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mtDNA Ancestral Origins Guide

Which mtDNA matches are included in my Ancestral Origins?

mtDNA matches from both FamilyTreeDNA's customer and academic databases including academic sample matches that have only tested part of HVR1.

The following rules must be met by FamilyTreeDNA customers for them to be included in your Ancestral Origins:

  • For those who have tested HVR1 (mtDNA) or HVR1 and HVR2 (mtDNA Plus), only exact matches are shown. SmartMatching is also used to prevent a match between different haplogroups.
  • For those who have tested the mtDNA Full Sequence (mtFull Sequence), three differences are allowed. Two high-frequency insertion/deletion locations are completely excluded from difference counts. These are mutations at positions 309 and 315.

mtDNA Ancestral Origins Sections 

Depending on the mtDNA test(s) you have taken and at which level you have matches, the following sections might be displayed on your Ancestral Origins: 

  • HVR1 Matches - Mitochondrial matches at the Hypervariable Region 1 level who have provided a country of origin for their maternal Earliest Known Ancestor.
  • HVR1 and HVR2 Matches - Mitochondrial matches at the Hypervariable Region 1 and 2 levels who have provided a country of origin for their maternal Earliest Known Ancestor.
  • Exact Match - Mitochondrial Genetic Distance 0 matches at the Coding Region level who have provided a country of origin for their maternal Earliest Known Ancestor.

  • Genetic Distance -1Mitochondrial Genetic Distance 1 matches at the Coding Region level who have provided a country of origin for their maternal Earliest Known Ancestor.

  • Genetic Distance -2Mitochondrial Genetic Distance 2 matches at the Coding Region level who have provided a country of origin for their maternal Earliest Known Ancestor.

  • Genetic Distance -3 - Mitochondrial Genetic Distance 3 matches at the Coding Region level who have provided a country of origin for their maternal Earliest Known Ancestor.

mtDNA Ancestral Origins Columns

The following columns are displayed for each section of your Ancestral Origins:

  • CountrySelf-reported country of origin for the maternal Earliest Known Ancestor of your matches at this level.

  • Match Total - Number of matches at this level who reported that their maternal Earliest Known Ancestor is from this country.

  • Country TotalNumber of mtDNA testers at this level in the FamilyTreeDNA database who reported that their maternal Earliest Known Ancestor is from this country.

  • PercentagePercentage of the database that you match at this level who reported that their maternal Earliest Known Ancestor is from this country.

  • CommentAdditional information about the maternal Earliest Known Ancestors of the matches at this level, such as regional or ethnic connections.

 

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