I’ve always been fascinated with history. Growing up, I heard numerous stories relating to my heritage. When I was given the opportunity to do a Home DNA GPS Origins Ancestry Test review, I jumped at the chance! (Thanks Home DNA for sending me a free test to try out)
To me, my heritage was pretty well defined. Most of my grandparents were born in the US and were of European descent. They were Polish, German, Scottish and English to be exact. My Maternal Grandfather was born in a castle in Scotland. I’ve added the map below to give you a basic idea of my knowledge of my roots. Prior to taking the test, I had never considered anything deeper than that. As you will see from my test results, there’s a lot more to my genetic history than a couple of European countries.
Taking the Home DNA GPS Origins Ancestry Test
To start off, taking the test is super easy. First step is to purchase the test here (PSST – you can save $50 with promo code GPSCJ50). Upon ordering, you are sent a kit with a couple swabs and a postage paid return envelope. The kit arrived quickly, within a couple days. Upon receipt, you register the kit and follow the directions to take the sample. Sample collection is a couple swabs of your inner cheek. Pop it back over to them in the provided envelope and the results are available in about 3 weeks.
What to Expect from the Home DNA Ancestry GPS Origins Test
I’m not going to lie, although I saw an example of the reports that would be provided, I was expecting my answer to be roughly what I shared above. Approximately 1/4 of each of the origins, with possibly some smaller ethnic groups included. It turns out that I knew very little about exactly where my distant ancestors came from and that their migration from the aforementioned countries to the US was far from the most defining moments of my genetic history. After all, our history is only as good as our family’s ability to pass it down. So much gets lost along the way. I only ever met my great grandmothers, and both passed away when I was younger. The majority of my knowledge of my heritage comes from my mother and some family traditions that were described as Polish or German. The test results surprised me a bit.
What were my Home DNA GPS Origins Ancestry Test Results?
As I mentioned above, the point of the Home DNA GPS Origins Ancestry test is to pinpoint the origin and migration of your gene pools. Initially I was pretty surprised! While the English and Scottish came through clearly, I did not see the expected German and Polish ancestry that I believed to make up half of my genetic composition. The test results provide maps for your top 3 Gene Pools. You can also grab a list of your full gene pool from the “All Gene Pools” button on the same page. This portion of the test provided another surprise. Western Siberia, Sardinia and Southeastern India comprise over 30% of my gene pool! That is something I would have never known otherwise!
The second level of information provided relates to migration patterns of the most prevalent gene pools from each side of your family. It does not identify Maternal or Paternal at this time, but based on what I know, I suspect that blue is my mother’s side and red is my father’s. Along with each migration point, there are details on historical events that they would have experienced in each locale. The lineage extends back about 1800 years for me. From reading the FAQ’s each point noted represents a shift in the gene pool. I was surprised that my grandmother’s early migration to the US was not picked up, but it is only highlighting the two most prevalent gene pools.
The Final Verdict
Overall, I am very impressed with the results. I know there are a lot of tests out there, but others don’t seem to go this deep into ancestry and certainly not migration patterns. If you love learning about history and heritage, the Home DNA GPS Origins Ancestry test is definitely for you! The retail price is $199, but you can score $50 off by entering code GPSCJ50 at check out. Grab yours here! In addition to this test, they also have a wide variety of other tests ranging from a scaled down Ancestry test to tests for Skin Care and Healthy Weight Management. They even have test for pets to detect breed composition and potential genetic problems! You can check out all the tests offered here!
