raditional research has yielded valuable information on the history of our families, but often bumps up against the “brick wall” of genealogy – a place where the genealogist can only go so far in research with family and/or public records. Enter DNA genealogy, today's cutting edge resource. Family history solutions of the future are with DNA. Read the compelling recommendations below.

NEW ENGLAND ANCESTORS, official publication of New England Historic Genealogical Society, Summer 2004: "Y-chromosome and mtDNA testing can be used to verify family relationships and may make your family's history even more accurate and reliable. DNA testing can add supporting evidence to genealogical conclusions or it can disprove them completely." By Thomas H. Shawker.

SONS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION MAGAZINE, Spring, 2005: "DNA evidence is now accepted in mainstream genealogy as being as reliable as, or in some case more reliable than the evidence from written records genealogists traditionally rely upon. Inevitably it will increasingly be offered to support future SAR lineages." By Delaware Society Compatriot Don DeVine, CG, GGI.

FAMILY CHRONICLE, September/October 2003: "It's important to understand that genetic genealogy is a complement to--not a substitute for--traditional genealogical research and is mostly used for surname studies to determine if people share a common ancestor. Contrary to some misconceptions, it is not a short-cut to your family history, a means to learn about your entire family tree, a way to answer medial questions or genealogical cheating." By Megan Smolenyak.

e hear the term DNA almost every day on TV: The news reports a convict exonerated because of DNA evidence, a talk show confirms the paternity of a couple's baby with DNA, or a spot of blood helps solve a crime on CSI. We read newspaper accounts of affirmative court decisions allowing DNA use in prosecuting criminals. Famous DNA cases include the Russian Romanov Czar Nicholas II and his family's remains identified more than 80 years after their murders, Thomas Jefferson's Black descendants' claims validated, and recently Charles Lindbergh's second family in Germany confirmed. Now DNA can also be used as a genealogy tool. What is it? Why is it so important? How does it work? What is its relevance to genealogy?

Most DNA we inherit from our mother and father mixes and makes us unique. It identifies us as individuals the same way fingerprints do but is more reliable. With the exception of identical twins, there is genetic variation between all individuals. Because of this fact, DNA identifies a person accurately for detective work 99.9% of the time. DNA is found in cells throughout our bodies, and can often be obtained at crime scenes from a hair, a single drop of blood, saliva, or semen.

However, there are two types of DNA we inherit that do not mix together, and are therefore exact copies of our parents' DNA which make them useful for genealogy. We all inherit Mitochondrial, or mtDNA, from our mother but only daughters pass it down. The Y-chromosome, or Y-DNA, is passed down exclusively from father to sons and is what makes them male. When a rare change or mutation occurs, it is passed on and distinguises a branch of the family over time. A lineage traced through unique mutations in Y- or mtDNA is called a "haplogroup". For genealogy purposes, it is easy to acquire DNA from a painless swab on the inside of the cheek. It is then extracted and analyzed at a lab.

Men and women both have mtDNA. It is inherited only from the mother, and thus traces a person's maternal history. It is used to discover deep ancestry, or anthrogenealogy, through women back to one of the so called Seven Daughters of Eve from the theory put forth by Bryan Sykes. Eve, named for the biblical first woman, and the seven tribes of ancient times in Africa of ~200,000 years ago, can be traced through all the world's populations. As a point of interest, these tribes are whimsically named Helena, Jasmine, Katrina, Tara, Ursula, Velda, and Xenia. Recently, an eighth was discovered. MtDNA has contributed to important discoveries by scientists in tracking human migration around the world. For example, it conclusively established as fact the long-standing theory that Native Americans originally came to North America from Asia across the Beringia landmass ~20,000 years ago. MtDNA has little variability among most people and generally only allows identification of far distant origins on maternal lines. To see a fascinating study on these migration patterns, look for the National Geographic Genographic project online.

The Y-chromosome is passed down from fathers to sons rarely changes in successive generations. It can be highly variable in populations, and therefore useful for tracing recent ancestry. In Western society as in any patriarchal culture, surnames are handed down in the same way as Y-DNA. This fact makes it an important tool for genealogists because it can connect families in a genealogical time frame, and is considered the cutting edge tool for today's genealogists. Another way to understand it is that every male has a single Y-chromosome inherited from his father. Thus all men in the line have an identical Y-chromosome except for the infrequent mutation. If two men with the same last name have matching Y-DNA, it indicates a high probability that they have a common ancestor in a genealogical time frame. Through DNA, genealogists can test hypotheses developed from paper trails, prove or disprove theories, make new connections, tie up loose ends, solve mysteries, and break through long-standing brick walls.

o explain with a fictitious example: Jon and Inga Brat arrived in New England after fleeing Sweden from the reindeer rebellion in 1827. They had two sons in Boston, Massachusetts, Günter and Igor. After an incident of infidelity where Günter slept with Igor’s wife, Günter fled to the Midwest and lost ties to the family. While Igor’s genealogy has remained intact, it is suspected that Günter’s first and only son changed his name to “Brott” because of incessant teasing at school. You have tracked down a “Brott” in Boise whom you think is the descendant of the outcast Günter, but your paper trail is sketchy because of the undocumented name change. When you and the Boise Brott are both tested, it is confirmed that you are likely related within five generations and your hypothesis was correct!

Of major significance in the world of DNA is to remember that there will be many matches among men, but the only ones that hold the key to a genealogy application is when MEN WITH THE SAME SURNAME HAVE A MATCH. Meanwhile, mtDNA matches generally have LITTLE GENEALOGICAL SIGNIFICANCE, but can be used to disprove theories if individuals expected to be related do not match. These critical facts are often unknown or overlooked among genealogists.

The cost for a DNA swab, extraction, and analysis for genealogical purposes starts at about $100. It can be obtained through the DNA genealogy services which are also great sources of information on the subject. One is Family Tree DNA. This and other services can be found online--Google DNA genealogy service.

Published in The Bulletin of the Eastern Washington Genealogical Society, December, 2005 and in The Albuquerque Genealogical Socitey Quarterly Newsletter, May, 2006

Prepared 10-8-05 and updated 10-27-09 by Rosemary McNerney Winkler, Volunteer DNA Administrator

Family Tree DNA Technical Advisor Taylor Edwards, Research Specialist at the University of Arizona