With a five-fold increase in the number of reference samples, now 16,000, AncestryDNA has changed ethnicity estimates. There are 17 new regions. The new estimates are based on stretches of DNA rather than individual letters (A, C, G or T) at particular bases.
If you're like me your new estimates will likely be more aligned with your expectations before DNA results were available.
My new estimate is more British. England and Wales 44%, an increase of 25%; Ireland and Scotland 34% an increase of 4%.
There are decreases. A 4% reduction in European Jewish, 11% Scandinavian becomes 3% Norwegian and no longer any estimates for Europe West, Caucasus, Europe East or Iberian Peninsula.
What's your experience?
Big changes... now shows 68% England Wales and 32 % Ireland & Scotland.
ReplyDeleteMapping seems a bit more like I expected it should be insofar as it includes Normandy and western Germany. A significant number of my paternal ancestors were Huguenot(Normandy until the 16th century, then England, then to Ontario 1852) and Palatine Germans (Palatinate until 1710, then to Holland, then upper New York state 1711-1712, then to Ontario 1793 post American Revolution).
Then again... my personal understanding of DNA testing and analyzing the results, could be contained in a very small thimble :)
Mine is now more centered on Ireland & Scotland than before with an outrider from Norway. With names like Fraser, Innes & Cuthbertson in the Glenn pool, I'm not surprised.
ReplyDeleteThanks for flagging this up. If anything, my changes are greater. 51% GB plus 7% Ireland Scotland & Wales has changed to 95% England & Wales (up 37%). Europe West 8% is now down to 3% Germanic Europe and Scandinavia 23% has become Sweden 2%
ReplyDelete97-98% exactly the same as before, however, at the less-than-1% level, two more regions have been added to Europe South — Europe East and North Africa — bringing the overall total up to something like 97-99%
ReplyDeleteMy ethnicity update produced quite different results - England & Wales increased 76% to 88%, the Jewish ethnicity decreased from 13% to 9% and the southern European was changed to Italian - 3%. This is much more in line with my paper trail with English ancestors except for 1 Jewish and 1 Italian great-grandparent. I think this is a great improvement. My sisters's results were similarly more accurate.
ReplyDeleteHelen Billing
A bit annoying being told mine our updated when it says Sept 2012 3,000 populations .I took the test in 2012..Seems ancestry is ignoring its older customers and updating those that have recently took the test .Of course this can't possible be true .But ancestry has given me very little confidence in them.Reason being they tried to keep it secret .reason to not cause a massive influx of calls .makes sense .But they forgot one tiny problem ...People on social media and Youtube posting there results .Which then caused the exact problem Ancestry was trying to avoid .Then getting different answers from the staff .which means even they haven't a clue what is going on. I will wait a day a week a month a year . I admit i am inpatient I don't expect a update on my estimates for well into next year .. of course positive me says Sept ,but still feel there updating those that took the test most recent .least the majority .if not then okay .
ReplyDelete