AncestryDNA updated my “Ethnicity Estimate” today.
As usual, I’m taking this with a huge shaker of salt only to be used on buttered popcorn while watching entertainment. Keeping in mind that these estimates are based on ethnicity reports from submitted tests (and I think a few known migration details from history) and are “further back” that I’ll ever trace most of my tree, it really is a quick diversion. In my case:
- On paper I’m 1/8 Irish (1860-era immigrants). Maybe that’s not showing up because at least half of my Irish were Protestants from the North and could have easily actually been from Scotland.
- On paper I’m 1/2 Ostfriesen (1850-1880 era immigrants). That area of Germany (near the Dutch border with modern-day Germany) is part of AncestryDNA‘s “England, Wales & Northwestern” region and probably accounts for my 56% from that region. That might even account for the little bit of Scandinavian (maybe).
- On paper I’m 1/8 German (from Thuringia and other unknown German areas–immigrating in the mid-19th century).
- The remaining 1/4? That portion consists of pre-Revolutionary War immigrants to the US. Probably a scattering from the areas in my estimate–which I already figured to begin with.
The only “surprise” in my estimate at AncestryDNA is the “England, Wales & Northwestern Europe” portion. But it’s all relatively consistent with what I expected and I’ve got more recent people to work on and worry about.
Now if I had said I was twenty-five percent Native American–that would have been a different story.
2 Responses
Michael …..thank you for the reminder of taking this with huge shaker of salt. Mine did a 360 and wiped out my Irish and gave me German. It is not correct.
You are welcome. As I mentioned, I view these as entertainment. Part of how I entertain myself is to try and figure out “how they got what they got” for my ethnicity results. No Irish for me leaves me puzzled.