I miss winter already

Snow has started to melt. Beautiful icicles are forming over the edges. Last week everything was under thick sheets of snow. Sheets so white and pure that it seemed a crime to walk over them. Everything seemed from a dreamland under a heavy overcast. Now the melodic dripping sounds of melting snow are playing an orchestra all around. There is a hypnotic feel to them. These are the harbingers are things to come. Things that are green and colorful. But winter seems like a friend departing too soon. I miss winter already.

National Geographic Geno 2.0 DNA Ancestry Kit

National Geographic Geno 2.0 DNA Ancestry Kit is a bit different than the DNA Kits that I have tested so far. It provides a much more detailed report about ancestry migration patterns, The Y and mtDNA trees, genius matches and one's Hominin ancestry. The total report is around 14 pages long and contains some interesting facts. It costs around $260 at present including shipping.

However, its results regarding ancestral regions are not as detailed as of the LivingDNA kit. It also assigns Central Asia as the main ancestral region in my case as opposed to South Asia for all other DNA kits. On the other hand, that minor European connection is still there.

The deep ancestry haplogroups and subclades are also quite different than the LivingDNA results.

'Your Genius Match' is another interesting and fun feature but at present, it seems to be heavily skewed towards the Western world.

As far as the Hominin ancestry is concerned, I am less of a Neanderthal than an average test taker but it is consistent with the Non-African, Non-European populations.

LivingDNA

LivingDNA distinguishes itself by claiming to be the most precise genealogical DNA test available. It is done through a simple cheek swab which is then sent through the mail. Results become available after a few weeks online. The cost is around $149 plus shipping at the moment.

Besides providing a detailed ethnicity estimate, it also gives information regarding fatherline and motherline Haplogroups, Subclades coverage, and migration maps. I think it is the only kit at present that divides South Asia into several different ethnic sub-regions.

LivingDNA Ethnicity Overview

Ethnicity Map - Detailed View

Fatherline Coverage Map

Fatherline Migration Map

Fatherline Overview

Motherline Coverage Map

Motherline Migration Map

Motherline Overview

Ethnicity Estimates by MyHeritage and Family Tree DNA

Family Tree DNA

Most of DNA testing services provide you with the raw data that can be uploaded to other DNA testing sites to obtain a second opinion. I uploaded the data from the AncestryDNA to MyHeritage and Family Tree DNA web sites to reassess the earlier conclusions.

Results are nearly identical for all of these sites as for as the ethnic regions are concerned. South Asia, Central Asia, and Baltic regions are present in every DNA analysis even though the percentages are slightly different in each case. However, I wonder that if these Baltic/Finland connections are real.

AncestryDNA Testing

First Estimate

Revised Estimate

AncestryDNA is a DNA testing service for genetic ethnicity estimates and identifying potential DNA matches. The kit costs $129 at the moment but sometimes a discounted price is offered on special occasions. It is so far available only in a handful of countries. 

The process of DNA testing is actually quite simple. You register and pay for the kit online and receive a DNA testing kit in a week or two. The kit includes a saliva collection tube and a pre-paid return mailer. After returning the sample, the DNA results become available at the AncestryDNA website in around two months.

As far as the actual ethnicity estimates are concerned, it can provide much more detailed information if one has European ancestry. However, in the case of other regions, it is still quite crude. For example, the whole of South Asian ancestry is bundled under one ethnic group. 

It is also a rapidly evolving field and ethnicity estimates can change as new data becomes available. In my case, initially, my ancestry was reported as 95% South Asia, 4% Central Asia and less than 1% for Finland/Northwest Russia region. However, this was later revised to a 100% South Asian ancestry.

One nice feature of the ancestry site is its tool for family tree creation. One can add photos, records and a lot of details about one’s family members and ancestors. Its layout is easy to manage and handle. However, it has a drawback when it comes to cousin marriages.  Add a few such relations and the whole tree becomes jumbled. There is no solution to date on the Ancestry site about resolving this problem (apart from avoiding cousin marriages in the first place).

The DNA matches that I received were mainly in the 5th to 8th cousin range and do not seem to be quite reliable. This is understandable since the kit is only available in a few developed countries. I hope that this will change in the future as DNA testing techniques improve and become more widely available throughout the world.

Update: October 2019