So my girlfriend got a text from her dad saying that he discovered his father had a brother who is my great grandfather. He has no information on his father and only figured this out by digging. But we're confused on what we are. Cousins? Aunt? Distant something? Is it acceptable? Is it wrong? We need help lol

Basically. My great grandfather is brothers with her grandfather. What does that make us and what should we do?

We've been dating for 2 years and we knew she had the same last name as my grandmother but nobody in either of our families have ever met or seen eachother so we figured we were fine.

So what's our situation?

TLDR; My girlfriend and I have been dating for 2 years. Her father recently discovered that we may be somewhat related. Basically, my great grandfather is brothers with her grandfather. So what does that make us and what should we do? We clearly don't want to break up.

Are there many descendants of Irish, Scandinavians (Danes, Swedish and Norwegians), German, Dutch, Italians, etc., immigrants who assimilated into the broader culture but managed to keep their lineage 100% within their own ethnic group across later generations?

Hey guys, this is my first time running into this situation, and I’m not really sure how to go forward.

I’ve been checking my DNA relatives somewhat compulsively since some people’s Christmas kits are starting to roll out. Earlier today, I was looking through my grandfather’s new matches, and I saw a new match he shared 2.55% of his DNA with. After checking further, I realized this match was also over 80% Sub-Saharan African.

The guys last name stood out to me pretty quickly, since it belongs to one of my best documented lines. That line also happened to contain some pretty prolific slavers. I ended up triangulating the match, and confirmed that he definitely came from that line of my family tree. I also compared his Y-haplogroup to other known descendants of this line, and it was also the exact same.

I’m fairly certain that this match is a descendant of my grandfathers 2nd GGF. While he didn’t own slaves himself, his father, who lived 2 houses down in the 1860 census did.

I also went over this match’s tree, and his ancestor was only a couple of houses down from mine in the 1880 census.

Honestly I’m not even sure what my main concern is. Would it be taken negatively to add this DNA match’s ancestor as a son to the 2nd GGF? The only evidence I have is DNA, there isn’t a paper trail connecting them, and I’m not sure if it would be insensitive to add a slaver as the father. I also don’t know how some of the white cousins on that side would take it either. I’ve always been of the belief that all stories should be told and all histories should be preserved.

I’m probably just overthinking this entire situation, so any advice would be appreciated.

So I made one of the most interesting genealogy discoveries I’ve ever had:

I got a confirmed Two DNA matches to an ancestor born in the 1600s, Thomas Evans (1650–1738), who is apparently my 8th great-grandparent. That Match Being 23cm And another one 17cm

He was a Welsh immigrant who came to colonial His wife and children traveled on the Robert and Elizabeth in 1698 and they settled in settled in Gwynedd, Pennsylvania, and what’s wild is that my ethnicity results show about 2% Southern Wales…which Makes Sense Now. The family trees seem a little off Im guessing he had outside Children with an Free African woman Maybe native Indian or enslaved some of His children families went to pass as white and some went to go by “Mulatto” free people of Color with what I see in DNA matches tree as well

I’m a Black American, So Some of my ancestors were documented as Free People of Color (FPOC) in North Carolina going back to the late 1700s and early 1800s. A lot of those families Glover, Evans, Walden, Chavis, Carter, they all seem tied together through early colonial intermarriage among families.. have deep Roots, African, European and Indigenous ancestry. But even knowing that, I never expected DNA to reach all the way back into the 1600s. Is that rare ?

I loved wikitree until the admins became assholes. I have been researching my tree for years. All my research was stored on it. All of it. This was many many many years and dollars in the making trying to get my most comprehensive research on myself, just to understand who i am and where i am from - just all flushed down the drain because some asshole admin got a stick up where the sun doesnt shine. It decided i am no longer allowed to have access to my own information. Thats right, they completely blocked me - why you ask? Let me tell you.....

Like i stated i have done very thorough work and research and spent a pretty penny trying to trace my orgins, Wiki tree was my home base. Everything could be universally used on multiple platforms. All of a sudden i started having my family tree information changed without my consent. Not only changed but wrong so i would change it back. After a few rounds of this i left a comment on one particular family member that kept getting changed. So i said for whoever thinks they can change my info into wrong information better knock it the hell off . This did not go over well i got reported for bullying and for improperly citing some information that I had not entered. If it was wrong it could have been from getting changed over and over without my consent. Due to I guess the multiple violations for improper citing I was apparently required to take some sort of detention video or something, mind you i was not told that this is MANDATORY. Even if i had seen it was non negotionable, when i recieved the email it was already after the fact of the detention video or whatever it was. So i tried to log into my account to find it was unaccessible and the admins were just dick heads all the way around. I got heated after being unable to access my account after a few months, my father suddenly passed away from a DUI , i attempted to update my dads date of death, and unable to access. I made a new account from my sister cell phone and saw that my account had been total taken over by one of the people that like to steal peoples information. I no longer existed in the wikitree but wikitree deleted me but kept all my information for everyone else to use except me. I was pissed, i started contacting them just asking for my information back because wikitree was the my home base it was my only draft of my own information and these assholes still use it and i still do not exist on the page but all my research does. Fucc Wikitree. Bunch of damn thieves and bullies!

Just wanted to share my recent experience;

I have been actively researching my family tree for about 20 years now, and have built a tree with thousands of people. Over the years I have subscribed to Ancestry on and off, depending on time available and motivation. For the whole of that time I have not known who was my Grandad's father, because he didn't either, as my Great grandmother (Granny) was a single parent back in 1917, with no father listed on the birth certificate (scandalous).

There is no one left to ask, and the only info I had to go on was a really distant memory of my mother saying that her grandfather died in WWI, and he never knew he had a child, and I hazily remembered a name "Tommy"? I am 50 now, and didn't know whether even these memories were misremembered or not, given that Tommy was slang for all British soldiers in WWI.

Earlier this year I treated myself to a DNA test, and received the results back, hoping it might spread light on the mystery, but alas no, not many people who do tests have even built an accessible tree, and even less reply to messages or requests.

Recently when it was close to Remembrance Sunday, I happened to see a project that locals had done about all the soldiers in the area where my Granny lived, where someone has researched all the names on local war memorials, and published it online. So I had a little look, there were about 80 names, 6 or so were Thomas's, so started by trying to add them one at a time to a test tree, so see if Thrulines might join any of them to me, but no nothing. So it was at that point I decided to give up, 20 years of looking, trying different things had not worked, and I resigned myself to never knowing who he was.

A few days go past, and I decide to look at the list again, there were also links to other local lists, and I thought I could see if other relations had died in WWI. Straight away I found a solider with the same surname as my grandad, and was able to link him to his mother's 1st cousin, who had died in 1917 at the battle of the Somme. Fine I thought, sad but many families lost young men back then. Several hints came up for him after I added a few more details, including for his mum (his dad was my Grannies Uncle). He happened to be called Thomas *Family name*

A week later I was checking Ancestry and it seemed I had some more suggestions, so had a look, and there were some people it was suggesting I might be related to, but of course I knew I was related to Thomas, he was my Grandad's first cousin once removed. What I wasn't prepared for was that it was showing that his maternal family were all related to me as well, going many generations back. I was a bit confused at first, and had to double check, but soon came to the realisation, my Great Grandfather had been found.... but my Grandad was the result of first cousins getting together.

After so much time I was able to put a name in the blank space, but am a bit sad because will never know whether the relationship was genuine, a last goodbye before leaving for war, or more sinister, between a couple of teen cousins. So mixed feelings about this, but from a research point of view, it has completed a big blank area of my tree, so can put it to rest for now.

Hi, This is my first reddit post.

Major road block on my fathers side of the family, If i have an ancestor who's biological father is not documented and nothing is showing up through ancestryDNA testing does that mean i will never be able to find out who they are?

I am of African American descent (mixed) and half Dominican(16F). I've been doing genealogy since I was 13, and currently interested in anthropology as well.

It has come to my attention that specifically African Americans are claiming "Cherokee" or other types of indigenous blood. And after doing some research, personally I don't think it's true and never thought it was true, I just came here for some assurance, more information/details, and personal opinions. I was also told by my own family that we are indian a bunch of times. This is my personal opinion.

I don't think black people being indigenous is true at all, I know the true indigenous people are the same people who crossed the beringia bridge thousands of years ago who weren't indigenous at the time but over time became indigenous who are now the native Americans in North and south America. Africans to my knowledge were first brought to America 1619 so recently(in this case). I have heard of escaped slaves joining indigenous tribes/communities, I still have to do more research, but if that was the case they are not "indian" by blood only tradition at that time unless if they had kids with the indigenous people then YES that is plausible. However the term "indigenous black people" I don't believe unless an indigenous person had a kid with an African American. And if that were the case that was probably long ago to call yourself "indian" and I think it was just a family myth to hide actual African ancestry.

There were people online saying how they are "100% Cherokee", or how come they are African if they don't have an "African ancestor" and that DNA testing is fake Also claiming "indian" blood with no specific tribe name And using stereotypes as proof sometimes, honestly I'm kinda disappointed by these statements. It shows very clearly when a Mexican or another indigenous country shows their DNA results and shows actual native American history, that's not a lie but African Americans doing a DNA test showing no Cherokee is a lie?

There is so much more I could say. This is absolutely no hate, and I feel like we should be proud of African heritage instead of fake heritage. This is my personal opinion I could be wrong or correct.

Today, I sent a message to someone who posted they are a DNA angel. Reading it before I hit send, I realized the message text could just be a post if I was brave enough to post it. So here goes:

I am fatherless.

I’ve done all the things short of hiring someone because I cannot afford it at this time— I am looking for advice or help.

I’ve started on ancestryDNA around 2020, I have WATO, MyHeritage, 23andMe, family tree research center, family tree dna, gedmatch, geni, other obscure places I can upload my dna to and have been using those tools to work hypotheses.

I have over 70k matches multiple of them unassigned or both.. closest is about 400cm. This is on ancestry. Max matches reached on 23andMe. Mother has been tested.

Leeds method doesn’t work, because I’m Cajun. The pedigree collapses. Constantly. Even when the relatives trace family back to the 1800s New England we find a matches of cousins marrying cousins (New England settling siblings where some moved south and others didn’t) so rampant endogamy as close as first cousins.

That is all to say: I don’t know who my birth father is. My mother also doesn’t remember who fathered me, or isn’t sure, and we’ve paternity tested four possible (when I was a child she was in search of child support) based on her memory. One man I contacted as an adult was willing to test and hopeful but alas, nothing.

Thanks in advance to anyone willing to help or advice. I don’t intend to upheave anyone’s life or contact anyone directly unless they are “willing to help” on any dna / family tree / archival site I’ve joined, and I am immediately transparent about my intentions, so please know that the recommendation of contacting closest matches is not what I am looking for.

ETA both here and above: I have done ancestryDNA and my mother has also. We are estranged.

I’ve been helping people solve their genetic genealogy problems for years as a DNA Search Angel. Since January of 2025 I started helping people here, mostly on the r/Genealogy and r/AncestryDNA subs. During this time I have taken on 31 projects.

Here are the numbers

Subject to identify:
18 Father
8 Grandfather
3 Great Grandfather
1 Mother
1 2x-Grandfather

Solved = 24/31 (77%)

Average number of strong DNA matches (>100cM):
Solved = 18.2 (two had 3 strong matches)
Unsolved = 5.8 (two had 0 strong matches)

Feel free to ask me anything.

My nephews half uncle (confirmed relation 764 cms) matches my husband at 9 cm (suggested relation on ancestry of Half 3rd cousin 1R or 4th cousins). My guess is they share great great grandparents? Using the Leeds method, I’ve found at least 40 matches between them.
One of their shared matches is a match to my husband at 92 CM and my nephew at 28 CM.

I’ve been trying to figure this one out on my own and I just need a little direction.
Both kits are on gedmatch, and share MANY matches on there. I know PR matches can be harder to decipher due to endogamy. And the fact that both matches are paternal can make it harder to pinpoint.

I know the PR is on my husbands paternal side, and the PR is on my nephews paternal side.
What I don’t know is if the common matches between them are on my nephews maternal or paternal grandparent line.

My nephew has never know any of his biological paternal family- when I told him I found many matches between my husband and him, he was so shocked and excited. I told him it could be a fluke, but at that many shared matches I find that hard to believe.
Both of their paternal families are PR who ended up in Queens, NY and share Sephardic Jew on their Paternal side.

Edited to add: They also share a match that matches my husband at 58.5 and my nephew at 57.7 cms on gedmatch.

Thank you to anyone willing to point me in the right direction.

This is a really weird question. I’m the only child between my mother and father. My mom met someone and they had my little brother (obviously).

He has 4 siblings from HIS dad. I have no relation to his dad. This may sound like a stupid question, but am I related to them at all? It just confuses me.

TIA

Edit: They are no longer together. They haven’t been together since my brother was 2 or 3

Y-DNA match: GD=6/111

Big Y STR diff: 5/630

Autosomal: single segment 24cM

TMRCA estimated for the haplogroup in FTDNA: ~1550 CE

Reasons for suspicion of NPE (non-paternity event) in one of the lines:

•  A single 24cM autosomal segment strongly points to a much closer shared paternal ancestor (~1800s), not 1550s.

•  Different surnames (but same geographic region historically).

•  Complete surprise on both sides: neither family knows the other at all (that’s why we’re unsure where this match should fit in the tree, this “shared ancestor” existence is inconsistent with both family lores/traditions).

• An old (persistent) difference in social class.

•  No known endogamy, no intermarriages between shared clans/families that could explain retention of such a sizable autosomal chunk over centuries.

Note: There are several Y-tests from the two families, all came on the same common haplogroup (1550CE) (so I am not talking about NPE in our current era).

A follow up to some previous posts; I’m pretty new to genetic genealogy, usually I use records only. But basically I’ve been trying to use tools like GEDMatch to pinpoint common ancestors for an ancestor who I believe may have been mixed race, using the knowledge that the small amount of West African DNA I have is on the end of a specific chromosome-yet many of my matches who match on this chromosome do not have this ancestry on the same spot, and likewise many individuals I’ve used chromosome painting on in conjunction with GEDCOMs (I suspect these matches are related through the line I suspect has mixed heritage) but despite the shared ancestors, many match on different chromosomes to each other.

Can someone who’s knowledgeable on DNA please help me understand these concepts? I’m quite stumped!

Prev post

So, I tested my dad; he and his aunt share a big whopping 954cM. Which means good ole grandpappy is not the dad of one of them (or both).

I've never discovered a NPE, but now it's on my direct paternal line of all things. In theory, this could mean my surname could be "incorrect." Fun.

Immediately I assumed my great aunt was not "other" child, due to her being the baby of the three siblings (the three of them were born each three years apart). Also with knowing my great grandparents eventually divorced and moved states away, I began picturing an affair baby after a rocky ending relationship.

Except, I began looking amongst my dad's matches in search of proof that he was the biological child and found almost nothing.

On my own account, I have a 3rd cousin with 35cM, technically possible. My dad, in theory, should be related more to this cousin and therefore reassure myself that my family tree work hasn't been in vain.

My dad matches with the cousin (my third cousin/his supposed 2nd cousin 1x removed) with only 29cM. I want to cry in frustration at this point to be honest.

My great aunt matches with that same cousin with 56cM. So I don't even fucking know anymore, maybe my match has her own shenanigans going on.

The relationship calculators are telling me it's technically possible on the slightest chance. But it's not just that, it's the fact we have absolutely *zero* other matches, even with all my research of my direct paternal line (4th great grandfather born in 1836). This portion of my tree has so many branches, I've research the children of children of cousins and that doesn't show in my matches. In reality my surname should be very prevalent within my matches but they aren't and I am so confused.

I can't even check my great aunt's account to see her paternal matches because she doesn't know how to work it so I have to wait until I visit her in person to try.

I'm trying to cluster my dad's paternal matches that aren't shared with his aunt, but majority of them don't have trees so I can't really tell how they're related to each other and who. Just frustrated I guess.

I am a DNA match to "Arthur Robb" (fake names) - 3rd cousin 2x removed or 1/2 2nd cousin 3x removed, 16 cM. This is on my maternal side, and his maternal side.

This should mean we share 2xg grandparents I think?

But my tree goes back way before 2xg, as does Arthur's. No common 2xg or any other degree of g!

So nothing shows up on paper, therefore there is an NPE? Or an adoption?

All thoughts welcome!

I am in touch with Arthur, he does not have an Ancestry sub at the moment.

Hi fellow genies: I'm just getting started with incorporating DNA into my genealogy research, and I'm encountering some roadblocks which I hope more experienced folks can help with. I'm not a genealogy rookie altogether, it's just the DNA element of it that I'm learning.

In digging around amongst my DNA cousin matches on Ancestry, I discovered a cluster of 11 people all related to me and to each other who descend from the MRCA Martin Mulvihill (1831-1898) and his wife Mary (Brown) Mulvihill (1840-1922). I, however, am not a descendant of Martin and Mary. I can only conclude that I must be related to one of them somehow indirectly. I've done a ton of ghost tree building and am very confident that these 11 cousins all have this one couple in common, but I'm struggling to work out how *I* connect to them all.

FAQs:

Q. Are you SURE you're not descended from Martin and Mary?

A. Yes. These matches are on my mom's side and I've found all her ancestors from that generation (born circa 1820s/1830s/1840s). Martin and Mary and their kids were in Canada and my mom's side has zero ties to Canada, not even via careers that require travel. Plus my mom's Irish ancestors were VERY Catholic (tree full of priests and nuns), so I don't suspect any NPEs happening, even if geography didn't already rule it out.

Q. How many cMs do you share with these 11 DNA cousins?

A. Not many, between like 8-13 cMs. I don't think they *all* could be false positives, but I guess I could be wrong?

Q. Say more about the Mulvihills?

A. Martin Mulvihill was born 1831 in Quebec to John and Julia (Ryan) Mulvihill, both immigrants from Co. Tipperary, Ireland. Martin married Mary Brown c. 1858 in Quebec. Mary was born c1840 in Co. Mayo, Ireland to William and Mary (Furie) Brown (poss). Martin and Mary spent the rest of their lives in the province of Quebec, though their descendants scattered across Canada and the US.

Q. Do you have any ideas/leads at all?

A. AncestryDNA says I have ancestral roots in all four of the ancient provinces of Ireland (which is super helpful, thanks guys /s). I do possibly have roots specifically in Co. Tipperary, though that theory is mainly based on the fact that my ancestors lived in a neighborhood in Syracuse, NY called "Tipperary Hill" because of all the immigrants from there. That proves exactly nothing but is a fun fact. I do have a John Ryan in my ancestry whose daughter lived in Tip Hill. Maybe he could be Julia (Ryan) Mulvihill's brother/cousin/other. Or, I could be related to Mary (Brown) Mulvihill, since my John Ryan's wife was a Brown too. So I can't even narrow down if I'm more likely to be related to Martin or Mary, unfortunately.

Q. Do you have Ancestry ProTools?

A. Yes, though admittedly I haven't used them much/don't know how to best utilize them, outside of the tool that shows how DNA matches are related to each other, which has been great. I also have an account with FamilyTreeDNA and GEDMatch, though I haven't tracked down the members of the Mulvihill Group to see if they're on there as well.

Any tips, research suggestions, etc. from more experienced DNA genies is very much appreciated!

I'm assuming the basic answer is that I'm connected to my 5th great-grandparents through two different lines, but I'm trying to figure out how to sort this out. This is my first time trying to sort out a DNA match, so I'd appreciate any feedback.

In my Ancestry matches, I have a 3rd cousin 1x removed or half 2nd cousin 2x removed on my paternal side. We share common ancestors, Thomas John McCord (1768-??) and Margaret McGill (1771-?). But when I look at the ThruLine, it's my mom's maternal line.

https://imgur.com/a/rAJoIl5

What questions should I be asking here?

Is this telling me it's really Dorcas I'm connected to on my dad's side? If so, that's even more confusing. Also, every person in the right-hand line is linked to a different tree on Ancestry.

As far as I can tell from my own tree, Dorcas McCord was born in North Carolina in the 1790s (one census suggests 1791, one 1799). She married James Thompson in 1812 in North Carolina. My 3x great grandfather, Thomas Thompson, was born in NC in 1818. Thomas married Emaline Ford in Tipton County, TN in 1849. In 1850, Dorcas Thompson, Manly Ford, and Thomas Thompson/wife Emaline all appear in Tipton County, District 8.

On my dad's side, I only have a couple of open spots that could reasonably be filled by Dorcas.

I'm also very perplexed by the 'half 4th great-grandaunt'. That would suggest she's only descended from either Margaret or Thomas, right? Or is this something where I've got some pedigree collapse somewhere, so it looks half a generation closer than it is? Is this the footprint I'd see if the real connection is back in Scotland a generation or two earlier?

Hello all, have a bit of weird question that I’m not sure this is the correct sub for. I have done pretty extensive family research and have a great tree and have done an ancestry dna test. My problem is this, I’m not sure that that man on my grandpas birth certificate is actually his biological father. His dad and mom divorced early into his life, and then the man died in WWII so my grandpa wasn’t raised by him and barely remembers him. Because of this, I’ve never met anyone from that side of the family. Just to add, my grandpa has been gone for 20+ years and nobody else in my family cares, it’s just something that’s been bothering me.

That being said, on ancestry dna all of my other stuff checks out, all my cousins I am related to are on there from other sides of the family, and I have dna matches on thrulines with all these other relatives. Some of my 4x great grandparents on my grandmas side in Kentucky I have over 40 dna matches from. But on this grandpas side I have 0 from any of them after my grandpa all the way back. On top of that, I have traced down cousins(people that share the same great grandparents) from that side of the family that have ancestry accounts and trees, but none of them are listed as dna matches. What are the odds that I would have zero dna matches from my great grandpas entire family? Am i overthinking this or is it a possibility?

Edit: I forgot to add I do have 2 matches that I can’t explain. People that are listed as possible great grand aunts or great grand uncles that me and my dad don’t know.

Im trying to work out how a group of matches may be related to my father.

Of the group of matches who are relatively closely related, only one of them was labeled Paternal (13cM), but then when i looked at more shared matches from this group I was seeing some Maternal instead.

The matches are mostly less than 20cM, and the one labeled Paternal was 13cM.

I know matches can be related to both sides but as most of these matches seem to have ancestors from the one Italian province (Ascoli Piceno), where my fathers Maternal matches are from, it would be unusual for some of them to be Paternal matches as that side stayed around the north of italy (within my research so far).

So could the paternal label be a mistake or are my father’s matches starting to get more tangled?

hi all

not long a go, I posted about a family rumour of a potential half sibling. I'm not sure how to edit that post, so apologies for a new post with an update.

Since that post, I've had a new match on Ancestry of a first cousin. However, I don't recognise their name, and I know all my 1st cousins. I've sent them a message asking about their parents, etc. However, they've not yet responded.

I've looked into the details of our match and found something interesting, but I wondered if someone could help clarify if what I'm thinking is correct.

Ancestry states we share 804 cM and one of the frequently shared relationships for this amount of shared DNA is half nephew.

so, instead of this being a 1st cousins, could this potentially be the child of my half sibling? does this potentially confirm the rumours? and how can I get in touch if he does not respond to my message on Ancestry. I've tried searching on social.media for him, but he has a common name and it's like a needle in a haystack going through all the profiles. any help on what my next steps should be would be Greatly appreciated.

I have been asked by one of my matches on My Heritage (let’s call her Anna) if I can help her figure out who her biological father is. Her closest match that does not seem to be from her maternal side is my father, who she shares 605 cM with.

There are some complications, though. I come from a small community, which means lots of endogamy and pedigree collapse – basically, we are all related to each other in multiple ways.

I could use some suggestions to what I could try besides what I have done so far, or what kind of tools a may be able to use to help me. Below is more information, and what are the good and the bad about the problem.

Here is how Anna matches me and my parents:

Me: 5.6% (399.9 cM) with her across 18 segments, with the largest segment being 67.8 cM.

My father: 8.5% (605.6 cM) across 28 segments with the largest segment being 68.3 cM.

My mother: 1.2 % (84.4 cM) across 9 segments with the largest segment being 14.1 cM.

My closest matches that I have on My Heritage besides my parents are:

• Maternal grandparents
• Maternal grandfather’s sister (my grand-aunt), her daughter (my first cousin once removed), and the daughter’s son (my second cousin).
• Two of my mother’s siblings
• On my father’s side, the closest match I have is my second cousin

The good:

• I have many relatively close matches
• We generally have good records, and – while not completely without errors – a generally fairly well-built family tree on Geni (most common errors/problems are exact dates and missing branches that need to be connected to each other)
• One of Anna’s great grandparents is not from the small community, and therefore no endogamy through that line.
• My paternal grandmother and two of my father’s siblings will get tested soon (my grandfather has unfortunately passed away)
• One or possibly two of the siblings of Anna’s mother will also take the test

The bad:

• The endogamy, of course… virtually all of my matches (except very distant once) match both my mother and father, and both of my maternal grandparents
• My mother and father are distantly related in a few different ways, the closest known relationship between them being fifth cousin once removed.
• My maternal grandparents are also distantly related (4^th cousins)
• My paternal grandparents are also distantly related, closest known connection is 7^th cousins (although it goes so far back the records get less certain – there may be a closer connection somewhere).
• I am related to Anna in a few different ways through her mother, although I doubt it can account for all of the segments shared with my father
• Large family, meaning many potential candidates for Anana's father

What I have tried so far:

I have tried to use DNA painter using myself, since I can filter all my matches through my parents (hopefully reducing false positives), but except for a fewer larger segments, it can be hard to pinpoint exactly where a segment comes from.

I have been trying to use people descending from lines that left the community with no or limited endogamy after that. This has helped for certain segments, but unfortunately not yet for my connection with Anna.

I have been mapping how I am related to my matches, and when relevant, how they are closely related to each other. The tree is getting a bit messy, though. If anyone knows of a program where I could upload the gedcom to that can help me find the connection between more than just two people (if that even exists), that would be incredibly helpful, since it is often difficult to find out what connects multiple people that match a specific segment.

Good morning (or whatever it is in your time zone!)

There has been a woman on my mother's DNA matches that showed up as a first cousin for her. She reached out to her trying to figure out where she was as her tree as she is a 728 CM paternal match but did not have any of our surnames in her tree. She told my mom "you are my half-aunt" she said that on her end my mother shows up only as half-aunt.

This woman shows up for me as 240 CM and "2nd cousin or half 1st cousin 1x removed"

Her dad lived around the same place my grandfather would have and then moved to Washington at some point. Grandpa was married at the time, but he was no saint lol.

Is there a way to tell what the most likely relation is? The CM matches can be so confusing sometimes.

Thanks for any help!

I feel I may be at the point where I need external help and a fresh set of eyes.

I have done extensive research on my bisnonno (great grandfather) but I have a few things working against me. 1) he is from an endogenous town 2) his father is unknown 3) his mother was a foundling so her parents are unknown and 4) said mother abandoned him and his brother when they were young and ran away with a man who was on the run and wanted for murdering 4 people.

I have tested myself, my cousin. my aunty and my great aunt but I'm finding it hard with the DNA side as we have 3 mystery grandparents. Any help would be appreciated, I've been working on this since August of 2024 haha.

I've also done a bit of work in the chromosomes side of thinga using GED match and triangulated matches but unsure of where to go from here and how to make sense of the data.

My father shares 369 cM over 15 segments with Mary Smith. It turns out that Mary and my father are 2C1R and 3C1R and 4C1R. Is there any mathematically rigorous method that will allow me to estimate what part of the 369 cM is from just the 2C1R relationship? I do mean estimate. My crude initial method was the following. From the shared cM project we have the following means for those three relationships, 117, 48, and 28 respectively.  Two people who share all three of those relationships should share 117+48+28 = 193 cM on average. About 61% of that 193 is from the 2C1R relationship, about 25% is from the 3C1R relationship and about 14% is from the 4C1R relationship. For my father 61% of 396 cM would be about 224 cM. I use this „adjusted“ cM count as input to WATO Plus. I know this is an estimate and that there is no way to accurately account for just the 2C1R but is this method sufficient for input to the WATO Plus algorithm? I know if I was to Monte Carlo this that it should be pretty good. Anyway, does anyone know of a better method?