About DNA Testing

Genetic Genealogy takes genealogy to a new level!  

Get help uncovering your roots! 

Sooner or later, in researching a family tree, we all get to the point where the paper records become scarce to non-existent.  Perhaps we have several possibilities or much circumstantial evidence as to whom the next ancestor in a line may be, but no way to determine which is which. 

DNA testing may be just the thing to help to break down some of those “brick walls.”   
As interest in DNA testing for genealogy has exploded in the last few years, many people want to get involved, but don't know the best way to go about it.                             

Here's some help!     

If you want to get involved in Genetic Genealogy, here are some basic things you should know: 
You have a choice of two basic DNA tests in the genetic genealogy field: 

1.  yDNA for the male (paternal) line.  Only males can take this test, although women can find a male to represent their family line in the yDNA project. For purposes of a surname study, the lab looks at the yDNA of the chromosome, which only males have (males have XY chromosomes, females have XX chromosomes). The yDNA is passed from father to son in a direct line, and is useful for tracing the surname, which also passes from father to son. (More information about yDNA.)

2.   mtDNA for the female (maternal) line. To determine the deep ancestry we all inherit through our mothers, the lab tests the mitochondrial dna (mtDNA), which both males and females receive from their mothers, but only females can pass on. This test can trace your mother's mother's .....mother's line, and tell you your deep ethnic and geographic heritage, but it is not useful, as yet, in a surname DNA project, as the names change with every generation. (More information about mtDNA)

 Here are the simple rules of DNA testing:

Tips for getting started in genealogy

DNA the Smart Way We have created a simple guide to getting the most out of your DNA testing for genealogy: Our experience administering successful surname projects has given us insight into the necessary steps to take in order to break down those "brick walls" and increase your knowledge of your family history.     We have distilled this knowledge into a step-by-step guide that will give you the best chance of getting the most from your DNA testing.  By following these steps, reading the information we provide, and working with your surname project, you may just find the answers to your family mystery! You will find the guide DNA the Smart Way in the left sidebar of each information page, so you can refer to it often.