Tests & Products
Paternal Tests
Male - Y/CS25
Our Y/CS25 provides reliable markers for tight genealogical connections, plus guaranteed
placement of your Y chromosome (Y/CS) on the 'tree' of mankind.
Men pass their Y chromosome on to all of their sons from generation to generation.
Historically speaking, all men descend from a single man who lived 60-70,000 years
ago in Africa. Over time, his descendents branched out into many families. We test
25 markers on your Y chromosome and determine what branch in the Y-DNA family tree
of mankind you belong to using the world's largest comparative database. If your
branch cannot be confidently predicted, we will perform the additional testing necessary
to determine it at no additional charge.
Because ethnic groups and tribal identities are fluid in Africa, African Americans
often share genetic ancestry with more than one ethnic group. This reflects our
rich genetic ancestry in Africa and that, because of migration and other factors,
African Americans are not limited in their genetic heritage merely to one ethnic
group. Migrations, tribal conflicts, and wars made our ancestors' DNA move across
borders and between tribes. Only rarely will an African American match a single
ethnic group. AfricanDNA informs you of all of the ethnicities your paternal lineage
matches. This list will continue to update and grow as more ethnic groups are sampled
in Africa.
Our historians and scholarly advisors use this information, in combination with
historical evidence concerning the slave trade, to identify the region of Africa
where your lineage most likely originated and to share information with you about
that region and the ethnic groups found there. For more information, please see
the maps and population tables on the Historical Overview page.
We include a certificate and personalized report with each order.
Maternal Tests
Female-mtDNA
Female inheritable mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) passes from the mother to all of her
children, and from her daughters to their children, and so on in an unending genetic
chain. Therefore you and your mother's sister's child have identical mtDNA.
Historically speaking, all people descend from a single woman who lived over 120,000
years ago in Africa. Over time, her descendents branched out into many families.
In addition to sequencing 1116 base pair region of your mtDNA, we test you for 22
positions that identify which branch of the mtDNA family tree of mankind you belong
to. The combination of these results provides geographical matches when compared
against our African database.
Because ethnic groups and tribal identities are fluid in Africa, African Americans
often share genetic ancestry with more than one ethnic group. This reflects our
rich genetic ancestry in Africa and that, because of migration and other factors,
African Americans are not limited in their genetic heritage merely to one ethnic
group. Migrations, tribal conflicts, and wars made our ancestors' DNA move across
borders and between tribes. Only rarely will an African American match a single
ethnic group. AfricanDNA informs you of all of the ethnicities your maternal lineage
matches. This list will continue to update and grow as more ethnic groups are sampled
in Africa.
Our historians and scholarly advisors use this information, in combination with
historical evidence concerning the slave trade, to identify the region of Africa
where your lineage most likely originated and to share information with you about
that region and the ethnic groups found there. For more information, please see
the maps and population tables on the Historical Overview page.
We include a certificate and personalized report with each order.