Black Friday – Ancestry DNA

Family History researchers are increasingly being drawn to the use of DNA testing as a way to overcome their genealogy brick walls. A DNA test on its own however is not very informative and it may be best used as a family history research tool in combination with documentary records.

It can be satisfying to have DNA evidence as additional confirmation of relationships.

There are three different types of test and the choice of test will depend on the questions that you want to answer.

Autosomal DNA
Y-chromosome DNA
Mitochondrial DNA

Autosomal DNA is the most popular of the three tests and it tests autosomes that we inherit from both of our parents. We inherit 50 per cent of our DNA from each of our parents and approximately 25 per cent of our DNA from grandparents.

Ancestry DNA is the market leader in this field and their Black Friday deal is £30 off the price of a DNA Kit. (Offer closes 2nd December 2019)

Y-chromosome DNA is passed on by a father to his sons and the test can therefore only be taken by males.

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is passed on by a mother to both her sons and her daughters however only females can pass mtDNA to the next generation.