Why Test Y DNA

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Y DNA testing carries a great deal of potential – for males. Why just for males? Because the Y chromosome is passed to sons, only, from the father. The Y chromosome is what makes males male. Females receive an X chromosome from their father instead of a Y.

This means that while men can easily test for Y chromosome results, women can’t. Women have to find a male of the surname line they are interested in to test on their behalf. If their father or brothers are living, finding a willing male for their birth name can be fairly easy, but in some cases, one has to go back up the tree a generation or two, and come back down another line to find a living male from your surname line to test.

y-dna-search

In this example, if the female in red wants to test her Estes line, and green cells represent living Estes males, she would have to go up the tree to the third generation, Lazarus, and come back down three generations through son Charlie to find a living male.

Let’s say that living male Estes either can’t be found or isn’t interested in testing. To find another male, she would have to go up the tree another generation to John Y. Estes and come down through son Reagan where there are two generations of living Estes males.

That didn’t work either? Go up another generation and come down through son Jechonas to living male, William.

Why would someone be so interested in testing surname lines?

You can learn a lot.

  • You can confirm that the person who tests actually descends from the expected surname line. Of course, this assumes two things. First, that others from that line have already tested and second, that the tester actually IS descended from that line. Sometimes males who carry the same surname have different ancestral lines. And sometimes, well, surprises are waiting to be found, meaning sometimes people aren’t descended from who they think they are.
  • You receive a haplogroup designation which reaches back to ancient times. Haplogroups tell you, for example, if your ancestor was European, Native American, Jewish, African, or Asian. With additional testing, you can discover more specific information about haplogroups, but that requires testing that can’t be performed until after your haplogroup is discovered through regular testing.
  • You receive your matches at each level of testing. If you test at 37 markers for example, you receive a list of matches at 37 markers, at 25 markers and at 12 markers. I recommend testing at 67 or 111 markers if possible, because those tests refine your matches even further.
  • You receive a “Matches Map” that shows the locations of the oldest known ancestors of your matches.
  • You receive a migration map, showing the path your ancient ancestors took to arrive where they are found today in the world.

There are more tools and information too. You can see, below, all of the available information for Y DNA testers on your Family Tree DNA personal home page.

y-dna-options-2

As a female, I can’t test for even one Y line, but I can surely sponsor tests for men who do descend from my ancestral lines. I try to discover the genetic information for each of my lines. You never know what surprises may be lurking.

I have created a DNA pedigree chart where I record the haplogroup information for each of my ancestral lines.

DNA Pedigree

When my cousins test for Y or mitochondrial lines, I also sponsor a Family Finder test, hoping that our autosomal DNA still matches, even though we are some generations removed from each other.

I try to find a male who has tested, or who will test, for each of my ancestral Y lines. You don’t know what you don’t know – and DNA testing is part of the reasonably exhaustive search required by the GPS, the Genealogical Proof Standard.

So, give yourself a gift this holiday season and test your Y DNA. If you don’t have the Y DNA for the line you want to test, find someone who does. Click here to order!

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32 thoughts on “Why Test Y DNA”

    • I don’t know. Some folks have reported that some of the smaller coupons work for upgrades, but others report that they didn’t. There might be a difference between ones for a flat dollar amount and a percentage. I would try the flat dollar amount for the upgrade and see if it works.

      Reply ↓

      • I wanted to upgrade to mt Full Sequence. I tried a $40 MtFull and got the message that it required a greater amount. I tried a $20 mtFull and got the discount. Regular $199, sale $139, discount $119. Yippee! Thanks, Roberta

        Reply ↓

  2. Hello Roberta, On my niece’s Amazon gift list is DNA test from 23andme. I read your (disappointing) review from a few months back and passed it on to her but I must say, the 23andme marketing department knows what a lot of people want: Traits, Health Wellness,
    Carrier Status, etc. It’s a real carrot and they don’t sell it separately(of course). I am pushing FTDNA(where I was tested)but haven’t heard from her and it’s probably because she wants
    “the fluff”. Do you know if any other testing service offers these “cocktail talk” revelations?

    And a huge thank you for your Blog. Your explanations are extremely clear, your writing is
    unpretentious, and your voice is familiar and engaging. I love it!

    Reply ↓

    • You can get exactly the same thing, plus a LOT more from the $5 Promethease upload with the raw data from any of the testing companies.

      The traits are often wrong. Carrier status is just a smidgen of the information available at Promethease.

      If you have already tested, upload your file and see what you get.

      Reply ↓

  7. R19M1APGTQZC $10 off MtDNA
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    R19VKYZGNECF $10 off Y37, Y67, or Y111
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    Reply ↓

    • Thank you Frances, I have used the coupon you have listed.
      Mary O’Shea
      I also used one from Roberta R19BC459ZCXZ for another Y67 for $40.
      I also used one from Liz R192LEZHWKYU for another Y67 for $40.
      Mary O’Shea

      Reply ↓

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    Reply ↓

    • The forth coupon was taken, so I got a new one, valid up to the 16th:

      R19UO6QDEKTK $10 off Y37, Y67, or Y111

      I didn’t realised there was some value to these $20 off Y, but there is the best discount for Y37 it seems.

      Reply ↓

  12. I’m glad to see yDNA being promoted. It, and mtDNA, can be such powerful bulleyes – when enough people test. It seems like aDNA is all the rage.

    Reply ↓

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  17. On the matter of Y-DNA, I’m helping an Algerian guy who got just C with 23andme. Is it even possible to get just C unless it’s some very very ancient not recorded before branch of C?

    Reply ↓

  18. Pingback: Family Tree DNA Final Coupons for 2016 | DNAeXplained – Genetic Genealogy

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