was pretty surprised. From the geneological records and names in my lineage, I have German/Dutch ancestors that lived in Central Poland, on my father's side. My test had nothing to do with them. My Mom's, Mom was Elizabeth Bubacz, married to Josef Lewandowski. I have no idea where in Poland they came from other than German Poland. So I hoped this would help find other relatives who would know more, and it may yet do so. But rather than the "H" MtDNA I expected, I am a "U5". The most ancient of the Clan mothers, and mostly found in Finland today. It was also the first MtDNA in Europe that is considered human, and may have existed side by side with Neanderthals! Yikes! LOL I noticed that this "Ursula" lineage is also found in some Polish MtDNA results. My male lines are no longer living, so I cannot do the Y DNA.

IdWThreads: - Posts: 84 Joined: Sep 7, 07	Edited by: IdW Apr 2, 08, 06:03 / #
shewolf: I've read of people finding out that their DNA is African or just something they never imagined and they are very upset about it. Or polish even.. Imagine that ;) p.s. Everyone has African DNA http://anthropology.si.edu/humanorigins/ha/sap.htm. So irrespecive of the other contributors to your genetic makeup you have African DNA p.s. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/global/main.jhtml?xml=/global/2006/11/05/sv genetic05.xml&sSheet=/global/2006/11/09/expatres.html "So you think you're English?"

Czerwony LisThreads: 1 Posts: 34 Joined: Mar 23, 08	Apr 2, 08, 20:33 / #
Softsong: But rather than the "H" MtDNA I expected, I am a "U5". It just goes to show that you really don't know your haplogroup until you test. I bet the family history is a little bit richer now with that information. Did you have the HVRI or HVRI and II test? If only HVR I then upgrade to HVR II and then you can find some exact matches that may be more closely related. The problem with mtDNA is that identical matches may be related from thousands of years ago. I'm H2b and at HVR I (the basic test) I have over a 1000 matches, but at HVR II I had 9. I'm working on a paper to describe all this. I'm considering doing a Full Sequence MtDNA test to potentially find out more information.

SoftsongThreads: 6 Posts: 587 Joined: Sep 2, 07	Apr 3, 08, 02:08 / #
Yes, you are right about not really knowing till you test. And yes, I have the extended test done and so have less matches. One comes up in Schlesweig (when ruled by Denmark). Of course, the U5 is an ancient haplogroup. My mother's line came from Poland with Polish surnames and spoke Polish and considered themselves Polish. I am most interested in genealogical time (500 years) as opposed to population studies before genealogical time, but it is interesting. Those indigenious native Europeans of the U5 group seem to have the high cheek bones and somewhat almond shaped eyes like many Polish people have. Anyway, good luck on your paper, I am sure it will be very interesting!