By Alisa Lehman, Ph.D.
At 23andMe, we are committed to providing our customers with the most granular and meaningful insights into their heritage. Today, we are thrilled to announce a major update for our customers of Filipino descent: the launch of 144 new Genetic Groups across the Philippines and neighboring regions, providing the most detailed breakdown of Filipino ancestry available.
The Philippines is a land of incredible diversity, with over 7,000 islands and a rich tapestry of cultural and regional communities. We are now able to identify if members share DNA segments with those who have a known family history from a specific location or community. More than 75% of our members of Filipino descent, who are on our latest genotyping chip, will now see matches to one or more of these new Genetic Groups. And 23andMe+ Premium™ members will also be able to see any distant Genetic Group connections they may have to these regions.
A Shared Heritage
In addition to 141 Genetic Groups across the Philippines this update includes 1 new group in Taiwan and 2 groups in Borneo, reflecting the shared Austronesian ancestry in this region.
Who are Austronesians? Around 4,000 to 5,000 years ago, seafaring groups originating from what is now Taiwan began migrating southward into the Philippine archipelago, likely entering through the Batanes Islands and Northern Luzon. These migrants brought with them new technologies, such as the outrigger canoe, along with agricultural practices, including the cultivation of rice and the domestication of animals. Over millennia, these populations fanned out across the 7,000+ islands of the Philippines, developing distinct linguistic and cultural identities while maintaining a shared genetic and naval heritage.
This movement didn’t stop in the Philippines; the archipelago served as a vital jumping-off point for further expansion into Indonesia, Malaysia, and eventually as far west as Madagascar and as far east as the remote islands of Polynesia, forever linking the Filipino people to a vast Austronesian cultural network.
Check out your results
With this update, discovering more about your Filipino heritage with 23andMe has never been more specific. This is part of our ongoing commitment to improving our science and representation for all our customers. We can’t wait for you to see it. Log in to explore your updated results in your Ancestry Composition report today.
About the Author
Alisa Lehman, Ph.D. — Sr. Manager, Product Science
Dr. Alisa Lehman has been working at 23andMe since 2015 creating scientifically accurate, consumer-friendly genetic reports on ancestry and health topics. Dr. Lehman holds a B.S. in Biology from MIT, and a Ph.D. in Biological Sciences from Stanford University.
