It’s never been easier and more popular to look for your family tree. People of all backgrounds, ages, and regions are now buying DNA ancestry kits to discover interesting things about their ancestry. There are a couple of basic reasons people care about their ancestry and want to find a DNA kit to analyze it. Let’s look into them
Genealogy and Family Trees
The practice of tracing family lineage is age-old. While it started as a way for monarchs to pass power, the practice was quickly adopted by many other groups of people. Before the times of DNA test kits, ancestry information was largely limited to scraps of information found in old letters, government reports, and other sparse documents detailing your family history.
As more was understood about genetics and how genes are inherited through families, scientists realized they could essentially track a person’s ancestors based on genetic testing. The best DNA home kit will provide you analysis for genetic relationships which may support (or disprove) your family history. Many companies provide analysis such as this, giving you a breakdown of what regions your family likely came from or migrated to.
Of course, price was a major consideration. Thankfully, as DNA technology advanced, prices have significantly dwindled down. These lowering prices, coupled with an ever-growing demand to understand our genetic information has fueled a surge in DNA-based tests.
Social Psychology
There’s also a social component to this trend. Humans are a social species, and our survival has largely depended on it. Even before we discovered fire and made our way out of “recent” Africa, we were likely largely social creatures. Like a pack of wolves or a flock of geese, our survival depended on being connected to a larger group.
Because of this, humans have a natural and inherent desire to be a part of a larger group. DNA kits can open the door to a greater connection to humanity. Not only will they show you where your recent ancestors originated from, but they can also tell you how you are related to the entire family tree. Maternal and paternal haplotype analysis can give you information all the way back to the dawn of humanity, and how you tie into the entire human population.
Getting Ancestry Testing
There are many companies which offer ancestry testing, but only a few that do it exceedingly well. The best DNA home kit for ancestry is likely among these. Below are some of these companies and the services they offer.
National Geographic’s Geno 2.0: Geno 2.0 is a global project, started and maintained by the non-profit National Geographic. This project has a goal of documenting and studying ancestry, and if you buy one of their tests your genetic information is contributed to this researchable database. The company partners with the genetic testing conglomerate Helix, which provides a fancy and informative user interface for exploring your deepest ancestral roots.
Ancestry: Ancestry has been a global leader in family tree services for a long time. With their DNA kits you can get access to these services, and create a much more filled-in picture of your family history. Their massive archives give you access to thousands of documents and sources which might lead to a long-lost relative.
FamilyTree DNA: As one of the first companies to offer genetic ancestry DNA kits, FamilyTree DNA is also one of the most thorough in the business. The company will offer analysis of both your autosomal and haplotype DNA and can provide in-depth analysis of both. Unlike Ancestry, the site only augments a family tree but does not have some of the other research tools.
MyHeritage: Another leader in ancestry DNA test kit services, MyHeritage is like Ancestry in that it provides DNA analysis and family tree building services, as well as access to stored documents. MyHeritage boasts one of the largest repositories of both genetic and database information. They even have a subscription service that enlists their help in discovering more about your roots.
The human race although being the dominant power in nature is still bound to its primary DNA patterns which determine we will be social creatures. As such, we are by default tribal and ancestry is of great significance for us. Finding the right DNA test kit can help solve these mysteries for petty cash and without effort.
