When using autosomal DNA, the X chromosome is a powerful tool with special inheritance properties. Many people think that mitochondrial DNA is the same as the X chromosome. It’s not.
Mitochondrial DNA is inherited maternally, only. This means that mothers give their mitochondrial DNA to all of their children, but only the females pass it on. So tracking mitochondrial DNA back up your tree, it goes to your mother, to her mother, to her mother, until you run out of direct line mothers on that branch. The mitochondrial DNA is shown by the red shading below. The Y chromosome is blue.
Mitochondrial DNA is not one of the 23 chromosomes you obtain from both of your parents.
The X chromosome is different. The X chromosome is one of the 23 pairs of chromosomes. The 23rd pair is the pair that dictates the gender of the child. If a child has an X and a Y, it’s a male. Remember that the father contributes the Y chromosome to male children only. If the child has two X chromosomes, it’s a female.
The inheritance patterns for the X chromosome for males and females is therefore different. Men inherit only one X chromosome, from their mother, while women inherit two Xs, one from their mother and one from their father. In turn, their parents inherited their X in a specific way as well. All ancestors don’t contribute to the X chromosome.
In my paper published in the Journal of Genetic Genealogy (Vol. 6 #1) in the fall of 2010, in a paper titled Revealing American Indian and Minority Heritage Using Y-line, Mitochondrial, Autosomal and X Chromosomal Testing Data Combined with Pedigree Analysis, in addition to other types of analysis, I analyzed my X chromosome and what it told me about where some of my Native and African inheritance came from.
At that time, the only company returning ethnicity information about the X chromosome was deCode genetics. My X chromosome showed that I carried Native American heritage on the X chromosome as well as on some other chromosomes.
I’m going to share the part of this paper involving the X chromosome and how it can be used genealogically and in particular, to identify candidates who could have contributed this Native and African ancestry.
Blaine Bettinger granted me permission to use 2 charts in the paper and again for this blog. Thanks much, Blaine. He originally published them on his blog, The Genetic Genealogist, in December 2008 and January 2009 in his blogs about how to use the X chromosome for genealogy.
The first chart shown below is the male’s X chromosome inheritance chart. You can see that he only obtains his X chromosome from his mother who inherited it from both her mother and father, but only from some of her ancestors on either side.
The next chart is the female’s inheritance chart. She obtains her X from both of her parents.
Blaine color coded these, pink for females and blue for males, so I was then able to quickly use them to fill in my ancestor’s names. I know this next chart looks messy, but it’s what I did and I still refer to this regularly. I don’t’ expect you to READ this, I expect you’ll DO something like this with your own pedigree chart. So excuse the look into my messy closet:)
I numbered the slots so that I could work with them later.
The results were quite surprising. The first thing that became immediately evident is that I didn’t have to worry about a few lines. On the chart below, you can see that my mother’s German lines could be immediately eliminated, because we know they were not the source of the Native American heritage.
This leaves only three individuals on the mother’s side as candidates for Native ancestry. Those are the numbered slots between the German lines.
The people below correspond to the numbered slots above. See, I told you that you didn’t need to read the chicken scratch chart.
5 – Naby (probably short for Abigail), last name unknown but may be Curtis, born in Connecticut in about 1793.
7 – Capt. Samuel Mitchell, born probably about 1700, possibly in Kittery, Maine or possibly in Europe, mother unknown. This line is probably eliminated.
8 – Captain Mitchell’s wife, Elizabeth, last name unknown
Using the pedigree chart, we narrowed the mother’s side from 21 possible slots to 5 with one more probably eliminated. Of these, mitochondrial DNA sampling of the descendants of the two women whose last name is unknown would produce the answer to the question of maternal Native or African ancestry.
The father’s side is more complex because many of his ancestors immigrated in the colonial era. Candidates for Native ancestry are as follows:
20 – Mary, wife of John Harrold (Herrald, later Harrell), born about 1750, died in 1826 in Wilkes County, NC. She was rumored to have been Irish.
21 – Michael McDowell, born 1747 in Bedford Co., Va. – his mother is unknown. His father was a second generation immigrant who lived in Halifax and Bedford Counties in Virginia.
22 – Isabel, wife of Michael McDowell, probably born about 1750, surname unknown, located in Virginia.
27 – Elizabeth, born about 1765, wife of Andrew McKee of Virginia.
28 – Agnes Craven is the last slot on the chart, but not the last in the line. Her father was Col. Robert Craven born 1696 in Delaware and was well to do. His mother is unknown. Robert’s wife was Mary Harrison, born in Oyster Bay, New York to Isaiah Harrison and Elizabeth Wright. These lines appear to reach back to Europe but are unconfirmed, probably eliminating these lines.
30 – Phoebe McMahon, wife of Joseph Workman, born 1745 York Co., Pa, daughter of Hugh McMahon, mother unknown.
31 – Gideon Faires’ mother was Deborah, born 1734, possibly in Augusta Co., Va.
32 – Sarah McSpadden’s father was Thomas McSpadden born 1721 in Ireland, eliminating this line. Sarah’s mother was Dorothy Edmiston whose father was born in Ireland, eliminating that line. Dorothy’s mother was named Jean and was born in 1696 but nothing further is known.
33 – Martha McCamm, born before 1743, wife of Andrew Mackie of Virginia, parents unknown.
On the father’s side, we began with 13 slots, positively eliminating one and probably eliminating a second, leaving 11. Of these, 7 could be resolved on the maternal line by mitochondrial DNA testing. Taken together, this side of the pedigree chart is a much better candidate for both Native and African DNA sources. Notice all of the females who have no surnames. These are excellent places to look for Native ancestry. On my chicken scratch version, these are highlighted in yellow.
While the X chromosomal pedigree chart analysis is not the perfect scenario, the pedigree chart has 128 slots. Using the X chromosome narrows the candidates to 34 slots. Genealogy narrowed the slots to 15 and focused mitochondrial DNA testing could narrow them to 6. Further genealogy research on those ancestors could potentially eliminate them by placing them “over the pond” or by discoveries which would facilitate DNA testing.
Marja and Me
You might recall that Marja and I are also related on our X chromosome. In this case, since she is from Finland, the probabilities are exactly the opposite. It’s much less likely that our connection is on my father’s or mother’s British Isles lines, and much more probable that it’s through my mother’s German lines. The early colonial settlers tended to be from the British Isles and certainly the people filling the X chromosome slots from my father’s side appear to be, with names like McDowell, McSpadden, etc.
Mother’s Anabaptist line (Brethren) is the German grouping through my mother’s father and descends from France and Switzerland,although these particiular lines don’t appear to have become Brethren until after immigrating to America. Marja also has other matches with people from the Anabaptist project.
Those end-of-line people are:
- Barbara Kobel – born 1713 probably Scholarie Co., NY
- Anna Maria Deharcourt – born 1687 Muhlhofan, France, died Oley Valley, Berks Co., Pa., probable parents Jean Harcourt and wife, Susanna
- Veronica – wife of Rudolph Hoch, born 1683 Basel, Switzerland, died 1728 Oley Valley, Berks Co., Pa.
- Susanna Herbein – born 1698, Switzerland, father Jacob, died 1763 Oley Valley, Berks Co., Pa.
- Jacob Lentz – born 1783 Wurttemburg, Germany, died 1870, Montgomery Co., Ohio
- Fredericka Moselman – born 1788 Wurttemburg, Germany, died 1863 Montgomery Co., Ohio
Mother’s Dutch line is eliminated, because it’s through her father’s father. Marja and I thought that might be a possibility, but we can see from this chart that it is not. My father also has a Dutch line that was eliminated because it came from his paternal line.
Mother’s Lutheran Palatinate line, end-of-line ancestors show below, is though Mother’s maternal line.
- Johann Jacob Borstler – born about 1659 Beindersheim, Bayern, Germany
- Anna Stauber – born 1659, Schaeurnheim, Germany, father Johannes Stauber
- Johann Peter Renner – born 1679, Mutterstadt, Bayern, Germany
- Anna Catherina Schuster – born about 1679 probably in Mutterstadt, Germany
- Maria Magdalena Schunck – born 1688 probably Mutterstadt, Germany, father Johann George Schunck
- Johann Martin Weber – born about 1700 Mutterstadt, Germany
- Rudolph Sager and wife Elizabetha – born about 1669 Ruchheim, Bayern, Germany
- Rosina Barbara Lemmert – born 1669 Mutterstadt, Bayern, Germany
- Anna Blancart – born 1642 Mutterstadt, possibly French
- Johann George Hoertel and wife, Anna Catharina – born about 1642, Mutterstadt, Bayern, Germany
- Matthaus Matthess – born 1695/1715 Rottenback, Bayern, Germany, wife unknown
- Anna Gerlin – born 1697, Windischerlaibac, Bayern, Germany
- Johannes Buntzman – born 1695/1720 Fulgendorf, Bayern, Germany
- Barbara Mehlheimer – mitochondrial line J1c2 – born 1823 Goppsmannbuhl, Bayern, Germany, mother Elizabetha, unmarried
Note that the mitochondrial line is indeed one of the lines that contributes to the X chromsome inheritance path, but only one of many.
So Marja, it looks like we have to be related through one of my British Isles ancestors, listed in the first part of this article, or from one of Mother’s two German groups. Personally, I’m betting on the German groups, but you never know. DNA is full of surprises.
The good news is that my mother’s information is also at GedMatch, along with mine and Marja’s, so by process of elimination, we can at least figure out whether to focus on the pink or the blue side of my chart.
Today, downloading your raw results to GedMatch, combined with Blaine’s X charts above, is really the only good way of working with X chromosome matches.
I’m planning to package this article as a pdf file and send it to my X chromosome matches. You can substitute your information for mine and do the same thing. Hopefully, your matches will then understand the X chromsome, its unique inheritance properties, and will provide their X end-of-line ancestors for you as well.
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Hello, My cousin died a few years ago and her daughter,, due to some family stories to the contrary, is seeking to prove that she is related to me. My cousin’s father was my mother’s brother. Should we use autosomal to prove or disprove a genetic connection?
You can definitely use autosomal DNA to prove a connection. I recommend Family Tree DNA as the best testing source. Right now their Family Finder test is on sale for $79. Also, here’s an article which explains the different kinds of DNA and how they work for genealogy. http://dna-explained.com/2012/10/01/4-kinds-of-dna-for-genetic-genealogy/
I just read your article and have the following comments and/or qujestions.
I consider myself (and my sister and late brother) to be 100 % LITHUANIAN, because,
ALL of our grandparents and great-grandparents and great-greatgrandparenst have been traced ()by me) to relatioves IN LITHUANIA.
BUT my AncestryDNA test shows that I have (could have?) ancestral connection to FINLAND and NORTHWEST RuSSIA !
What can I do (should I do) to determine how far back my Y-DNA line will take me and also how far back my X-DNA will take me?
How do I “send” my AncestryDNA test results to some other institution? To have ADDITIONAL TESTING done ?
Do you think that there might have been some DNA tests performed for some of my known relatives in LITHUANIA?
What do you recommend that I do next?
I HAVE a lot of Lithuanian Family Names, and some given names in my Family Tree, but there are many more MISSING !
Please HELP !
Thank you,
SIncerely,
Bill Getson
I think there may be some confusion about the different kinds of DNA and what they can tell you. This article should help. http://dna-explained.com/2012/10/01/4-kinds-of-dna-for-genetic-genealogy/ You can transfer your autosomal DNA test results from Ancestry to Family Tree DNA. Family Tree DNA is the only company now doing either the Y or mitochondrial DNA testing.
Roberta, You probably have answered this question before but I cannot find the answer so here goes again. What do you consider as the “minimum” X DNA cM shared to be valid? The cutoff for GedMatch, as you know, is 7 cM. If two people share multiple X segments – but at smaller lengths, say 3 or 5cM – is that still a strong indication that this shared X DNA is identical by descent and should be considered in determining the possible relationship paths connection between the two? And could sharing multiple small segments be even more significant than sharing only one 7cM plus segment? Thanks, Deborah
The more total cM the better and more likely the closer the match. However, the X is inclined to do things like get passed intact for a generation or so – so it’s sometimes less reliable than other chromosomes. In any case, I would use it in conjunction with other matches and be leary otherwise. One thing you do know, of course, is that there is a distinct inheritance path, so that should help some.
I am still a little confused. As a female,I understand the X on the father`s side, coming from his mother and being passed on to his daughters. It`s the mother`s side that has me confused. I know that X recombines and one usually takes over and the others become barr bodies? So do we only have the X that took over? Or are those Barr Bodies part of the X?. My grandfather and his brother passed an X on from their mother to some of their descendants. We know that because we all share that one common ancestor, who could have passed on an X that we all seem to have. So is that X a combined X from different relatives? I are fortunate enough to have DNA X matches with several of my relatives on two lines. Even my daughter and granddaughter have X matches to the descendants of my grandfather`s brothers line. I don`t think I am wording this very well. I know you said before that siblings could have different X matches.
In some cases, a mother passes one of her X’s in total to her offspring. Normally, it combines just like the regular autosomes.
Okay, I’m a lot confused. DNA is my only tool to find my wife’s unknown parents,
23andme has given her 900+ relatives (no 1st or 2nd cousins, 3rd is closest) with one KNOWN person at 128 Cm, and another with 62) Not sure of the 128 figure, but it’s close to that.
GEDmatch shows 1500 possible matches (at least 7 Cm), but there is nothing XDNA until well down the list. Biggest I saw was about 10 Cm.
XDNA can come from either side, as I understand it.
Despite the small amounts of Mitochondrial DNA, Is it just the XDNA which will help track the family? If the closest 3rd cousin shares 2% of DNA, but not no XDNA, what does this prove, if anything?
This is a time I wish I had taken courses in DNA….
You are confusing X and mitochondrial DNA. This article explains between the two. http://dna-explained.com/2012/10/01/4-kinds-of-dna-for-genetic-genealogy/
A second question — I may have missed the answer: HOW can someone share X-DNA but have no matches elsewhere? This seems strange!
The X chromosome is autosomal, just like the other chromosomes. http://dna-explained.com/2014/01/23/that-unruly-x-chromosome-that-is/
If you have not contacted the adoption DNA groups, you need to do so.
If you are an adoptee, visit this link: http://dna-explained.com/2012/07/30/adoptee-resources-and-genetic-genealogy/ and this link http://dnaadoption.com/AboutUs.aspx
“The X chromosome is autosomal, just like the other chromosomes.”
I found that statement confusing, because I thought the very definition of an autosomal chromosome was that it was one of the 22 numbered chromosomes, not one of the sex chromosomes (X or Y). That’s still the definition offered by many sources. Is the term “autosomal” being used differently now, or is it used differently in different situations?
In any case, the linked article is extremely informative–thank you! Enjoying this blog so much.
What I meant was the it gets divided in each generation like other autosomal DNA, not like Y or mtDNA where it is passed intact in each generation.
the X chromosome is only going to undergo recombination when in a female ancestor so it can potentially recombine half as many times through the same number of generations as the other chromosomes. (If you follow a path of male to female to male backward in time, the chromosome only gets split half as often.)
If you have a hole in your family tree that you can “get to” with the X chromosome, it might be helpful to have the X chromosome tested.
This is new information for me (X chromosome combining with the other X chromosome before being passed down). I was under the impression that just like the Y it was passed down, in tact, from Generation to Generation, and that a Mother would pass down the exact same X Chromosome that she received from either her mother or her father.
That being said, I match 7 kits on gedmatch.com withX-DNA cM’s ranging from 34.5cM up to 111.3cM. I understand these are very close matches. From this information, how many generations back can I estimate our MRCA is? I’ve identified all surnames from the [possible x contributors] for 7 generations but none are the same as the three 111.3cM kits’ list of surnames. (They don’t have their gedcom loaded to gedmatch.com, so I can’t use that tool to help find them.
No, the X is autosomal with a special inheritance pattern. This article will help you with your other questions. https://dna-explained.com/2016/08/04/concepts-relationship-predictions/
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I got my full genetic results from 23andme within the past week, so I’m just beginning to educate myself on how to use this data for genealogy. After coming across this post I decided to look at my ancestral breakdown in the chromosome view, and now I’m very confused. My overall composition shows 2.7% Middle Eastern (not a surprise given I’m half Greek) but I was very puzzled to see that the only section containing this DNA is my X chromosome – and it’s the entire X chromosome, without a trace of other ancestries on it. Is this normal? I’m male, so it makes sense that the Middle Eastern DNA could be on my X chromosome from my Greek mother, but considering I have apparently no other Middle Eastern DNA (meaning it’s fairly far back in time), what are the chances it would pass down from that unknown ancestor to me so perfectly?? Maybe it’s just a fluke and doesn’t mean anything, but I was wondering if you or anyone else has any thoughts!
how facinating, only wish someone replied with an answer for us all to read!!!!
I’m glad the comments here are still open, as I have been trying to use the x-match function on family finder to find how distant cousins are related.
My mother and I have both taken autosomal tests on ftDNA. However our matches on the x chromosome are quiet different. Many of our common (2nd-5th cousin) matches appear as x-matches for my mum, but not for me. How is this possible? Surely our x-matches should be the same, as I inherit my x solely from my mother.
Could this be a technical glitch on ftDNA or am I missing something? Thanks for any help on this one!
You received half your mother’s 2 X chromosomes. So, your mother should match all of your matches, but you will not match all of her matches, probably about half of them, because you only got part of her 2 Xs.
Roberta, now I’m confused. Since he’s male, shouldn’t he get all of his mother’s X chromosomes?
Men get 1 X and 1 Y. The Y comes from their father. The X comes from their mother. But women get an X from each parent, so the X that her children get from her is generally a combination of parts of the X that she got from her mother and from her father. http://dna-explained.com/2014/01/23/that-unruly-x-chromosome-that-is/
However, it doesn’t always work that the child gets a combined X. Sometimes the child gets one of the mother’s Xs whole, which means they get all of what one grandparent had on the X and none of what the other had.
Oh, never mind. He only has room for half. The other half is taken by a Y. You can either post these to show how dumb I am, or discard them both. 🙂
Was a good question!
Thanks very much for the answer, Roberta. For genealogical purposes then, the presence of an x-match would confirm that the match was from one of lines with on the x chromosome. However the ABSENCE of an x-match does not exclude the possibility that they come from the same lines, as one might not have inherited the ‘right x’. Correct?
Also: the common autosomal matches that my mother and I have that are x matches for her, but not for me, would indicate that I have inherited other shared chromosomes from a common ancestor than are found on the x. This would seem to strengthen the genetic connection between the two families, right?
Correct, the absence does not exclude the possibility.
You will match a different person from a different ancestor, shared with your mother, one day on those other segments.
So, Roberta, if I find an exact ‘x” segment match shared by myself, daughter and maternal cousins – would finding other cousins who match on that very same segment go a long way in confirming a common ancestor match? Or might it still just be coincidence?
Yes, that would be triangulation.
Sorry, left out the most important “qualifier” to that question which relates to size of the x segment match – do you think a triangulated x segment of 5 cM in length would be sufficient to prove a common ancestor? Or would that also require some other form of documentation as well?
It “should be” but I’d be more comfortable if you had a second segment not on the X.
Great. I think I’ve got it. Thanks very much for your help!
Hi Roberta, Just got my son’s DNA test results in and posted on gedmatch and I noticed that he only had one match out of all with an “x” match – and it was significant in size – 27.5 cM. I share the same segment plus a bit more (28 cM) and my daughter shares a smaller portion (about 9cM) of the same segment. Does the sheer size of the x match have any significance? Do larger shared x segments indicate that the common ancestor is closer in time for example (fewer generations) or not necessarily? And would the fact that my son inherited this particular segment – -almost intact – shed any light as to which ancestor it came from, e.g. my mother or my father’s mother? To note, none of my maternal cousins match on this segment; that said, the number of cousins tested is limited to three. Thanks, Deborah
Take a look at this article too – http://dna-explained.com/2014/01/23/that-unruly-x-chromosome-that-is/
Hi,
I am female and have tested myself, my mother and a female 3rd cousin. Under what circumstances would I have an X match to someone but my mother does not?
I should say that both my cousin & myself have this x match but not my mom. I am identified as parent/child with my mom, so adoption isn’t the answer. Do I need to get mom retested? Thanks, June
The X is sometimes passed intact in an all or nothing fashion. http://dna-explained.com/2014/01/23/that-unruly-x-chromosome-that-is/
I’ve read the article but I’m still confused. Even if I received 50% from my mother’s father and no contribution from my mother’s maternal line, how could I possibly be an X match to my 3rd cousin who is my mother’s second cousin? Thanks again, June
I can’t answer that without looking at your pedigree chart. How they descend matters. So, in general, you either match because you share a common recent ancestor, or if you can’t match on the X because you share a common recent ancestor, then you match because you share a different line, or you match because it’s an identical by chance match. If it’s identical by chance it won’t triangulate with other. In general, the X chromosome is not a good tool to use for genealogy matching. I try not to use it and user others instead when possible.
Hi Roberta,
I was reading your article and noticed that we share a common set of grandparents. My 7th great grandparents are Thomas McSpadden and Dorothy Edmiston. I would like to see how this relationship show’s up through the DNA?
I am sure the numbers would be very small but It would be nice to confirm my genealogical research using the science of DNA.
Thanks, Jake
Hi Jake. I have tested at all 3 companies and am at GedMatch as well. I’m e-mailing you.
why is that most of my mom’s x dna matches share no cM autosomal dna with her
Do you have the same matches on every autosome? For example, do you have the same matches on chromosome 5 and 6? You probably don’t. The X is really no different in this regard.
I have a question. I have a “match” on ancestry.com to a woman who is my fifth cousin once removed. Our common ancestor is a Henry Reynolds, b. 1757 in Chester, PA and d. 1835 in Greene, TN. Our ancestry.com trees identified him as our common ancestor. I also have a second cousin who matches this other ancestry.com member. All three of us are at GEDmatch and we share a triangulation match there on chromosome 2. So I feel confident we have all share a true match. GEDmatch shows my second cousin shares 11.9 cMs with this other person on the X chromosome (2 segments of 5.3 and 6.6 cMs each). I don’t share any DNA on the X chromosome with this third person. The odd thing is that the line of descent from Henry Reynolds to both this other person and my second cousin have a male to male, or father to son, link at some point down their lines. So, my understanding is that any DNA shared on the X chromosome couldn’t have originated with Henry Reynolds. My second cousin and the other ancestry.com member don’t have a secondary common ancestor anywhere, so I’m thinking that the two X chromosome segments they share are really too small to be a true match. Would that be a correct assumption? I see this a lot with X matches on GEDmatch. That is, I see a number of supposed matches where the line of descent from a common ancestor indicates the X DNA could not have possibly originated with that common ancestor due to two successive males in a particular line. It doesn’t give me a great deal of confidence in the X chromosome matches I see at GEDmatch…. Sorry for the long question!
You understand this clearly and you are exactly right.
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If a male is related to a female through his maternal line and her paternal grandmothers line, can they show as a match on the X since hers has recombined?
Use the charts to lay out the relationships. That is what I’d have to do to answer your question.
Im sorry, my question is really if it is possible. I have been under the assumtion that a male could only be related on the X to through a females MGM, not ever considering the possibility of him matching X to her paternal grandmothers lines.
Hi, Thanks for this X support! #28. Craven is of interest… “28 – Agnes Craven is the last slot on the chart, but not the last in the line. Her father was Col. Robert Craven born 1696 in Delaware and was well to do. His mother is unknown. Robert’s wife was Mary Harrison, born in Oyster Bay, New York to Isaiah Harrison and Elizabeth Wright. These lines appear to reach back to Europe but are unconfirmed, probably eliminating these lines.” The HARRISON family migrated to SussexCoDE, then to early AugustaCoVA, now Rockingham. Harrisonburg, VA is named after them. Book: ‘Settlers By The Long Grey Trail, HARRISON and Allied Lines’, by J. Houston Harrison, 1998, is excellent. I have a few atDNA matches who have some of these folks. I’m researching a brick wall DAVIS. Sigh. Pat Davis in OH
I plan to do an autosomal DNA test from Family Tree because the “paper trail” on some of my relatives is missing and I’d really like to fill in those blanks. I’m mostly interested in my father’s maternal grandfather. Is there a “interpreting autosomal DNA test for dummies,” so I’ll know how to read and interpret the results? Many thanks!
Not exactly, but there is a lot of info on this blog and http://www.dnaadoption.com has courses.
Many thanks!
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Mitochondrial DNA is not transmitted on the X chromosome. Those two types of DNA are independent.
I’m new to genetic genealogy. So if I match someone on an X chromosome (I’m male, person is male) and its 23cM but don’t match on any other autosomal chromosomes, what does that mean exactly?
Thank you for your help!
It means that you need to use the special X pedigree chart to look at what ancestral lines for each of you it could be from and go from there.
I am working with an adoptee who is female. She has a female match on Ancestry and GEDMatch we believe may be a 2C1R. They share 69.6 cM on autosomal and 19.9 cMs on one segment of X. If we believe the adoptee may be related to the match through the adoptees father’s father’s father, is that only possible if there is another connecting line somewhere? If there isn’t another connecting line, does that mean we are incorrect in our placement of the adoptee?
They could be related on more than one line. The X can’t go from man to man.
Thank you. Or…the adoptee does not fit where we think she does. Correct?
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I have the warrior gene on one side. Can I only get that through someone I have an X match with? I suspect the warrior gene is through my g grandmother, who I have an X match with. I want to thank you for all you have taught me and my family!
Here’s the warrior gene article: http://dna-explained.com/2013/06/16/the-warrior-gene/
Just to make sure I have it. Me being a female I got a X from my Mom and a X from my Dad. He has Native American on his side. Have paper trail and also I understand how the mix can fall. ( I was always told I look like his side of the family) I did a DNA test at Ancestry and they told me my mix but no Native. I downloaded it on GEDmatch and boom found it and it was a lot higher than some of the mix that Ancestry has me having. I don’t understand that. My Mother is German and He was Irish and Native American. Of course with now the DNA I have My Mothers but my Father has passed away. I did the phasing on GEDmatch and yes on his side again even a higher native percent. I don’t understand why Ancestry did not pick it up. 2nd question is…Would it be best to transfer my DNA test over to FTDNA or just take a new test there and/ or maybe at 23andme? If I transfer over to FTDNA will they rerun it or maybe find more or will it stay the same. I also would like to see my halo-group which Ancestry does not do. Any help and answers I do appreciate it. Thank you
I can’t answer the whys for Ancestry except to say the ethnicity tests are estimates and Ancestry is not known for accuracy. At Family Tree DNA, you would want to test for you mitochondrial line. You can transfer your raw data from Ancestry and Family Tree DNA does rerun it, but they can only use the markers that Ancestry provides them. You can transfer for $39 or retake the Family Finder test for $99. Right now I’m not recommending 23andMe at all. They have a mess over there. If you want to test at 23andMe, at least wait until things settle down.
so my Mom got pregnant in 1963 and two days before she passed last year her sister told me that dad really wasn’t dad. Ancestry showed 20% Irish and Mom was 100% Jewish so that confirmed it. Now via Gedmatch a couple of hits came up on the Autosonomal Cm 24.2 . 21.2 and 14.7 all of which are non Jewish names with no X matches. Any thoughts please
Yes, contact http://www.dnaadoption.com – they have classes and techniques to help people systematically use the tools. Also, you cannot trust any ethnicity test results in something like this. You’re a male. I’d start by Y DNA testing at Family Tree DNA – that would be your best bet and will show you your father’s direct paternal line.
My 3rd closes match on gedmatch turns out to be adopted, with no knowledge of who her father is. We have 41.1 cM autosomal, but 0.0 x-DNA. Can I safely eliminate our mother’s entire trees? My dad is 75% irish, and she has 0 Irish ethnicity, so it really narrows it down to a single 3rd great grandfather (ancestry and gedmatch seem to place us as 4th cousins). Am I right so far?
The lack of an X match doesn’t eliminate anything. The presence of an X match would eliminate certain lines. Sorry. It could be you or she just didn’t inherit the same parts of the X.
Shoot. So if we look at the ethnicity, and she is Great Britain Western Europe, can I eliminate my dad’s 3 straight from Ireland lines? My mother is 50% German, and then English Western Europe, touch Italy. Dad’s last 25% is Western Europe. Can I eliminate Germany? I am using the chart above, and filing in matches that I have made that she has not, to rule out that line. is that logical?
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Someone recently contacted me- we share around 226.4 cMs on 7 segments– BUT we do not share any X DNA. — I have used the X charts to help when someone matches me on the X DNA– but are they no help when someone does NOT match me on the X DNA- inotherwords, will it not rule out any part of the tree as a result of the lack of X
Correct.
Regardless if someone is on your x chromosome or not,does not rule out relationship. The X is not the determining factor.
Thank you so much for this information! I filled out the X chromosome pedigree chart. X DNA may be able to help me with my biggest brick wall, James Graham (my maternal grandfather’s mother’s father). My paternal grandmother, maternal grandmother, and my maternal grandfather’s mother were all of different ethnicities.
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I was toying with gedmatch the other day and found a not so shabby X-DNA segment in common between us:
Comparing Kit T715049 and T524738
Chr Start Location End Location Centimorgans (cM) SNPs
X 45,064,135 49,004,289 6.6 506
It’s not coming from your mother, so it’s either your father or identical by population. However, my X-DNA is almost exclusively French and you shouldn’t have any. Besides, I have a wee little bit of Scottish X-DNA back from 1745, but you already said on another comment chat that you don’t have any Outer Hebrides Scots, while that’s all I have. Plus, it’s my mt-line, which mean it has recombined every generation for eight generations, so a very long shot.
Beside all these unlikely lines, I have a single English woman named Priscilla (maiden name unknown). She married Pierre Melanson dit Laverdure, a huguenot who moved to England. He was a vintner (his X-DNA is rules out as I descend from one of their sons). They christened four kids in Rg St.Martin in the Fields, Westminster, London:
Peter, August 15th 1637;
Peter (although it’s probably John), October 29th 1637;
Catherine, April 19th 1940;
Charles, December 14th 1642.
In 1657, the whole family is following Thomas Temple in Acadia. The sons Charles and Pierre will become Catholics and marry Acadian women. Pierre Sr, Priscilla and their son John moved to Boston when Acadia became French again. We have no idea what happened to Catherine or even if she was with the family when they moved to Acadia, but she could have married one of Thomas Temple’s man as she was between 17 and 27 while the English Acadia period lasted (1657-1667) and they may have moved somewhere else in the English colonies.
Also, Acadian records state the Melanson family is from Plymouth, although it’s not clear whether it<s Plymouth, UK or Plymouth in New England. Maybe Catherine married there.
Charles and Pierre's daughters would be Acadians, so it's unlikely you could connect there. John would marry a women named Sarah in Boston they had 5 children:
John, December 30th 1681;
Samuel, July 26th 1683;
Zachary, June 28th 1685
Sarah, February 13th 1687;
William, January 23th 1689.
It's not clear whatever happened to the family after that, they may have moved to another state at some point in the 1690s.
So the only two options would be Priscilla's daughter, Catherine Melanson (1640), or Priscilla's grand-daughter, Sarah Melanson (1687).
Looking at your notes above, pretty much all your father's X-DNA comes from Virginia and the like, so I'm not too sure. Maybe Col. Robert Craven's mother in Delaware or Phoebe McMahon's one in Pennsylvania would be more likely?
And maybe you have the right cousin to determine whether the segment comes Maragret Herrell, Samuel Claxton or Elizabeth Ann Speaks? Or at least sort it between Joseph B Bolton and Margaret Claxton?
I am not where I can check records so I’ll be back with you in a few days.
No problem. And I’ll give you more details, the Melanson dit Laverdure’s name’s spelling can be quite random in the English records.
My mother’s Family finder came in, a few weeks ago…
Things aren’t as clear as hoped they would.
First, our segment:
Comparing Kit T715049 (Marianne Richard) and T524738 (Roberta Jean Estes)
Chr Start Location End Location Centimorgans (cM) SNPs
X 45,064,135 49,004,289 6.6 506
Then you and my mother, I didn’t though you were matches but I dramatically lowered the threshold this time (1 cM, 100 SNPs):
Comparing Kit T145042 (Madame Pouliot) and T524738 (Roberta Jean Estes)
Chr Start Location End Location Centimorgans (cM) SNPs
X 45,064,135 46,077,213 1.9 116
X 47,104,218 49,004,289 2.8 267
So, our common segment is in fact three different segments on my side. The 1.9 cM start from my mother, the 1.9 cM in the middle possibly from my father and the 2.8 ending segment from my mother. Priscilla is on my father’s side.
And when I compare our mothers together, the have a genuine match:
Comparing Kit T145042 (Madame Pouliot) and T167724 (Barbara Jean Long)
Chr Start Location End Location Centimorgans (cM) SNPs
X 47,104,218 65,147,151 7.7 904
While we are at it, me and your mother:
Comparing Kit T715049 (Marianne Richard) and T167724 (Barbara Jean Long)
Chr Start Location End Location Centimorgans (cM) SNPs
X 44,500,092 47,116,304 5.0 297
X 47,259,534 53,167,469 5.3 481
I really have no idea how our mothers could connect. Your mother’s X-DNA is mostly German, except for the Joseph Hill and Nabby Hall. My mother’s X-DNA mostly French, except for a Swiss man named Pierre Miville, born around 1602 in Fribourg and an Outer Hebrides couple born around 1745 in Barra.
I’m reviewing my X-DNA lines looking for women who could have been procreated in time of war from an American soldier…
We should have my father’s DNA in a few weeks.
It’s also possible that the X match is either identical by chance or by population. I continue to see a lot of questionable X matches that just make no sense.
I’m relatively new to all of this and have had DNA results from NatGeo and ancestry, but my question is, where do all of these number readings come from ( Chr Start Location End Location Centimorgans (cM) SNPs X 45,064,135 49,004,289 6.6 506)? I see nothing like them on the results I get from the above mentioned-just percentages of nationalities or ethnicities
Nat Geo doesn’t match you against other people, so there is no matching chromosome information. Ancestry doesn’t provide you with any chromosome information. This is why we encourage people to test with Family Tree DNA. They do provide matches to individuals along with the chromosome information.
Could be. Although my X-matches makes sense so far, I always found a connection, either French or Scottish. But I haven’t done this as long as you did, maybe I’ll find matches I can’t make sense of at some point (we could argue this is exactly the case XD ). Or maybe your German DNA is more central so it matches around better…
I did one last check with autosomal DNA.
You and I have about 27 cM in commun when I lower the threshold to 3cM.
You and my mother have 18.9cM at 3cM, but still 10.5cM at 5cM.
Our mother have 27.5 cM at 3cM.
Your mother and I have 3.6cM at 3cM.
None of my segments with you match segments between my mother and you, so definitely identical by chance.
My mother match both you and your mother on chromosome 6:
Chr Start Location End Location Centimorgans (cM) SNPs
6 7,213,030 9,518,188 4.6 550
Your only known autosomal ancestors in common would be Pierre Perras and Denise Lemaître, my mother shouldn’t have any Acadians. Although she has a foundling, so who knows (he’s not X-DNA though).
One last thing, if you have a lot of French X-DNA matches on your father side, I spot there were 5 shipload of Huguenots who made it to Jamestown in 1700 and 1701. Isabel McDowell and Elizabeth McKee would be prime suspect since we don’t have their maiden names and both are also French name (interchangeable even, some priest would rename all Isabelle Elisabeth and others all Elisabeth Isabelle).
I’m still thinking of the many possibilities of your father’s X-DNA lines in Virginia… About your possible Native X-DNA, did you ever try to see if you could connect with Pocahontas’ X-DNA lines? I know it’s cliché, but it has to true for some old Virginian families at least.
Poncahontas had only one son, Thomas Rolfe (1615), who had only one daughter, Jane Rolfe Boilling (1650), who has only one son, John Boilling (1676), so far so good for X-DNA.
John Boiling had 6 daughters, Jane (1703), Elizabeth (1709), Mary (1711), Martha (1713), Anne (1718) and Sarah (1727). Could one of their daughters fit one of your first name only ancestresses?
I gave a quick look this morning, and Pocahontas descendants are much better studied than I expected. So there’s probably no hole for your ancestors to fit in.
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Hi There,
Maybe you can answer a question for me?
I am adopted and have identified my mother’s side. I have no info for father’s side.
I have matches that are both autosomal and x, autosomal, no x, and I have matches that are just x
Is there any way the x can help point me to matches that would be most likely my father’s side?
I am very new to all this and am working to understand as much as I can.
Thanks!
Unfortunately, for females, no. Females inherit the X from both parents, while males only from their mother.
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So, how do I determine in the first place whether, or not, I have evidence of minority admixture on my X chromosome? I have my autosomal results at Ancestry, FTDNA and uploaded to GEDmatch. As of this weekend, I received my mother’s autosomal results and they are now in all three databases, as well. Neither FTDNA, or Ancestry, indicate that she has Native American ancestry (which is our family lore), but running her results on GEDmatch, it would appear that she actually does carry a small amount of Native DNA. I have already tested my mtDNA and do not have a Native Haplogroup there, so that line can be ruled out, I suppose. Tracing my X Pedigree seems like a worthwhile process, except I’m not clear on how to determine if I have Native DNA on that chromosome to begin with.
The X is autosomal as well, so Native would show up in the same way that it does on any other chromosome.
Maybe I’m being dense, or not thinking of this from the correct angle. If I do an admixture painting of my chromosomes, it shows me #’s 1-22. None of those are my X chromosome, though, if I’m correct. So, I don’t understand how I could know that my Native and/or African ancestry is being carried specifically on my X chromosome.
Roberta,
I think we are related. The names on your chart have emerged with my proven DNA cousins.
I’m advised that there are some Cherokees in far history … as my 4th cousin is related to (our dear lost) Princess Diana Spencer. I’m still working on my connection.
Please private message me to Facebook at
Lucinda Bartram (birth parents unverified). Thank you.
Roberta please advise me where you would place me on your chart, ad as your suggested you have many more names reaching further back in history 🙂
Please reach me on facebook 🙂
Gedmatch setting : 1000; 100; 6; 25; 25
X 48,439,581 67,881,743 6.8 272
X 98,115,167 107,167,760 6.1 287
X 108,941,243 113,038,096 6.1 144
Largest segment = 6.8 cM (7th cousin ? I used 6cm mismatched bundles)
Total of segments > 6 cM = 19.1 cM Actual.
3 191,807,148 195,176,992 8.0 355
15 24,643,347 27,284,180 8.2 261
Gedmatch setting : 1000; 100; 7; 25; 25
Largest segment = 8.2 cM (6th cousin ? I used 7cm mismatched bundles)
Total of segments > 7 cM = 16.2 cM
2 matching segments
3 191,807,148 195,176,992 8.0 355
15 24,643,347 27,284,180 8.2 261
Largest segment = 8.2 cM
Total of segments > 7 cM = 16.2 cM
2 matching segments
I’m not quite sure what you mean by where I would place you on my chart.
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I’m adopted and recently found a half sister..turns out she is my dads daughter and she has no idea who the maternal mother is…were 100 % sure her dad is my dad due to adoption stories and 1500 cm match…but she is also my #1 x match…how can this be ?
That’s not possible to answer without more information.
I’m trying to help an adoptee. At GEDmatch she has 2 matches about 100 cm and both with x matches about 90 cM. This doesn’t make sense to me. How can a “2nd cousins 1x removed, half 2nd cousins, 1st cousin 3x removed, or half 1st cousin twice removed” share a segment that large on x Chromosome? All 3 are female. Thank you for your help.
The X can remain intact for many generations. It simply does not behave in quite the same way as the other chromosomes.