SUMMARY

The deciphering of the human genome, completed in 2003, has opened up the field to new disciplines, including genetic genealogy.

We all carry our family, genealogical and even archaeological history in our DNA. It is possible not only to find out the proportion of our ancestors from different regions of the world in the Bronze Age, but also to trace contemporary cousins or solve genealogical riddles over the last five centuries. For adoptees, DNA can be a tool in the search for their origins, enabling them to trace members of their biological family.

This guide provides the keys to understanding all the possibilities offered by DNA as a genealogical tool. The author details the different tests available (mitochondrial, autosomal or Y chromosome tests, etc.), the places where they can be carried out and explains precisely how to read and understand the results of these tests. The legal and ethical aspects are covered, as well as the pitfalls to avoid, so that you can discover this wealth of genealogical information with complete peace of mind. To put it plainly: developments in this field of research have been so rapid in recent years that a practical guide has become essential. Finally, the thirty-two additional pages in this new 2019 edition are the direct result of discussions with readers, and of their needs, expectations and requests for clarification.

AUTHOR

Nathalie Jovanovic-Floricourt: she started her family tree at the age of eighteen. In 2008, she discovered genetic genealogy. DNA tests revealed unexpected origins and opened up a whole new field of discoveries through cousins in France and around the world. In 2018, she created the genealogie-genetique.fr website and specialised in this discipline.