DNA Analysis

pinkypinky wrote: »

I've just seen this for the first time today.

You need to understand that DNA shared can be a range of relationships and it's suggesting the most likely based on their experience.
Actually telling it what the correct relationship is should help them improve their predictions.

Understand that its not an exact science as regards the relationship degree ,rather that it (Ancestry suggestion) seems to be very optimistic as to the closeness of the relationship .
None of the 30 or 40 known relatives were actually closer than the DNA suggested and only about 3 or 4 were correct .The rest were 1 to 2 steps further away than the algorithm suggested .
Agree it should help to make the relationship predictor more accurate in time which is useful with many DNA matches especially those with no attached tree .

VirginiaB wrote: »

I have this new feature too and don't understand the point of it. The most valuable part of Ancestry's DNA for me has been the 'Shared Matches' feature. I have a large tree and can usually tell very quickly from shared matches in what line of my ancestry the match belongs if they are 4th cousin and closer. That also applies to quite a few more distant matches, especially if they have a decent tree. I can't think what this new feature brings to the table. Am I missing something?

It might make the predicted/suggested relationship more accurate perhaps .if enough people fill in their definite matches then it should help somewhat I feel .

I find Ancestry (and other sites) seem to indicate a relationship that is usually one or two steps closer than the reality .
Then again that may be just me.Both my parents ancestors came from within 4 or 5 miles of where each was born (different counties )back as far as I can find records (c.1800) so that might skew things a little although would imagine most Irish people would have a similar experience .

The shared match thing is very useful. Have created 25 (?) groups and put people into them according to shared matches.Most usually are only members of 1 group or 2 at most although a few I have in 3 or 4 groups .
One group in particular of 200 plus matches has only one person who is also a member of a different group .The closest 30 or 40 to me in DNA terms in this group seem to have 20 plus shared matches with me .
Problem is that I can still find no connection whatsoever .

What would be useful is something like My Heritage has where you can see how close each shared match is to the person you share the match with and how much DNA they share with each other .
Find Ancestry hints etc much better than other sites but still a lot of rubbish appears from time to time .

I have a great-great grandmother, Elizabeth Towers, born c1819 in Eglish RC parish in Co Kings/Offaly. She married in 1841, same parish. On Ancestry DNA, I have quite a few matches with descendants of a Sarah Towers (birth name) who is given an approximate birth date of c1813, first official record is her marriage in 1838 in the nearby RC parish of Balliboy and Killoughy, Co Kings/Offaly .

I am surprised at the number of matches I have to Sarah Towers' descendants who mostly seem to be in Ireland, many still in Offaly. Is it a stretch to conclude that Elizabeth and Sarah were sisters because of all these matches after this number of generations? Or could they just have been cousins?

The amount of centimorgans varies of course. The most seems to be just under 40. As you know, Ancestry calls that 4th-6th cousins.

I look at shared matches constantly. It's very valuable. Not sure if that's what you mean by the shared centimorgan tool?

My brother got a DNA test. We're from Co. Sligo, in fact I can trace my GG Grandparents to Co. Sligo. I'm not sure how accurate these things are but interesting all the same. I'll be shouting Mayo for Sam this weekend so.

23 and me

A question for anyone who is into using these DNA companies. Is there ever a break down of your DNA going back further of the different groups of settlers like Norman, Viking, Celts, Beaker, Neolithic farmers, western hunter gathers and whatever else?

My brothers one has this but not much detail

I hope someone can help with this. I have a DNA match with many shared matches on Ancestry. I usually can figure out the relationship but this time I could not. We are a very large family, coming from Ireland to NY, and I have spent years putting it all together. I emailed the person managing the test. She said it was her husband's 94 year old mother, looking for the identity of her father. Her mother would never tell his name. They gave me access to her Ancestry page of matches and after spending some time on it, comparing with my matches and my tree, I believe I have the answer. He would have been my grandmother's first cousin, CK. The 94 year old woman has 974 cM shared with her match who is CK's grandson. Another of CK's grandsons shares 803 cMs with her. And so it goes. I am also related to all these people at a much lower number of cMs. CK had a brother but he had no known descendants. CK's sister has descendants who are matches but many less cMs than the grandsons.

This woman has waited her whole life for an answer and I'd like to give it to her but not if I am off-base in my deduction. She also has children and grandchildren who would like to know. What do you think? Do I have enough info to say that CK is her father?

Thanks for that, pinkypinky. Would it be correct to say that CK's father is not identifiable with certainty from present DNA results?

I will have to reply with that to the family. I feel so badly that I couldn't give this lady and her family a definite answer. But I can give her grandparents, great-grandparents, lots of cousins, how they are all connected and townland of origin so I hope that will be some consolation.

Yes, both CK and his brother were in the right place at the right time. I had the info in my tree already but I double-checked. NY and Brooklyn.

https://www.ancestrycdn.com/support/us/2021/09/ethnicity2021whitepaper.pdf

It's broken down into R-S661. I don't really know what that means if anything