You’ve heard the term tossed around, but exactly what is genetic genealogy?
To understand genetic genealogy, we need to first understand – what is traditional genealogy?
It’s the study of families and their histories, and focuses on tracing lineages and finding connections between groups of people. It’s a research-based hobby used to find details about the lives of ancestors.
You might have a person in your family who loves building family trees, and that’s one of the backbones of genealogy. Building family trees can be done manually, or using an online program such as those offered by Ancestry.com.
Backed up by documents, family stories, births written in family Bibles, and a myriad of other sources, tracing ancestors and learning about their lives can be a fascinating way to learn histories and pass along origin information.
Next we need to understand – what is DNA testing?
It’s the scientific side of the equation. Widely-available consumer tests allow a person to learn details of what is in their own DNA. From learning genetic health information to finding biological relatives, there are many things you can uncover by taking a consumer DNA test.
Starting with the identification of blood types in the 1920s and the structure of DNA in the 1950s, this technology has grown over time (and exponentially in the past two decades) until we can now use each person’s unique DNA code to identify them and their children. (More in depth info about DNA testing HERE.)
GENETIC GENEALOGY combines DNA testing with the traditional techniques of tree building and research.
Using these tools together, genealogists attempt to determine the biological relationships between individuals.
DNA matches + tree building + records searches = more information and detail than either discipline alone.
Genetic genealogy can be used to solve a lot of biological mysteries these days.
It’s what I used to solve my own complicated puzzle.
If you are trying to solve a biological mystery, genetic genealogy tools may be the answer. If you haven’t done it, it can seem really daunting. But there are how-to’s, tutorials, blog posts and YouTube channels that can help you along the way.
As this blog progresses, I will be sharing the techniques I have learned, as well as lots of tips and tricks picked up along the way, to help you if you’re diving in to genetic genealogy.
