Do Italians not like to take DNA tests..?

[MarcuccioV]

I just got my Ancestry DNA results. 34% Southern Italian (the majority percentage of all my ethnicities), 7% Northern Italian (which is odd, as it should add up to 50%, but I'm sure it will adjust as more results are included).

The strange thing is with my DNA matches. I believe there are many thousand, mostly in the 4th-6th cousin range.

As I go down the list (I've compared hundreds so far), ALL but one share ONLY the Northern European regions on my father's side (a couple had minor traces of Italian only). The ONLY one so far with percentages of Italian close to mine has an Italian surname (although not one I recognize).

So what gives..? Are Italians just reticent about taking DNA tests..? I have several cousins and other family members whose names I recognize or are on my tree that are matches, but NOT from the Italian side.

It just seems strange...

[darkerhorse]

I suspect part of the problem is that so many Italians have emigrated, especially from southern Italy and Sicily, that those left behind (who are used for "Italian" reference groups) are a selective group, and might not be so representative of Italians in general.

I bet I have more DNA matches in America (counted as Americans) than in Italy (counted as Italians).

[MarcuccioV]

A true statement, however I'm not even getting US matches with Italian results. Maybe a half-dozen so far (compared with hundreds from the other side). One had a surname from my tree (Latini) & we have 2 other common ancestors. It's just odd to me that not even any American family on the Italian side comes up...

[darkerhorse]

Maybe you should post your question in the Genetic Genealogy board.

[MarcuccioV]

In evaluating my "Thru-Lines" of my DNA results (parents-5th great grandparents) the results are eye-opening.

On my father's (non-Italian, northern European) side, I have multiple DNA matches to every single person (aside from my father), some of those in the upper double digits.

On my mother's (Italian) side, I have 0. Yes, ZERO. Can it be possible that NO ONE I'm related to on my mother's side has EVER done an Ancestry DNA test..? Not a single one..? 6 generations worth..? That's absolutely insane...

[MarcuccioV]

Maybe you should post your question in the Genetic Genealogy board.

I will do so, but it just boggles my mind that with a majority of my ethnicity being Italian, why I'm not finding ANY relatives from that side...

[darkerhorse]

Has your mother taken a DNA test? Do you have a paper trail for her? Are you sure she's ethnically Italian? There are plenty of people from Italy who have other ancestry, like Eastern European. Are you sure she wasn't adopted?

[MarcuccioV]

She was not adopted. She passed in 1992 but WAS the biological child of my grandparents (she and her brother were twins). There are no adoptions period and I have paper trails going back to Italy in the 1870's...

[MarcuccioV]

AND my DNA is 41% Italian (I suppose the 9% can be made up or is simply errant of the other ethnicities)...

[viv123]

AncestryDNA is not being sold in Italy yet.

[MarcuccioV]

AncestryDNA is not being sold in Italy yet.

I've since uploaded my DNA to several sites, all with 3K+ matches. Still only >5% show any ties to the Italian side, which all show a majority of Italian ethnicity in my DNA. So even if no one overseas took the tests, it also means none of my Italian-American cousins have, either. All those families have been in the US since about 1900...

[Italysearcher]

She was not adopted. She passed in 1992 but WAS the biological child of my grandparents (she and her brother were twins). There are no adoptions period and I have paper trails going back to Italy in the 1870's...

Unless you have a DNA test that proves she was the biological child how can you be sure? It has been known that fraternal twins can have different fathers.

[MarcuccioV]

She was not adopted. She passed in 1992 but WAS the biological child of my grandparents (she and her brother were twins). There are no adoptions period and I have paper trails going back to Italy in the 1870's...

Unless you have a DNA test that proves she was the biological child how can you be sure? It has been known that fraternal twins can have different fathers.

No, all legit. Both my mother & uncle (fraternal twins) resemble one or the other parent too closely (not to mention, you didn't know my grandmother). Sadly, all are now deceased. Even so, I should have SOME matches for the Italian DNA (which is my majority), but have nearly none. I believe it's just laziness, pure & simple...

[Italysearcher]

It's NOT laziness. Italians just don't have the same interest in genealogy that the descendants of emigrants do. They know all their relatives they are interested in knowing, 3 generations back and sideways! They don't feel the need to know more. Your 'ancestor' left and eventually lost contact with their Italian family. Even when they do know of an ancestor who emigrated there is not much interest in finding out what happened to them.

[MarcuccioV]

It's NOT laziness. Italians just don't have the same interest in genealogy that the descendants of emigrants do. They know all their relatives they are interested in knowing, 3 generations back and sideways! They don't feel the need to know more. Your 'ancestor' left and eventually lost contact with their Italian family. Even when they do know of an ancestor who emigrated there is not much interest in finding out what happened to them.

Yes, but that still doesn't account for the fact that there are no matches for that side. There are still MANY blood relatives of various members of the Italian clan here in the US (SEVERAL generations of children, grandchildren, etc) since about 1900 yet not a single one shows up. The skew is probably more than 99% from my father's non-Italian side to less than 1% of my mother's Italian side. I can see a majority of one or the other being prominent, but the imbalance just seems to be far beyond any explanation. I'm just going to leave it at that.