Today, I finally ordered a genetic testing kit. It has been a long time coming but I pulled the trigger after many distant cousins, and one first cousin, took the test. This is incredibly exciting for me as I’ve taken to geeking out on Wikipedia’s genetic articles about haplogroups, single nucleotide polymorphism and short tandem repeat (STR). I chose 23andMe simply because that’s the company many of my cousins have chosen. If this became a hobby, I might consider trying others.

I anticipate my Y-chromosome will show something English or Anglo-Saxon. However, I would not be shocked if a Celtic or Northern Scandanavian haplotype was present instead. My paternal roots are English in origin, as far as I know. So far, I have been unable to identify a birth record for my family’s Tagg progenitor, William Tagg, who lived in Bristol, England for at least 15 years before emigrating from England to New York. Y-DNA haplotype prediction: R1b

As for my maternal line, I already know my mitochondrial DNA haplotype: U5b1 (that’s what should show up anyway). That particular maternal line runs through Veneto in Northern Italy. I’ve managed to trace back that line to my fourth-great-grandmother, Luigia Rossi, in Castelmassa, Italy.

One question, which I hope can be answered, is if my Native American ancestry exists. My dad and grandma have consistently stated that we are descendants of a Long Island Native American woman. Genetics is random so possible links to my American Indian roots may not be present in genetic results. My linkage to her could be as small as 1/64 or 1/128, meaning it is unlikely a positive result will occur. Nevertheless, I will continue looking far and wide for the alleged woman.

Next week, I break down the kit and my experience taking the test.