Family History and Genealogy Blog by Diane Henriks - Know Who Wears the Genes in Your Family:Family History and Genealogy

10/25/2025

Meta AI Photo Animation for Genealogists: My Hands-On Tests & How It Can Bring Ancestor Photos to Life

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Bringing ancestor photos to life — exploring Meta AI’s new photo animation tools for genealogists

🧬 Meta AI Photo Animation for Genealogists: My Hands-On Tests & How It Can Bring Ancestor Photos to Life

As genealogists, we’re constantly exploring tools that help us tell our ancestors’ stories in fresh, engaging ways. Recently, I had the opportunity to test one of Meta’s newest innovations--Meta AI’s photo animation feature—and I was genuinely impressed by its potential for genealogy and family history storytelling.

This new tool can take a still image and bring it subtly to life—creating a short, moving video clip from a single photo. I wanted to see how it handled both vintage ancestor images and my own test photos—and to evaluate whether it could be useful (and ethical) in the genealogical space.

🧠 What Is Meta AI and What Can It Do?

Meta AI is the company’s integrated artificial intelligence system now available through Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger. It can answer questions, generate content, edit or restyle images, and—most recently—animate photos.

In August 2024, Meta announced that it had developed new methods to animate AI-generated or user-submitted images at scale across its platforms.1 This is part of Meta’s broader push to integrate generative AI directly into social experiences.

📸 My Hands-On Tests

I first saw the Meta AI photo animation option appear in my Facebook feed as an invitation to try “Meta AI creations.” Naturally, I had to see what it could do.

1. Initial Test: I used a slightly older photo of myself, simply to test the feature’s capabilities. Meta AI quickly created a smooth, realistic animation and offered to “Restyle” it. Out of curiosity, I tried the Academia restyle (again, just on my own photo for testing). Within seconds, the scene changed—proof that the system could modify tone, color, and clothing while retaining realism.

2. Ancestor Photo Tests: After experimenting with my own photo just to see how Meta AI handled modern images, I moved on to what really mattered—testing it with vintage ancestor photos. The results honestly surprised me in the best way.

Group Photo of My Great-Grandfather and Cousins
I started with a large vintage family photo that included my great-grandfather and all of his cousins, circa 1902. I wanted to see whether Meta AI could handle multiple faces and different poses from an older, lower-quality image. To my surprise—it could! The animation brought the scene to life without distorting facial features. While two of the girls on the right ended up with slightly quirky movements, it was still remarkable to see an entire extended family “move” together again after more than a century.
Christmas 1895 – My Great-Grandfather, His Siblings, and My 2nd Great-Grandparents
This photo, taken in 1895 at Christmas, features my great-grandfather (bottom middle), his siblings, and my 2nd great-grandparents. The animation was so natural and gentle that it truly felt like watching a glimpse of the past. What impressed me most was how Meta AI preserved the original look and character of each person—no exaggerated movements, just subtle, lifelike motion with a vintage film charm. It perfectly captured the timeless warmth of that holiday portrait.
My Great Aunt and Great Uncle – Personality in Motion
This was the test that completely won me over. I animated a 1940s-era photo of my great aunt and great uncle, and the result was uncanny in the best way. The animation reflected their personalities so perfectly—my great aunt’s cheerful expression and my great uncle’s easygoing manner came through as if frozen time had thawed for just a few seconds. It felt incredibly true to who they were, almost like a candid family video rather than a still image brought to life.
My Grandmother, Her Sisters, and Their Mother – Three Generations of Grace For the final test, I chose a 1960s photo of my grandmother, her sisters, and their mother—my great-grandmother. This image has always been one of my favorites because it captures the natural closeness between them, and I was eager (and a little nervous) to see how Meta AI would handle that warmth and connection. The result was absolutely beautiful. Each woman’s subtle smile and gentle expression came through with remarkable authenticity, and the animation felt effortless and true to the spirit of the original photo. My great-grandmother’s calm presence, my grandmother’s soft grin, and the sisters’ playful glances made the whole moment feel alive again—like a brief window into an ordinary afternoon that suddenly moved once more. It was a perfect example of how this tool can enhance—not alter—the emotion already present in a treasured family photo.

Each of these tests showed me that Meta AI’s animation feature has real potential for genealogy—especially when used thoughtfully and respectfully. It doesn’t replace the original photo, but it does offer a beautiful, emotional way to reconnect with our family’s past and share those memories with others.

3. Family Storytelling Potential: From four tests, I see enormous potential for genealogists:

Creating animated ancestor portraits for presentations or family history videos
Adding subtle motion to heritage blog posts
Enhancing family storytelling projects for younger generations
And so much more!

💰 Cost and Accessibility

Currently, Meta AI’s animation feature is free to use for anyone with a Meta (Facebook or Instagram) account.2 I have not encountered any subscription requirements or limits at this time, but like most free tools, that could change in the future.

You can try it by visiting meta.ai or accessing it through Facebook’s integrated “Meta AI” chat and image creation pop-ups.

⚠️ Risks and Limitations of Using Meta AI

As promising as the feature is, there are several risks and ethical considerations genealogists should be aware of—especially when working with historical or family photos.

Data and Privacy Concerns
Meta’s AI systems rely on uploaded data to refine and train their models. While Meta claims user content is protected under its AI terms of use, it’s not always clear how long uploaded images are retained or if they’re used for training.3 This is crucial for genealogists who work with sensitive family images--avoid uploading any photo that contains living individuals without consent.
Intellectual Property and Usage Rights
According to Meta’s AI Terms, users grant Meta a license to use generated content for improving AI services.4 While that doesn’t mean they “own” your photo, it does grant them certain rights for research and development purposes.
Accuracy and Authenticity
The animations generated are AI interpretations, not genuine historical footage. It’s essential to label them clearly as such when using them in genealogy blogs, family history books, or presentations.
Ethical Representation
As genealogists, we have a responsibility to honor the truth in our ancestors’ stories. While animating a photo can be deeply moving, we should avoid presenting AI motion as a factual representation of how someone looked or moved.
Security and Misuse
Meta AI is an online cloud-based tool, meaning your uploads are stored externally. Sensitive or private photos should not be used unless you are comfortable with potential third-party data handling.

In short, Meta AI is a fantastic creative tool—but use it with insight and transparency in your family history work.

🧭 How to Access and Try It

Here’s how to explore the feature yourself:

Log in to your Facebook or Instagram account.
Look for a pop-up or post offering “Try Meta AI” or go to www.meta.ai.
Upload a photo or select one from your feed.
Type the prompt: “Animate this photo.”
Optionally, try a restyle (on your own photo, not ancestral images) for experimentation or add music to the animation.
Save or download your animation.

🕊️ Final Thoughts

After several tests, I’m impressed with how well Meta AI handles vintage photos—particularly in maintaining facial integrity and creating natural movement. Used responsibly, this could become another tool in the genealogist’s creative storytelling kit.

Still, I encourage genealogists to use it thoughtfully--with respect for authenticity, ethics, and privacy. Keep original copies safe, label animated versions clearly, and always disclose when motion was AI-generated.

AI isn’t replacing historical truth—it’s helping us reimagine how we share it.

Footnotes

Meta Engineering Blog, How Meta Animates AI-Generated Images at Scale, August 14, 2024. https://engineering.fb.com/2024/08/14/production-engineering/how-meta-animates-ai-generated-images-at-scale ↩
Meta Help Center, What Can I Do with Meta AI?, Meta.com, 2025. https://www.meta.com/help/artificial-intelligence/1337455336906126 ↩
TechCrunch, Meta Updates Its AI Terms Amid Growing Privacy Concerns, September 2024. ↩
Meta Terms of Use for AI, Your Rights and Our Rights to Use AI-Generated Content, Meta Platforms, 2024. ↩

More AI and Genealogy Resources

Learn about more AI in Genealogy and other family history and genealogy resources under the AI in Genealogy and Genealogy Resources categories and on my dedicated Genealogy Resources page.

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10/19/2025

Apply Now: The 2025 Genealogy Wish Grants Program Is Still Open!

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Promotional graphic for the 2025 Genealogy Wish Grants Program showing “Apply Now” and deadline information with a family tree and magnifying glass design

Apply now for the 2025 Genealogy Wish Grants Program before November 11!

Have you ever wished for a little help breaking through a tough genealogy brick wall or finding that missing piece of your family story? 🌿 The Genealogy Wish Grants Program is your chance to make that wish come true — and there’s still time to apply before the November 11, 2025 deadline!

The Genealogy Wish Grants initiative is a unique opportunity I created for those who are truly passionate about uncovering their family history. Each year, one devoted follower is selected and awarded a personalized genealogy research wish within practical limits, just in time for Christmas. It’s my way of giving back to the genealogy community — by helping someone dig deeper into their roots, uncover ancestral stories, and connect with their past in a meaningful way.

✨ What the Program Offers

The chosen recipient receives up to 10 hours of professional genealogy research focused on their specific wish. Depending on the project, that may include a summary of findings (either written or verbal), grouped and noted DNA matches (if applicable), and access to a built tree with sources and citations.

While findings may sometimes be inconclusive (as with all genealogy), each grant is designed to move the recipient closer to their goal — whether that’s breaking through a long-standing brick wall, finding living relatives, or uncovering new family connections through DNA analysis.

📅 Important Dates for 2025

Entry/Application Start Date: April 18, 2025
Entry/Application Deadline: November 11, 2025
Winner Announced: Between December 15–23, 2025

📋 How to Apply

Applying is simple — just visit my Genealogy Wish Grants Program page and submit your entry through the Contact form (choose “Genealogy Wish Grants Application” from the dropdown).
Your entry must include:

Your email and phone number for contact purposes
A paragraph-style backstory sharing your genealogy journey and what your wish means to you
Confirmation that you are a loyal follower of Know Who Wears the Genes in Your Family — whether that’s through following, commenting, or sharing content from my Facebook page, Facebook groups, blog, or newsletter

🕵️‍♀️ What Makes a Strong Entry

Every year, the winner is chosen based on three key factors:
1️⃣ Agreement to all rules
2️⃣ A feasible application
3️⃣ A compelling story

A strong entry tells the story behind your research — what you’ve discovered so far, what challenges you’ve faced, and why this particular wish matters to you and your family.

💚 A Few Notes

Please keep in mind that I specialize in:

Descendancy research
Living people search
Brick wall research
Unknown parentage research
DNA match grouping (AncestryDNA only)
Traditional genealogy research

While I don’t specialize in lineage research or every time period or location, I’ll do my best to take on a project that fits within my expertise and the program’s scope.

There’s still time to share your story, refine your wish, and submit your entry before the November 11 deadline. I can’t wait to read your stories and see where your family history journey leads.

👉 Apply or update your entry today: Genealogy Wish Grants Program

Apply Here

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10/14/2025

MyHeritage Moves to Whole Genome Sequencing – What It Means for Genealogists

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A new era in genetic genealogy: MyHeritage introduces Whole Genome Sequencing for its DNA test kits

I’m thrilled to share some major news from MyHeritage: as of today, MyHeritage is the first major consumer DNA company to adopt whole genome sequencing (WGS) for its DNA test kits. In partnership with Ultima Genomics and processed at the Gene by Gene lab, this transition marks a turning point in how consumer DNA testing is done — with far richer data and greater potential for discovery.

What Is Whole Genome Sequencing, and Why It Matters

Traditional consumer DNA tests (including MyHeritage until now) use genotyping arrays that read about 700,000 selected positions (single-nucleotide polymorphisms, SNPs) in your genome. In contrast, WGS reads almost the entire human genetic code — roughly 3 billion base pairs (nucleotides). In short: much more data.

Here’s why that matters:

Greater accuracy in ethnicity estimates. More data means more ability to differentiate subtle ancestral signals, reduce noise, and refine the picture of your roots.
Improved DNA matching. With more genetic overlap detected, more matches may emerge, and existing matches may be more precisely defined (especially distant ones).
Downloadable full genome. Customers whose kits are sequenced via WGS can download their entire genome (in CRAM format) at no extra cost — opening new possibilities for further analysis or uploading into other tools or platforms.
Future innovation. Having full-genome data allows MyHeritage to develop new features in the years ahead — for genealogical research, trait research, medical/health approaches (as allowed), and new analyses we have'nt even pictured yet.

MyHeritage confirms that kits already processed via the older genotyping method will not be reprocessed by WGS. Only new kits (or ones currently in the lab pipeline) will use the new approach. Customers whose kits are WGS-based will receive the full genome download automatically.

Importantly, MyHeritage emphasizes that it will not license or sell customer data to third parties — privacy and data protection remain core commitments.

What to Expect — Practical Tips & Perspective

As genealogists, this development is exciting but also calls for careful expectations and informed use. Here are a few thoughts and tips:

Don’t expect instant miracles. The shift to WGS doesn’t guarantee every ethnicity result or match will change dramatically, overnight. But over time, algorithms and reference sets will improve, and incremental gains will accumulate.
Explore your full genome file. Once you receive your CRAM file, you (or a genetic genealogy-savvy colleague) can investigate even deeper — variants, genealogical tools, third-party tools — as long as you know how to work with the data (or get help).
Comparison with older kits. If you or others in your network have older MyHeritage kits (using genotyping), comparisons must account for differences in coverage. WGS-powered matches might detect segments that weren’t visible before.
Be patient with interpretation. The science and tools for whole-genome consumer use are still maturing. Some signals may initially be unclear or new. Approach new findings with curiosity but also caution, especially in genealogical inferences.
Advocate for transparency. As this field evolves, advocate for clear disclosures (e.g. about read coverage, variant confidence thresholds, pipeline methods) so genealogists and users can understand the strengths and limitations of the data.
Spread the word (responsibly). Because this is a big leap for consumer DNA, many genealogists, clients, and enthusiasts will have questions. Use your role to help clarify, educate, and help people use this responsibly.

Why This Is a Milestone for Genetic Genealogy

From a genealogical perspective, breaking the barrier of genotyping into full-genome territory is a major turning point. Over the years, we’ve been limited by how many SNPs a chip can assay; we’ve faced missing segments, “no-call” zones, unclear matches. WGS offers the possibility to detect smaller shared segments, rare variants, and genealogical clues previously inaccessible.

Also, having access to full-genome downloads totally empowers serious users and researchers to layer in their own analyses, cross-compare results, or use emerging tools as they come online. It also encourages the DNA testing industry to raise the bar for accuracy, transparency, and data quality.

This is why I believe today’s announcement is more than a marketing move — it marks a shift in expectations for how consumer DNA can support meticulous genealogy.

What You Can Do Right Now

If you haven’t already taken a MyHeritage DNA test, now may be one of the best times.
If you plan to order one, keep an eye on timing and confirm that your kit will be WGS-processed (which MyHeritage says will be the case for kits sold and processed going forward).
Once your results arrive, download your full-genome CRAM and keep a safe, backed-up copy.
Explore tools and communities that support full-genome analyses (or consider collaborating with someone experienced).
Share this news with colleagues, clients, and fellow genealogists — this is a huge turning point!

I’ll be watching closely as users unpack how WGS changes what we can do in genetic genealogy.

Stay tuned — more insights will emerge as this unfolds!

MyHeritage DNA

More Genetic Genealogy/DNA Resources

Find more DNA genealogy resources, tips, news, and updates under the Genetic Genealogy and DNA Category.

More MyHeritage and Other Genealogy Resources

Learn about more MyHeritage Features and tools, along with other family history and genealogy resources under the MyHeritage and Genealogy Resources categories of the blog and on my dedicated Genealogy Resources page.

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10/12/2025

My 2025 AncestryDNA Origins Update: The Biggest Ethnicity Update Yet

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Screenshot comparing my 2024 and 2025 AncestryDNA ethnicity results showing major updates and regional changes

AncestryDNA’s 2025 ethnicity update introduced over 3,600 global regions—see how my results changed!

Ancestry has just rolled out its biggest ethnicity update ever—and like many other users, I was eager (and a little nervous!) to see how my results would change this time around. Their last major update was in July 2024, and I received my newly updated AncestryDNA Origins (Ancestral Regions) results on October 9, 2025.

Let’s just say—Ancestry definitely shook things up!

🔍 My 2025 AncestryDNA Results

Here’s a look at my brand-new 2025 results, which now include 11 ancestral regions:

My Ancestry 2025 DNA Origins Update, 1

My Ancestry 2025 DNA Origins Update, 1-2

You’ll notice that my English regions are now far more specific, broken into multiple new areas, while my Celtic and Gaelic regions—especially Scotland and Ireland—grew significantly.

📊 Comparing 2024 vs. 2025: What Changed?

Ancestry’s new update completely reshuffled several of my regions. Here’s a quick comparison:

My Ancestry Ethnicity Update 2024-2025 Comparison Chart

This year’s update replaced many of the broad continental or country-level regions with more precise subregions. For example, “England & Northwestern Europe” was broken down into Southeastern England, Northern Wales & North West England, East Midlands, North East England, and West Midlands. Similarly, “Germanic Europe” was divided into more refined zones like Southern Germanic Europe.

🧬 My Reactions: Interesting, but a Little Off

While I always appreciate the increasing detail in these updates, I have to admit—some of my new results made me pause.

The surge in Scottish and Irish percentages felt a bit overestimated, especially since my paternal side has no known Scottish or Irish ancestry. My paternal great-grandparents were from Mexico and Germany (both families rooted there for many generations), and my other paternal great-grandparent line descends primarily from Germany and England. Although, who's to say where they were thousands of years ago, right?

There is Irish and Scottish ancestry on my mother’s side, but this new update seems to have assigned some of it to my father’s line as well—where it doesn’t belong.

Still, it’s a good reminder that DNA ethnicity estimates are just that--estimates. They’re based on evolving databases, shifting scientific models, and complex patterns of shared DNA that can cross regional borders.

🧠 What’s New in the 2025 Update

According to Ancestry, this update is “the most exciting and detailed one yet,” introducing over 3,600 global regions (up from about 2,200 last year) and powered by an expanded reference panel of more than 185,000 DNA samples.

A few highlights of the science behind this update:

68 new and updated European regions were added for greater granularity.
Broader regions (like Ireland, England, and Germany) were divided into smaller, more localized regions—for instance, Ireland now includes Connacht, Donegal, Leinster, and Munster.
Ancestry’s scientists combined DNA data from users with detailed family trees and those with no trees but similar genetic patterns to build a more comprehensive reference base.
Results are now organized into larger “macro-regions” (such as Celtic & Gaelic, Nordic, or Western Europe), making it easier to see related groupings at a glance.

In short, Ancestry has moved from a broad-strokes view of Europe to something much more detailed and regionally specific.

🗺️ What This Means for Genealogists

For genealogists and family historians, these updates can be both exciting and confusing. The increased detail can help narrow down migration patterns and regional origins, but it can also raise new questions—especially when percentages shift dramatically.

When you see unexpected results:

Compare your new regions to your known family tree to spot inconsistencies.
Look at the geographic areas on the map in each region—Ancestry emphasizes that these are often broader than the region name suggests.
Look at the ranges, not just the absolute estimates, using the information icon next to the estimate percentage.
Check which side of your family likely contributes to each region by reviewing your matches under each ethnicity category.

Remember, DNA results complement your research—they don’t replace it.

📆 Tracing My AncestryDNA Updates Through the Years

It’s always fascinating to look back and see how much AncestryDNA’s ethnicity estimates have evolved over time. From the early, broad regional groupings to today’s ultra-detailed breakdowns, these updates tell as much about the advancement of DNA science as they do about our ancestral origins.

2014 to Summer 2018: The Early Years (Few Changes)
From 2014 through mid-2018, my ethnicity results remained nearly identical. Ancestry made only one small adjustment in 2018, changing Italy/Greece to the broader region of Europe South. Other than that, there were no real differences for several years—until the first major overhaul later that same year.

*Click to view

My AncestryDNA “Ethnicity” Results 2014, 2015, 2016 & 2017 (No Changes)

My AncestryDNA “Ethnicity” Results – Summer 2018 (Basically the Same)

September 2018 to 2025: Major Updates and Refinements
Ancestry rolled out its first significant ethnicity update in late 2018, which completely reshaped many users’ results—including mine. From that point forward, Ancestry continued refining and expanding its reference panels almost every year, introducing more precise regions and new tools along the way.

Each update has reflected both technological advances and a growing database of DNA samples—culminating in the biggest update ever in October 2025.

*Click to view

My AncestryDNA “Ethnicity” Results – September 2018 (Big Change)

My AncestryDNA “Ethnicity” Results – July 2021 (Reshuffling)

My AncestryDNA “Ethnicity” Results by Parent – April 2022 (Introduction of Split by Parent)

My Ancestry DNA "Ethnicity" Results by Parent 2024

My AncestryDNA “Ethnicity” Results – October 2024

My AncestryDNA “Ethnicity” Results – October 2019 (Basically the Same)

My AncestryDNA “Ethnicity” Results – July 2020 (Significant Change)

My AncestryDNA “Ethnicity” Results – June 2022 (The “Best Estimate”)

My AncestryDNA “Ethnicity” Results – 2023 (Basically the Same)

My AncestryDNA “Ethnicity” Results – October 2025 (Their “Biggest Update Ever”)

My AncestryDNA “Ethnicity” Results by Parent – 2025

🧩 Final Thoughts

I love seeing how Ancestry’s science continues to evolve, and I’m always fascinated by how my results shift with each major update. Even though some of this year’s changes don’t quite align with my documented family lines, I’ll be exploring them further—particularly the English subregions, which now offer much more specificity.

As always, I recommend saving your screenshots from each version of your ethnicity results, so you can track how your ancestry story evolves over time.

More about DNA "Ethnicity results

To learn more about DNA "ethnicity" results, check out my post: Genealogy DNA Testing: Understanding Your Real DNA Ethnicity Results.

More Genetic Genealogy/DNA Resources

Find more DNA genealogy resources, tips, news, and updates under the Genetic Genealogy and DNA Category.

More Ancestry and Genealogy Resources

Learn about more Ancestry updates, tips, tools, and features and other family history and genealogy resources under the Ancestry.com and the Genealogy Resources categories of my blog and on my dedicated Genealogy Resources page.

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10/5/2025

My Updated 23andMe Ethnicity Results: Ancestry Composition v7.0 (September 2025)

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Digital graphic highlighting 23andMe’s 2025 ethnicity update, showing ancestry composition with European, Indigenous American, and Sub-Saharan African percentages next to a DNA helix

23andMe’s 2025 ethnicity update (v7.0) introduced my new DNA results with more detailed ancestry breakdowns

23andMe just released their biggest ethnicity update since 2022, rolling out Ancestry Composition v7.0 this September. I received my updated results on September 14, 2025, and as always, it’s interesting to see what has shifted, what’s stayed the same, and what new insights have been added.

In this post, I’ll share:

What’s new with 23andMe’s v7.0 update
A comparison between my 2022 (v6.0) and 2025 (v7.0) results
The new Additional Ancestry Region and Genetic Group I was assigned

What’s New in Ancestry Composition v7.0

23andMe made several major improvements with this update:

33 new European ancestry populations were added, including more specific breakdowns such as English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh, Danish, Swiss, and regional groups like Andalusian, Basque, and Belgian.
Indigenous American ancestry is now broken into six new populations, providing a much more detailed look at Native heritage.
The old “Broadly” categories were eliminated. With improved technology, 23andMe now assigns ancestry to the most likely population instead of leaving it vague.
Improved phasing reduced errors by 98%, meaning the results should be much more accurate.

This is the most detailed ancestry breakdown 23andMe has ever provided.

My New 2025 Updated 23andMe Ancestry Composition

Here are my new updated Ancestry Composition results:

23andMe 2025 ethnicity results showing expanded European and Indigenous American detail

My 2025 results (v7.0): new detail with English, Scottish, Welsh, Swiss, Danish, and more, Page 1

My 2025 results (v7.0): new detail with English, Scottish, Welsh, Swiss, Danish, and more, Page 2

My 2025 results (v7.0): new detail with English, Scottish, Welsh, Swiss, Danish, and more, Page 3

My Updated Ethnicity Breakdown (2025 vs. 2022)

Here’s how my results changed between v6.0 (2022) and v7.0 (2025):

Chart comparing 23andMe v6.0 and v7.0 ethnicity results, showing new European and Indigenous American populations

Comparison of my 2022 and 2025 results highlights the added detail in v7.0, Page 1

Comparison of my 2022 and 2025 results highlights the added detail in v7.0, Page 2

Comparison of my 2022 and 2025 results highlights the added detail in v7.0, Page 3

What stands out the most to me is the much finer detail in my British & Irish and Western European ancestry, where before it was a single broad category. Now, 23andMe has teased out English, Scottish, Welsh, and Irish separately—something that wasn’t possible before.

A New Assignment: Additional Ancestry Region

Another exciting update is that I was placed in a new Additional Ancestry Region called:

European Diaspora → Mountaineer Country Early British/Irish Americans

23andMe Additional Ancestry Region assignment showing Mountaineer Country Early British/Irish Americans under European Diaspora

New assignment: European Diaspora → Mountaineer Country Early British/Irish Americans

According to 23andMe, these regions reflect mixed ancestry or more recent migration patterns. In my case, this reflects the historical settlement of British and Irish immigrants in early America, particularly in the Appalachian and surrounding regions. It’s really interesting to see my DNA aligning with known migration stories that also appear in my family history research.

Final Thoughts

This update shows just how much DNA technology has improved in just a few years. Where I once had broad categories like “French & German” or “Scandinavian,” I now have much more precise detail—like Swiss, Austrian, Danish, and even Andalusian.

For genealogists and family historians, updates like this aren’t just fun—they provide clues that can guide research into more specific regions and historical migrations. To learn more about DNA "ethnicity" results, check out my post: Genealogy DNA Testing: Understanding Your Real DNA Ethnicity Results.

👉 Have you received your updated 23andMe results yet? What surprised you the most about your changes? Didn't test at 23andMe? Did you know that it's better to fish in all the ponds to get a more accurate look at your results, let alone more matches?

More Genetic Genealogy/DNA Resources

Find more DNA genealogy resources, tips, news, and updates under the Genetic Genealogy and DNA Category.

More Genealogy Resources

Learn about more family history and genealogy resources under the Genealogy Resources category and on my dedicated Genealogy Resources page.

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know Who Wears the Genes in Your Family: