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[quote=historyfan;46462904]I know a young couple that DNA tested last year during Ancestry's sale. The male was trying determine how much "Indian" was in his genetic makeup, while female already knew her great-grandmother was Native American.
She has a dark olive easy tanning complexion and dark almost black brown hair. He is a blonde.
It's all a bit baffling as he is mostly English, Scottish, Welsh and German.
I'm not really sure why people would say they are of a different heritage than what they are. I don't know what the point would be.
Some people want to claim to be something they aren't, particularly when you are dealing with celebrities. Many of them also claim to have genius level IQs. So it doesn't surprise me they claim to have some exotic ancestry they don't truly have. They also lie about their age. Not just actresses, but actors too.
I'm sure my DNA will come back English & German, kind of boring, but I'm okay with that.
And also didn't immigrate to the colonies. There was no need to since they were living well in Europe.
That's why I feel most Americans who claim European royal ancestry are full of b.s.
Many Americans (myself included) have English nobility in their ancestry, especially if their families immigrated here in the 1600s and 1700s, as mine did. Lots of these immigrants were not the eldest sons of wealthy families, so they would not inherit the land or estates - but they did have money and connections so they could move to NY or PA or VA to an established colony pretty comfortably with that money and those connections. For instance, my ancestors were part of the House of Burgesses in VA prior and during the Revolutionary War. One of my ancestors was Robert "King" Carter who owned most of what is now North and South Carolina.
Anyway, you can trace some of these very old families straight back to nobility and eventually royalty.
It doesn't much matter to me, and it certainly doesn't matter to me whether or not someone believes it - in fact, I don't go around talking about it because it has absolutely nothing to do with my worth or value as a person. I can't help who my ancestors are. And in fact, I also have some very UN "noble" and UN "royal" ancestors as well.
One thing I apparently don't have though, is Native American ancestry. I had my DNA "done" and I am officially the whitest person I know - 98 percent northern European and 2 percent general European. Not a speck of anything else. Sort of boring, I guess, but hey, it is what it is.
By the way, I have very fair skin, but dark, thick, coarse and wavy hair, and dark eyes.
My husband looks like a Viking, with chiseled features, a straight nose, blue eyes and blonde hair. We thought he was largely Irish, which he is. He is also, not surprisingly, northern European. But guess what - he's also 2 percent western African and 1 percent Jewish! So much for what people "look like."
Location: New Albany, Indiana (Greater Louisville)
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Probably half the people in W Europe have Charlemagne as an ancestor so it's not a stretch for most Americans with European ancestry to have some royal ancestry. Many kings back then had tons of children with many women. The notion of a king only having sexual relations with one wife was an enlightenment progression.
Probably half the people in W Europe have Charlemagne as an ancestor so it's not a stretch for most Americans with European ancestry to have some royal ancestry. Many kings back then had tons of children with many women. The notion of a king only having sexual relations with one wife was an enlightenment progression.
Right - it's just not that big a deal.
What surprised me on my DNA test was that there was ONLY northern European DNA in it - our family has been in the US since the 1640s and Jamestown!
I suspect it is because there are many things about Native American culture which are very desirable to claim as your own characteristics.
Stealthy stalker who can track a snake across bare rock, master hunter, master survival skills, ferocious warrior, determination, overcoming great odds without giving up, deep link to nature, one of the world's best horsemen. Cultures of generosity.
They even wore great costumes and had fascinating religions. Some of them had strong links to the mystical. Some of the tribes produced gorgeous art.
So what's not to like? It's so easy to claim parts of that warrior culture to be a part of your own genetic makeup.
I can easily see that a "he's so good in the woods, he must be part Indian" could end up passed down through the family that he was actually part Indian.
The exact same examples can be given for the Africans. Sadly, slavery made Caucasians feel so supreme . That superiority has been passed down.
Reality? There is zero difference between Native Americans and Native Africans as far as all of the above.
The difference? Well, that is made, felt, seen, in the eyes and heart of the beholder.
Probably half the people in W Europe have Charlemagne as an ancestor so it's not a stretch for most Americans with European ancestry to have some royal ancestry. Many kings back then had tons of children with many women. The notion of a king only having sexual relations with one wife was an enlightenment progression.
Oh yeah, that too. But still often the "illegimate" weren't always officially recognized as heirs (although in some places like Wales they were granted full rights the same as legitimate heirs). Overall, I find most of the claims to be silly, especially when someone says they were directly descended from Queen Elizabeth I. (She didn't have any heirs).
What surprised me on my DNA test was that there was ONLY northern European DNA in it - our family has been in the US since the 1640s and Jamestown!
Same here, can trace my lineage back on my mother's side to the 1600s. So I would be surprised (and disappointed) to find only European DNA, but that's probably what it is.
Where does this come from? Any theories? I find it intriguing that both white and black Americans believe in this.
What kind of crazy question is this? It primarily comes from the fact that tens of millions of "white" and "black" Americans actually have Indian ancestry.
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