
<figure class="wp-block-table"><table class="has-fixed-layout" style="border:1px solid #000; border-collapse:collapse;"><tbody><tr><td>
<h2>Key Takeaways</h2>
<ul><li>23andMe has added 29 individuals from America’s founding era to its Historical Matches® feature.</li>
<li>The colonists show strong DNA connections to western England and Wales, with several individuals connecting to Ireland.</li>
<li>Genetic data reveals strong links between early Maryland colonists and living 23andMe participants with deep Kentucky roots, tracing a centuries-old migration pattern.</li></ul>
</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>



<p>This July 4th, as America celebrates its 250th birthday, we&#8217;re adding 29 individuals from the nation&#8217;s founding era to the <a href="https://blog.23andme.com/articles/23andmes-historic-matches" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Historical Matches</a>® feature. Their DNA connects them to more than 1.3 million consented 23andMe research participants members.</p>



<p>But here&#8217;s the remarkable part: one of them was lost to history until your DNA helped name him again.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-lost-colonists-now-discoverable">Lost Colonists, Now Discoverable</h2>



<p>In <a href="https://blog.23andme.com/articles/ancient-dna-and-the-story-of-some-of-americas-earliest-colonists" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">May</a>, we shared the story of a groundbreaking study published in <a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(26)00516-6" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>Current Biology</em></a>. 23andMe researchers, working with colleagues at Harvard University, the Smithsonian Institution&#8217;s National Museum of Natural History and <a href="https://www.hsmcdigshistory.org/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Historic St. Mary&#8217;s City</a>, analyzed the DNA of 49 individuals buried at St. Mary&#8217;s City, Maryland, the first colonial capital of Maryland, founded in 1634.</p>



<p>We compared their DNA to millions of consented 23andMe research participants. We found that more than 1.3 million 23andMe research participants share DNA with at least one of the St. Mary&#8217;s individuals.&nbsp;</p>



<p>The strongest genetic connections were to participants with ancestry from western England and Wales, consistent with the likely origins of many of the colony&#8217;s earliest residents. Several individuals also showed strong connections to Ireland, lending weight to historical accounts of Irish settlers among the founding colonists.</p>



<p>Among the burials at St. Mary&#8217;s City&#8217;s Chapel Field cemetery was a man whose identity had been lost to time. By analyzing his skeletal remains, we knew roughly his age at death, date of death, and where he was born, but his name was lost. That is, until we used genetic data to find him.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-story-participants-helped-solve">The Story Participants Helped Solve</h2>



<p>This individual, known as Burial 56, left DNA that allowed us to search across our database for genetic relatives living today. When we compared his DNA to thousands of consented research participants, several thousand shared genetic connections with him. We then looked at the family trees of two 23andMe research participants with the strongest genetic links and found the same name appearing in both: Leonard Greene.</p>



<p>Leonard&#8217;s story aligned with what we knew about Burial 56. He was the son of Thomas Greene, Maryland&#8217;s second governor, and Anne Cox—who were both reidentified as burials in the Chapel Field cemetery through their genetic connection to Leonard. This marked the first time ancient DNA has been used to identify unknown historical individuals without any prior hypothesis about who they might be.</p>



<p>Today, Leonard Greene is one of 29 colonists whose stories you can now explore through Historical Matches.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-path-from-maryland-to-kentucky">The Path from Maryland to Kentucky</h2>



<p>When researchers looked at who shares DNA with the St. Mary&#8217;s colonists today, they also found that 23andMe participants with roots in Kentucky showed strong genetic connections with these early Maryland settlers.</p>



<p>This pattern has a historical explanation. After the Revolutionary War, many Maryland Catholic families faced economic hardship and mounting religious pressure. Between roughly 1780 and 1820, many migrated to Kentucky, where they established communities in what are now Nelson and Washington counties. Nearly four centuries after their ancestors first set foot at St. Mary&#8217;s City, the genetic echo of that migration is still visible in your DNA.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="924" height="471" src="https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/StMarysManuscript-CurrentBiology-Revision2b-Figure4.png" alt="" class="wp-image-35428" srcset="https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/StMarysManuscript-CurrentBiology-Revision2b-Figure4.png 924w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/StMarysManuscript-CurrentBiology-Revision2b-Figure4-300x153.png 300w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/StMarysManuscript-CurrentBiology-Revision2b-Figure4-768x391.png 768w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/StMarysManuscript-CurrentBiology-Revision2b-Figure4-880x449.png 880w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 924px) 100vw, 924px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption"><em>A map showing the genetic connections to the St. Mary’s individuals among research participants in the U.S. with enrichment in Maryland and Kentucky</em>.</figcaption></figure>



<p>If your family has deep Kentucky roots, you might find you have connections to these new Historical Matches.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-learn-more">Learn More</h2>



<p>The colonists at St. Mary&#8217;s City came from Great Britain and Ireland, seeking religious freedom and opportunity in a new world. Their names are being restored. Their stories are being recovered. And now, <a href="https://www.23andme.com/membership/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">23andMe+ Premium</a>™ members can explore whether they share a genetic connection to the founding colonists of St. Mary&#8217;s City, and hundreds of other historical individuals, through the Historical Matches feature.</p>


Sr. Scientist I, Population Genetics R&D

Éadaoin Harney

New Historical Matches Could Connect You to America’s Founding Colonists


<figure class="wp-block-table"><table class="has-fixed-layout" style="border:1px solid #000; border-collapse:collapse;"><tbody><tr><td>
<h2>Key Takeaways</h2>
<ul><li>Through 23andMe&#8217;s Historical Matches<sup>SM</sup> feature, 23andMe+ Premium™ members can now find out if their DNA connects them to Beachy Head Woman, a Roman-era woman whose remains were discovered on the south coast of England in the 1950s.</li>
<li>Originally incorrectly identified as one of the earliest individuals of African descent in Roman Britain, a 2026 study using high-quality ancient DNA showed that her ancestry was consistent with local British and Northern European populations.</li>
<li>Ancient DNA also predicted that Beachy Head Woman likely had blue eyes, light hair and intermediate skin pigmentation, informing a new facial reconstruction of her appearance.</li></ul>
</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>



<p>Summer is on the way, and we’d be lying if we said heading to the beach wasn’t at the top of our minds when preparing this month’s <a href="https://blog.23andme.com/articles/23andmes-historic-matches" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Historical Matches</a><sup>SM</sup> update. So without further ado, we’d like to tell you the story of an aptly named Roman era woman: Beachy Head Woman. </p>



<p>She&#8217;s named after Beachy Head, a stretch of coastline on the south coast of England, and she lived during the Roman occupation of Britain. While her story doesn&#8217;t actually have anything to do with the beach (the site derives its name from the Old French for &#8216;beautiful headland&#8217;) it does involve a decade of conflicting scientific interpretations and a fascinating mystery that took until 2026 to resolve.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-skeleton-without-a-story">A Skeleton Without a Story</h2>



<p>In 2012, researchers sorting through the archaeological collections in the south of England made an unexpected find: a skeleton in a storage box in the basement of Eastbourne’s Town Hall. The only information included with the box was a label reading &#8220;Beachy Head, 1959.&#8221;</p>



<p>So the team embarked on a series of archaeological and biomolecular analyses to learn about the identity of the skeleton inside. Radiocarbon dating indicated that the individual lived between 129 and 311 CE, during the Roman occupation of Britain. An analysis of the skeleton’s morphology revealed that it likely belonged to an adult woman, estimated to be between 18 and 25 years old at the time of her death.</p>



<p>Through an initial craniofacial analysis in 2013, researchers concluded that her skull had features consistent with sub-Saharan African ancestry. This preliminary interpretation spread fast. She was described in news outlets, books and educational materials as one of the earliest individuals of African descent identified in Roman Britain, and she entered public consciousness under the name “Beachy Head Woman”.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-headline-ran-ahead-of-the-evidence">The Headline Ran Ahead of the Evidence</h2>



<p>The strontium and oxygen isotope analysis carried out around the same time told a different story. Values from her tooth enamel were consistent with a childhood spent on the south coast of Britain, not overseas. Then, in 2017, a preliminary ancient DNA study generated tentative evidence of east Mediterranean ancestry, possibly Cyprus, but the dataset was too limited to settle the question.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Despite never being formally published, these findings circulated in the media regardless. For nearly a decade, who Beachy Head Woman really was remained an unresolved mystery.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-local-woman-all-along">A Local Woman All Along</h2>



<p>In early 2026, researchers at London’s Natural History Museum finally helped to resolve this question. They <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0305440325002948?via%3Dihub" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">published</a> genome-wide ancient DNA data from Beachy Head Woman’s remains for the first time.<br><br>They showed that her ancestry was similar to local British and Northern European populations, with no detectable evidence of sub-Saharan African ancestry. Her mitochondrial haplogroup, K1a26, is also associated with Northern European and British populations and has been identified in individuals from rural Iron Age Britain.&nbsp;</p>



<p>They even used her DNA to try to predict what she may have looked like, concluding that she likely had blue eyes, light hair and intermediate skin pigmentation — a significant departure from the original facial reconstruction. A new reconstruction was produced in light of the DNA results.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="627" src="https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/facial-depiction-Beachy-Head-Woman-1024x627.png" alt="" class="wp-image-35401" srcset="https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/facial-depiction-Beachy-Head-Woman-1024x627.png 1024w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/facial-depiction-Beachy-Head-Woman-300x184.png 300w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/facial-depiction-Beachy-Head-Woman-768x470.png 768w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/facial-depiction-Beachy-Head-Woman-880x539.png 880w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/facial-depiction-Beachy-Head-Woman-1180x723.png 1180w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption"><em>3D scan of physical model (left) and second iteration (right) of the facial depiction of Beachy Head Woman Courtesy of Face Lab at Liverpool John Moores University</em></figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-her-reassessment-reveals">What Her Reassessment Reveals</h2>



<p>Beachy Head Woman&#8217;s story has implications beyond her own origins. The craniofacial analysis that initially identified her as being of sub-Saharan African ancestry used methods that have since come under substantial scrutiny. The field of bioanthropology, like all scientific fields, is always evolving and has moved away from these kinds of ancestry estimation in recent years, in part because human skeletons are incredibly diverse; people with the same ancestry can have bone structures that look completely different from one another, making hard-and-fast classifications unreliable. The case of Beachy Head Woman is a concrete illustration of what can go wrong when those methods are applied without corroborating evidence.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-learn-more">Learn More</h2>



<p>Want to see if you share a genetic connection to Beachy Head Woman, or with hundreds of other historical individuals? The Historical Matches feature is available to <a href="https://www.23andme.com/membership/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">23andMe+ Premium</a>™ members.</p>



<p></p>


New Historical Matches Could Connect You to Britain’s Beachy Head Woman


<figure class="wp-block-table"><table class="has-fixed-layout" style="border:1px solid #000; border-collapse:collapse;"><tbody><tr><td>
<h2>Key Takeaways</h2>
<ul><li>Through 23andMe’s Historical Matches<sup>SM</sup> feature, 23andMe+ Premium™ members can now compare their DNA against 35 newly sequenced individuals from a 2026 study.</li>
<li>Genomic sequencing of 2nd-4th century CE individuals in Poland aligns with the proposed roots of the Goths in Scandinavia while revealing a surprisingly cosmopolitan community that integrated diverse Mediterranean and Baltic lineages.</li>
<li>Genetic analysis suggests Gothic burial traditions may have been based on social bonds and community ties rather than direct family relationships, offering a rare look at Late Iron Age social structures.</li></ul>
</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>



<p>World Goth Day, celebrated every May 22nd, is typically a chance for fans of darkwave music, dramatic eyeliner and Victorian-inspired fashion to celebrate a subculture that has been going strong since the 1980s. This year, we&#8217;re marking the occasion with a slightly different kind of Goth story — one that predates the black lipstick by about 1,800 years.</p>



<p>This May, 23andMe is adding 35 individuals from a 2026 study to our <a href="https://blog.23andme.com/articles/23andmes-historic-matches" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Historical Matches</a><sup>SM</sup> feature. These are not your weekend-festival Goths. These are <em>the</em> Goths, the actual Germanic people whose migrations and conflicts helped shape the final centuries of the Roman Empire.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-not-the-same-goths-but-just-as-interesting">Not the Same Goths (But Just as Interesting)</h2>



<p>The modern goth subculture takes its name from the ancient Goths, though the connection is mostly aesthetic. The real Goths were a Germanic people who likely originated in Scandinavia and, over several centuries, migrated south through the Baltic region, eventually establishing themselves across a vast stretch of central and eastern Europe. By the 2nd century CE, Gothic communities occupied a dynamic frontier zone at the edge of the Roman Empire, trading with merchants to the south, maintaining ties with Baltic peoples to the north and absorbing influences from across an enormous geographic range.</p>



<p>Far from the brooding loners of pop culture imagination, the ancient Goths appear to have been remarkably cosmopolitan.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-community-at-the-edge-of-the-roman-world">A Community at the Edge of the Roman World</h2>



<p>The individuals we added to Historical Matches this month were buried at a cluster of cemeteries in the Hrubieszów Basin of eastern Poland, belonging to what archaeologists call the Mas&#322;om&#281;cz group, a well-documented Gothic community of the Late Iron Age. The site was an ideal candidate for ancient DNA analysis in part because an unusually high proportion of its burials were inhumations (intact body burials rather than cremations), providing enough preserved skeletal material for genome-wide sequencing.</p>



<p>The study, published in <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41606683/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>Genome Biology</em></a> earlier this year, analyzed 43 individuals buried across several of these cemeteries, dating from approximately the late 2nd to the mid-4th century CE. Of these individuals, 35 had high-quality DNA sequences, and they have now been added to the Historical Matches feature.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="681" src="https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/reconstructed-gothic-longhouse-1024x681.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-35331" srcset="https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/reconstructed-gothic-longhouse-1024x681.jpeg 1024w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/reconstructed-gothic-longhouse-300x199.jpeg 300w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/reconstructed-gothic-longhouse-768x511.jpeg 768w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/reconstructed-gothic-longhouse-880x585.jpeg 880w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/reconstructed-gothic-longhouse-1180x785.jpeg 1180w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Gothic long house in Mas&#322;om&#281;cz, designed and made based on the results of archaeological research in Hrubieszów-Podgórze. <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rekonstrukcja_gockiego_d%C5%82ugiego_domu_w_Mas%C5%82om%C4%99czu.JPG" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">MSWG</a>, <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-dna-cosmopolitan-from-the-start">The DNA: Cosmopolitan from the Start</h2>



<p>The genetic results confirmed that the community&#8217;s ancestry was primarily derived from a Scandinavian-like source population, consistent with the Goths&#8217; proposed northern origins. But that&#8217;s where any expectation of uniformity ends.</p>



<p>A striking proportion of individuals carried genetic signatures characteristic of populations from the eastern Baltic, the Balkans and the eastern Mediterranean, and there were more than 30 distinct mitochondrial haplogroups represented among this small group of individuals. This shows that the community was actively absorbing outsiders from across a wide geographic range.</p>



<p>One individual stood out above all. Rather than the Scandinavian ancestry typical of his community, roughly half of his DNA traced to populations associated with the Iberian Peninsula, about a third to populations from Imperial Roman Italy and the remainder to the Carpathian Basin of present-day Hungary and Slovakia, with no detectable Scandinavian ancestry at all. That an individual with such distinctly southern European roots appears among the very earliest burials at the site is a remarkable testament to just how cosmopolitan this Gothic community was from its very beginnings.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-social-bonds-over-family-ties">Social Bonds Over Family Ties</h2>



<p>Perhaps the most unexpected finding concerned how individuals were buried. Despite sharing graves, co-buried individuals showed no evidence of close kinship with one another. This finding suggests that in this community, burial groupings may have reflected social bonds rather than family relationships. It&#8217;s a rare glimpse into how Gothic social life may have been organized beyond the household.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-learn-more">Learn More</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.23andme.com/membership/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">23andMe+ Premium</a>™ members can explore whether they share a genetic link to these ancient Goths, and hundreds of other historical individuals, through the Historical Matches feature.</p>



<p></p>


New Historical Matches Could Connect You to the Original Goths


<figure class="wp-block-table"><table class="has-fixed-layout" style="border:1px solid #000; border-collapse:collapse;"><tbody><tr><td>
<h2>Key Takeaways</h2>
<ul><li>23andMe has expanded its Ancestry Composition feature to include 31 new Genetic Groups across Vietnam, from the Mekong Delta to the Red River Delta.</li>
<li>These Vietnamese Genetic Groups use shared DNA patterns to pinpoint regional ancestry, going beyond a broad &#8220;Vietnamese&#8221; label to reflect the deep-rooted family histories shaped by the country&#8217;s distinct landscapes and migration routes.</li>
<li>23andMe also offers reports on conditions particularly relevant to people of Asian descent, including insights into genetic variants that influence hearing loss, drug metabolism and alcohol flush reaction.</li></ul>
</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>



<p>May is <a href="https://asianpacificheritage.gov/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month</a>, a time to celebrate the histories, cultures and contributions of communities whose roots span the Pacific. To mark the occasion, 23andMe is adding 31 new Vietnamese Genetic Groups to its Ancestry Composition feature, offering members with Vietnamese heritage their most detailed view yet of where in Vietnam their ancestors likely came from.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-closer-look-at-vietnamese-ancestry">A Closer Look at Vietnamese Ancestry</h2>



<p>Vietnam&#8217;s geography has long shaped its people. The country stretches more than 1,000 miles along the eastern edge of Southeast Asia, threading through highlands, river valleys and two great deltas. For centuries, those landscapes have channeled migration, trade and family ties, and they may show up in your DNA, too.</p>



<p>Genetic Groups are clusters of people who share more recent DNA with one another than with the broader population, often because their families lived in the same region for many generations. By analyzing patterns of shared DNA across thousands of 23andMe members of Vietnamese descent, our clustering algorithm identifies regional signatures finer than a single &#8220;Vietnamese&#8221; label can capture. If you have Vietnamese roots, you may now see groups anywhere from the Mekong Delta in the south to the Red River Delta in the north. These groups reflect the long shared history of families and communities, not modern political boundaries.</p>



<p>Most members with Vietnamese ancestry will receive at least one of these Genetic Groups, and <a href="https://www.23andme.com/membership/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">23andMe+ Premium</a>™ members also get the ability to see groups they may have more distant matches to, opening a wider view of regional connections.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="628" height="1024" src="https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/vietnam-628x1024.png" alt="" class="wp-image-35303" style="width:375px;height:auto" srcset="https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/vietnam-628x1024.png 628w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/vietnam-184x300.png 184w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/vietnam-768x1253.png 768w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/vietnam-540x880.png 540w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/vietnam-723x1180.png 723w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/vietnam-scaled.png 1569w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 628px) 100vw, 628px" /></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-growing-picture-of-asia">A Growing Picture of Asia</h2>



<p>Vietnam joins a growing set of Asian representation in 23andMe&#8217;s Ancestry Composition. In recent years, 23andMe has added Genetic Groups in the <a href="https://blog.23andme.com/articles/discover-new-filipino-genetic-groups-with-23andme" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Philippines</a>, <a href="https://blog.23andme.com/articles/new-genetic-groups-in-china-korea-mongolia" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">China, Korea and Mongolia</a>, <a href="https://blog.23andme.com/articles/new-genetic-groups-for-japan-and-scandinavia" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Japan</a> and <a href="https://blog.23andme.com/articles/genetic-groups-south-asia" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">South Asia</a>. </p>



<p>More groups across Southeast Asia and the Pacific are on the way.&nbsp;</p>



<p>There are also connections throughout Asia in the <a href="https://blog.23andme.com/articles/23andmes-historic-matches" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Historical Matches</a><sup>SM</sup> feature, which compares your DNA to people who lived hundreds or even thousands of years ago. Recent additions include ancient individuals from <a href="https://blog.23andme.com/articles/new-historical-matches-in-southwest-china" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">southwest China</a> and <a href="https://blog.23andme.com/articles/historical-matches-ancient-china" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ancient China</a>, a <a href="https://blog.23andme.com/articles/new-historical-matches-could-link-you-to-this-6th-century-cross-border-couple" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">6th-century cross-border couple</a> and <a href="https://blog.23andme.com/articles/new-historical-matches-the-mysterious-skeletons-of-roopkund-lake" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">the mysterious skeletons of Roopkund Lake</a> in the Himalayas. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-connecting-to-your-health-journey">Connecting to Your Health Journey</h2>



<p>Your ancestry is one part of the picture. 23andMe also offers reports on many health conditions relevant to people of Asian heritage, such as coronary artery disease, diabetes and high blood pressure. In addition, several 23andMe health reports examine specific genetic variants that are more common in certain Asian populations.</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>The <a href="https://blog.23andme.com/articles/dfnb1" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> Nonsyndromic Hearing Loss and Deafness, DFNB1 (GJB2-Related) Carrier Status report</a>* looks at variants in the <em>GJB2</em> gene that can cause one of the most common inherited forms of hearing loss. Up to 1 in 4 people of East or Southeast Asian descent are carriers for this condition, and this report includes variants that are more common for them as well as those of South Asian descent.</li>



<li>The <a href="https://www.23andme.com/topics/pharmacogenetics/cyp2c19/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CYP2C19 Drug Metabolism report</a>** can tell you about genetic variants that can affect how your body processes certain medications for heart disease, depression, acid reflux, and other conditions. Some of these variants are more common in people of East Asian descent than in other populations. </li>



<li>The <a href="https://www.23andme.com/topics/wellness/alcohol-flush-reaction/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Alcohol Flush Reaction report</a> examines a variant in the <em>ALDH2</em> gene that&#8217;s common across East Asia and affects how the body breaks down a toxic byproduct of alcohol.</li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-expanding-the-map-of-asian-heritage-and-health">Expanding the Map of Asian Heritage and Health</h2>



<p>The future of genetics depends on the diversity of stories powering it. This Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, explore your Genetic Groups (new and old), Historical Matches and personalized reports, and see what your heritage reveals. 23andMe members who choose to participate help build a product that reflects the full breadth of the human experience. Already a 23andMe member? <a href="https://you.23andme.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Sign in</a> to discover your new regional connections, and celebrate your unique story.</p>



<p><em>* The 23andMe PGS test uses qualitative genotyping to detect select clinically relevant variants in the genomic DNA of adults for the purpose of reporting carrier status and reporting and interpreting genetic health risks. The relevance of each report may vary based on ethnicity. Our carrier status reports can be used to determine carrier status, but cannot determine if you have two copies of any genetic variant. These carrier reports are not intended to tell you anything about your risk for developing a disease in the future or anything about the health of your fetus, or your newborn child&#8217;s risk of developing a particular disease later in life. For certain conditions, we provide a single report that includes information on both carrier status and genetic health risk. The Nonsyndromic Hearing Loss and Deafness, DFNB1 (GJB2-Related) carrier status report is indicated for the detection of eight variants in the GJB2 gene. The report can tell you if you have two copies of some tested variants, and if you are at risk of having hearing loss related to DFNB1, but does not describe your overall risk of having DFNB1-related hearing loss. This test is relevant for people of many, but not all, ethnicities.</em></p>



<p><em>** 23andMe PGS Pharmacogenetics reports: The 23andMe test uses qualitative genotyping to detect 3 variants in the CYP2C19 gene in the genomic DNA of adults from saliva for the purpose of reporting and interpreting information about the processing of certain therapeutics to inform discussions with a healthcare professional. It does not describe if a person will or will not respond to a particular therapeutic and does not describe the association between detected variants and any specific therapeutic. Our CYP2C19 Pharmacogenetics report provides certain information about variants associated with metabolism of some therapeutics and provides interpretive drug information regarding the potential effect of citalopram and clopidogrel therapy. Results for certain CYP2C19 results should be confirmed by an independent genetic test prescribed by your own healthcare provider before taking any medical action. Warning: Test information should not be used to start, stop, or change any course of treatment and does not test for all possible variants that may affect metabolism or protein function. The PGS test is not a substitute for visits to a healthcare professional. Making changes to your current regimen can lead to harmful side effects or reduced intended benefits of your medication, therefore consult with your healthcare professional before taking any medical action. For important information and limitations regarding Pharmacogenetics reports, visit </em><a href="http://23andme.com/test-info/pharmacogenetics/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>23andme.com/test-info/pharmacogenetics/</em></a></p>



<p></p>


Sr. Manager, Product Science

Alisa Lehman

Celebrating AANHPI Heritage Month With New Vietnamese Genetic Groups


<p><em><br>The Maryland Dove docked at Historic St. Mary’s City, Maryland. This ship is a reconstruction of the Dove, a 17th-century trading vessel that, alongside the passenger ship the Ark, carried colonists to found Maryland in 1634.<strong> </strong>Image credit: Jenn Dorsey, Historic St. Mary&#8217;s City</em>.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-table"><table class="has-fixed-layout" style="border:1px solid #000; border-collapse:collapse;"><tbody><tr><td>
<h2>Key Takeaways</h2>
<ul><li>By analyzing the DNA of 49 individuals buried in St. Mary’s City, Maryland 300–400 years ago, scientists were able to link 1.3 million 23andMe participants to some of the individuals from Maryland&#8217;s first capital.</li>
<li>For the first time, ancient DNA combined with modern genealogy was used to propose the identities of unknown historical figures, including Maryland’s second governor, Thomas Greene.</li>
<li>The study showed the genetic impact of a documented historical migration, showing a clear genetic link between the original 17th-century Maryland settlers and modern-day populations in Kentucky.</li></ul>
</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>



<p>Nearly four centuries ago, a small group of English and Irish settlers stepped ashore on the southern tip of Maryland and founded a colony they called St. Mary&#8217;s City. Many came seeking religious freedom, others arrived as indentured servants. Over the years, a significant number of these early colonists were buried at the site of the 17th-century Brick Chapel, but their names have since been lost to time.</p>



<p>Now, a new study published in <em><a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(26)00516-6" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Current Biology</a></em> and co-led by researchers at the 23andMe Research Institute, Harvard Medical School, and the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History is helping restore their stories. With the support of Historic St. Mary&#8217;s City, the researchers analyzed the genomes of 49 individuals buried in St. Mary&#8217;s City&#8217;s Chapel Field. By comparing their DNA to more than 11.5 million consenting 23andMe research participants, the team traced where these colonists came from, mapped how their descendants spread across America, and, for the first time, proposed possible identities for three previously unknown individuals, including the colony&#8217;s second governor.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Genetic legacy of St. Mary&#039;s City / Curr. Biol., May 14, 2026 (Vol. 36, Issue 11)" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/fRbf3AkLXtY?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
</div></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-short-lived-colonial-capital">A short lived colonial capital</h2>



<p>Established in 1634, St. Mary&#8217;s City was the founding English settlement in the colony of Maryland. It was envisioned by George Calvert, the first Baron Baltimore, as both an expansion of the King&#8217;s realm and a place of religious freedom, particularly for persecuted Catholics. The first settlers departed from the Isle of Wight aboard two ships, the <em>Ark </em>and the <em>Dove </em>in late 1633, and arrived at Maryland&#8217;s southern shore the following year.</p>



<p>Though its role as a capital city was short-lived (the seat of government moved to present-day Annapolis in 1695), St. Mary&#8217;s City left a lasting mark on American history. The Chapel Field cemetery, located at the site of the colony&#8217;s Brick Chapel, served as the primary burial ground for nearly a century. Despite existing written records and the ability of many present-day Americans to trace their ancestry to the historic city, many gaps remain in our knowledge of this founding population.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="733" src="https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/brick_chapel_reconstruction-1024x733.png" alt="" class="wp-image-35277" srcset="https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/brick_chapel_reconstruction-1024x733.png 1024w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/brick_chapel_reconstruction-300x215.png 300w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/brick_chapel_reconstruction-768x550.png 768w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/brick_chapel_reconstruction-880x630.png 880w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/brick_chapel_reconstruction-1180x844.png 1180w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/brick_chapel_reconstruction.png 1280w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption"><em>2010 image of the exterior of the reconstructed 1667 Brick Chapel at Historic St. Mary&#8217;s City. Image credit: Donald Winter, Historic St. Mary&#8217;s City</em></figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ancient-dna-meets-the-world-s-largest-genetics-database">Ancient DNA meets the world&#8217;s largest genetics database</h2>



<p>Researchers extracted ancient DNA from the bones of individuals buried at the site, then used an identity-by-descent approach to find genetic matches among living 23andMe customers who consented to research.</p>



<p>More than 1.3 million consented research participants share DNA with one or more of the St. Mary&#8217;s individuals. DNA sharing occurred at particularly high rates among participants with ancestry from western England and Wales. Several individuals in the study showed stronger genetic connections to Ireland, lending weight to accounts of Irish settlers among the earliest colonists.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tracking-a-documented-migration-in-dna">Tracking a documented migration in DNA</h2>



<p>One of the study&#8217;s most compelling findings is the detection of a clear genetic signal corresponding to a migration previously known only from historical records. Following the Revolutionary War, many Catholic families from St. Mary&#8217;s County faced economic hardship and growing religious discrimination. This prompted a wave of emigration to Kentucky primarily between 1780 and 1820. These settlers established themselves mainly in what are now Nelson and Washington counties.&nbsp;</p>



<p>When the research team mapped which 23andMe participants shared the closest genetic connections to the St. Mary&#8217;s individuals, they found enrichment around Louisville, Kentucky, highlighting the power of this approach.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-expanding-the-calvert-family-tree">Expanding the Calvert family tree</h2>



<p>Among the 49 individuals studied, three of the burials were already known: Philip Calvert, the colony&#8217;s fifth governor, his first wife Anne Wolseley Calvert, and an infant, who was confirmed using DNA to be Philip Calvert&#8217;s son, likely from his second marriage. All three were buried in unusual lead coffins beneath the chapel floor.&nbsp;</p>



<p>By comparing their DNA to the remaining individuals in the study, the researchers identified three additional members of the extended Calvert family. The team also identified five other family groupings among the burials, including one that spanned three generations. Given the extraordinarily high mortality rates of the early colonial period, finding a multigenerational family within a single cemetery was a notable finding.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-new-approach-to-identifying-the-nameless-dead">A new approach to identifying the nameless dead</h2>



<p>Perhaps the most novel aspect of the study is what it demonstrates about using wide-ranging disciplines—from genetics and genealogy to archaeology, history, and osteology—to propose identities for otherwise unknown burials.</p>



<p>The study team invited consented 23andMe research participants who shared the strongest genetic connections to the St. Mary&#8217;s burials to contribute details from their own family trees. Researchers then searched for names that appeared across multiple genealogies and combined those findings with other anthropological evidence. Focusing on three closely related individuals, they found overlaps pointing to a single colonial family: Governor Thomas Greene, the second governor of the Maryland colony, his first wife Anne, and their son Leonard. This marks the first time ancient DNA has been used to propose identities for unknown historical individuals without any prior knowledge of who they might be, a significant milestone for the field.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-research-built-with-community">Research built with community</h2>



<p>Cutting-edge science wasn&#8217;t the only key to the success of this study. The early Maryland descendant community, including those who trace their lineage to the original <em>Ark</em> and <em>Dove</em> voyage, provided active support of the project.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="683" height="1024" src="https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/reenactor_woman_sewing_small-683x1024.png" alt="" class="wp-image-35280" style="width:257px;height:auto" srcset="https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/reenactor_woman_sewing_small-683x1024.png 683w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/reenactor_woman_sewing_small-200x300.png 200w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/reenactor_woman_sewing_small-768x1152.png 768w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/reenactor_woman_sewing_small-587x880.png 587w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/reenactor_woman_sewing_small-787x1180.png 787w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/reenactor_woman_sewing_small.png 1101w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption"><em>St. Mary’s City historical interpreter portraying a seamstress. Image credit: Chip Clark, Smithsonian institution</em></figcaption></figure>



<p>The study also depended on the millions of 23andMe members who chose to participate in research. Participants who reported genealogical ties to 17th-century St. Mary&#8217;s City were significantly more likely to share DNA with the colonial individuals than those who did not, underscoring the real-world meaning of those genetic connections.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-this-means-for-the-future-of-ancient-dna-research">What this means for the future of ancient DNA research</h2>



<p>The St. Mary&#8217;s City study represents something genuinely new: a framework that combines ancient DNA, archaeology, genealogical records, and a large modern genetics database to answer questions that written history could not resolve alone. The approach, particularly the method for proposing identities for unknown individuals, opens a door to similar work at countless other historical sites.</p>



<p>As the United States approaches its 250th anniversary, this research underscores the enduring connections between the nation&#8217;s earliest European settlers and millions of living Americans.</p>


Ancient DNA and 23andMe Are Rewriting the Story of Some of America’s Earliest Colonists


<p>Every year on April 25th, the world observes World Malaria Day to highlight the ongoing effort to control and eliminate this devastating disease. This month, we are highlighting a study that searched for cases of ancient malaria infections across the globe to learn about its history and spread.</p>



<p>While most ancient DNA studies focus on the human DNA of the individuals whose remains were sampled, it is also possible to learn about the diseases these individuals carried by searching for pathogen DNA in their remains.</p>



<p>These kinds of studies have enabled researchers to investigate the origins and spread of ancient diseases that were otherwise nearly impossible to study. This is because many ancient diseases, including malaria, don’t leave clear physical evidence on skeletal remains. Furthermore, historical records of ancient epidemics often lack the specificity needed to identify exactly which diseases were present or where they originated.</p>



<p><a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38867050/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">In 2024</a>, a team of researchers looked at ancient DNA to search for cases of malaria among more than 10,000 individuals. In this month’s update to the <a href="https://blog.23andme.com/articles/23andmes-historic-matches" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Historical Matches</a><sup>SM</sup> feature, we are highlighting the stories of individuals buried at three ancient sites where malaria was detected. Each of their stories provides important new insights into the history of this ancient disease.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-spreading-malaria-along-european-military-lines">Spreading Malaria Along European Military Lines</h2>



<p>In Europe, the cemetery of St. Rombout’s in Mechelen, Belgium, offers a window into the health of a continent at war. Sitting next to one of the world’s first permanent military hospitals, this site served as a burial ground for both local townspeople and foreign soldiers from the 12th to the 18th centuries.</p>



<p>While local residents, who were buried at this site before the hospital was established, showed fewer signs of infection, later individuals—thought to be soldiers who had traveled from the Mediterranean—were often found carrying multiple strains of malaria simultaneously. These findings highlight how the movement of armies turned European cities into crossroads for infectious disease.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-carrying-malaria-to-the-himalayan-peaks">Carrying Malaria to the Himalayan Peaks</h2>



<p>The high-altitude site of Chokhopani sits 2,800 meters above sea level in the Nepalese Himalayas. This environment is far too cold and dry for the <em>Anopheles</em> mosquitoes that transmit malaria to survive. Yet, genomic analysis of an individual buried within one of the site’s cliffside tombs nearly 3,000 years ago revealed the presence of <em>Plasmodium falciparum</em>, the most virulent form of the malaria parasite.</p>



<p>Finding a tropical disease in a mountain environment provides clear evidence of human mobility. It tells us that this ancient individual had likely traveled to warmer, lower-altitude regions—possibly for trade—and carried the infection back to this highland site.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tracking-the-arrival-of-malaria-in-the-americas">Tracking the Arrival of Malaria in the Americas</h2>



<p>A central debate among disease researchers is whether malaria existed in the Americas prior to European contact or if it was brought there by European colonizers. The study of individuals from the site of Laguna de los Cóndores in Peru provides a pretty clear answer.</p>



<p>Researchers at the site discovered an individual with exclusively Indigenous American ancestry who lived during the period of initial European contact and was infected with <em>Plasmodium vivax </em>(a more widespread form of the malaria parasite). Crucially, the DNA of the parasite was most similar to historical European strains rather than those found elsewhere. This finding suggests that European colonizers acted as the primary vector for introducing these specific malaria strains to the Indigenous populations of the Andes.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-learn-more">Learn More</h2>



<p>Want to see if you share a genetic connection with any of the ancient malaria-infected individuals highlighted in this study—or with hundreds of other historical individuals? The Historical Matches feature is available to <a href="https://www.23andme.com/membership/">23and</a><a href="https://www.23andme.com/membership/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">M</a><a href="https://www.23andme.com/membership/">e+ Premium</a>™ members.</p>



<p></p>


New Historical Matches Could Connect You to the Hidden History of Malaria


<p>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 <strong>144 new Genetic Groups</strong> across the Philippines and neighboring regions, providing the most detailed breakdown of Filipino ancestry available.</p>



<p>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 <a href="https://customercare.23andme.com/hc/en-us/articles/218392668-Upgrading-to-23andMe-s-Newest-Chip-Version" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">latest genotyping chip</a>, will now see matches to one or more of these new Genetic Groups. And <a href="https://www.23andme.com/membership/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">23andMe+ Premium</a>™ members will also be able to see any <a href="https://blog.23andme.com/articles/discover-distant-genetic-groups-with-23andme-premium" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">distant Genetic Group</a> connections they may have to these regions.&nbsp;</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-large is-style-default"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1008" height="1024" src="/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/philippines-genetic-groups-1008x1024.png" alt="" class="wp-image-35041" srcset="https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/philippines-genetic-groups-1008x1024.png 1008w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/philippines-genetic-groups-295x300.png 295w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/philippines-genetic-groups-768x780.png 768w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/philippines-genetic-groups-867x880.png 867w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/philippines-genetic-groups-1162x1180.png 1162w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1008px) 100vw, 1008px" /></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-shared-heritage">A Shared Heritage</h2>



<p>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 <a href="https://blog.23andme.com/articles/what-is-austronesian-ancestry" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Austronesian</a> ancestry in this region.&nbsp;</p>



<p>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.&nbsp;</p>



<p>This movement didn&#8217;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.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-check-out-your-results">Check out your results</h2>



<p>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&#8217;t wait for you to see it. <a href="https://auth.23andme.com/login/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Log in</a> to explore your updated results in your Ancestry Composition report today.</p>


Beyond the Archipelago: Explore the Most Detailed Filipino Ancestry Breakdown with 23andMe





<p>High on a vertical cliff face on the Yun-Gui Plateau of southwest China, you can find the entrance to Pingtang Cave. For centuries, this remote site held a somber secret: the remains of dozens of individuals scattered within its deepest, oxygen-poor reaches.</p>



<p>Now, thanks to a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2025.106459" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">new study</a> published in the <em>Journal of Archaeological Science</em> earlier this year, the stories of these individuals are coming to light. This month, 23andMe is adding four individuals from this cliff-side site to our <a href="https://blog.23andme.com/articles/23andmes-historic-matches" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Historical Matches</a><sup>SM</sup> feature.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-landscape-in-transition">A Landscape in Transition</h2>



<p>During the 14th century, the Yun-Gui Plateau was a region of immense cultural and political transformation. As the Ming Dynasty sought to consolidate power and expand its borders into the southwest, the area became a frontier of conflict. The rugged karst landscape, characterized by its towering limestone cliffs and deep river valleys, served as both a strategic stronghold for the military and a vital sanctuary for local communities caught in the crossfire of imperial expansion.</p>



<p>Historically known for its incredible ethnolinguistic diversity, the plateau was home to various indigenous groups who had inhabited these mountains for millennia. The transition between the Late Yuan and Early Ming periods in the 14th century brought an influx of new people and upheavals in local government, creating a complex social tapestry. For the families found in Pingtang Cave, these remote, high-altitude caverns were not just geological features—they were essential places of refuge during a time of profound uncertainty.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-refuge-not-a-cemetery">A Refuge, Not a Cemetery</h2>



<p>When researchers first investigated Pingtang Cave, they quickly realized this was no ordinary burial ground. Unlike traditional sites of the era, there were no coffins, no grave goods, and no signs of formal interment. Instead, the skeletons were found in the deepest recesses of the cave, far from the light of the entrance.</p>



<p>While most of the group appeared to be healthy prior to entering the cave, the genetic analysis revealed that one individual was suffering from paratyphoid fever, caused by the bacterium <em>Salmonella enterica</em>. Her genome also revealed that her parents were likely closely related, perhaps as closely as second cousins, a finding that provides unique insight into the social and mating structures of isolated plateau communities during this era.</p>



<p>The lack of physical trauma or signs of violence ruled out a massacre, while the absence of a widespread plague suggested something else entirely. Researchers believe these families fled to the cave to escape external conflict, perhaps the unrest of the Ming Dynasty’s expansion into the region, only to succumb to the low oxygen of the cave&#8217;s deepest chambers.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-families-of-pingtang-cave">The Families of Pingtang Cave</h2>



<p>The genetic data reveals that those who fled to the cave were not strangers; they were a tightly-knit community of relatives. Most of these individuals shared the same maternal lineage (haplogroup M7b1a1), suggesting that the group was a multi-generational family, who were connected through a shared maternal lineage.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-window-into-heritage">A Window into Heritage</h2>



<p>All of the members of this group shared a similar ancestral profile, characterized by a mixture of ancient northern and southern East Asian ancestry. This genetic signature persists today in the present-day inhabitants of southwest China, bridging the gap between the people living during the transition into the Ming Dynasty and the modern world.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-learn-more">Learn More</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.23andme.com/membership/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">23andMe+ Premium</a>™ members can now explore whether they share a genetic link to these ancient Chinese individuals, and hundreds of others, through the Historical Matches feature.</p>


New Historical Matches Could Connect You to a 600 Year Old Mystery in Southwest China




<figure class="wp-block-table"><table class="has-fixed-layout" style="border:1px solid #000;border-collapse:collapse"><tbody><tr><td>
<h2>Key Takeaways</h2>
<ul><li>23andMe’s new Reconstructed Ancestors feature, the first and only feature of its kind, analyzes shared DNA segments across your relatives to accurately reconstruct the genetic profiles of parents and grandparents who were never genotyped (with plans to add more ancestors in the future).</li>
<li>Profiles evolve over time; as you build your family tree and the global database grows, your ancestor profiles become increasingly detailed and precise.</li>
<li>This feature provides a new path for all members, including adoptees or those with limited family information, to uncover ancestral inheritance and reclaim family history where written records are lost or nonexistent.</li></ul>
</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>



<p>At 23andMe, we believe your DNA holds the key to stories you’ve never heard and people you’ve never met. Today, we’re excited to introduce a groundbreaking new feature that uncovers ancestral stories hidden in your DNA: <strong>Reconstructed Ancestors</strong>.</p>



<p>This innovative experience uses the DNA you share with close and distant relatives to piece together the genetic profiles of your ancestors, revealing insights into their ancestry composition and what they passed down to you.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="777" height="1024" src="/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/reconstructed-ancestors-grandfather-777x1024.png" alt="" class="wp-image-34982" style="width:417px;height:auto" srcset="https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/reconstructed-ancestors-grandfather-777x1024.png 777w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/reconstructed-ancestors-grandfather-228x300.png 228w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/reconstructed-ancestors-grandfather-768x1012.png 768w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/reconstructed-ancestors-grandfather-668x880.png 668w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/reconstructed-ancestors-grandfather-895x1180.png 895w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/reconstructed-ancestors-grandfather.png 905w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 777px) 100vw, 777px" /></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-unlocking-your-family-s-untold-stories">Unlocking Your Family’s Untold Stories</h2>



<p>For many of us, family history has blank spaces. Maybe it’s because records were lost or destroyed or never existed in the first place. Maybe no one really talked about “that side” of the family. Reconstructed Ancestors helps bridge those gaps by using DNA to learn about how ancestry from different global populations moves through branches of your family tree.</p>



<p>23andMe can use your genetic relatives to rebuild parts of your ancestors’ genetic profiles. That means you can learn more about ancestors who were never genotyped and who may no longer be here to share their stories.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">GRAMPA: The DNA Detective Behind the Scenes</h2>



<p>Behind the scenes is our GRAMPA algorithm (Genotype Reconstruction and Ancestral Mixture Proportions in Ancestors). Think of it like a genetic jigsaw puzzle: each piece of DNA you share with another relative has traveled through a shared ancestor. GRAMPA uses these overlapping segments, scattered across hundreds or even thousands of relatives to piece together the genome of that shared ancestor.</p>



<p>The more relatives who test, and the more relatives you add to your family tree, the more pieces we have and the clearer the picture becomes.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">An Ever-Growing Portrait of Your Family’s Past</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="658" height="1024" src="/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/reconstructed-ancestors-what-you-inherited-658x1024.png" alt="" class="wp-image-34984" style="width:249px;height:auto" srcset="https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/reconstructed-ancestors-what-you-inherited-658x1024.png 658w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/reconstructed-ancestors-what-you-inherited-193x300.png 193w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/reconstructed-ancestors-what-you-inherited-768x1196.png 768w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/reconstructed-ancestors-what-you-inherited-565x880.png 565w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/reconstructed-ancestors-what-you-inherited-758x1180.png 758w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/reconstructed-ancestors-what-you-inherited.png 786w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 658px) 100vw, 658px" /></figure>



<p>Reconstructing an ancestor starts with our DNA Relatives feature. By opting in, you allow 23andMe to identify and connect you to people who share DNA with you. These connections form the foundation of your automatic, DNA-based Family Tree and it’s from this tree that we can begin to reconstruct your recent ancestors. First, we scan the database for shared DNA segments between you and your relatives. Then we begin piecing together those segments into an ancestor profile, revealing what we can for now and continuing to add more over time.</p>



<p>Each reconstructed ancestor profile is unique and dynamic. As you build out your Family Tree, and as the 23andMe DNA database grows, more puzzle pieces are added to the ancestor profile. You can see what percentage of your DNA you inherited from that ancestor, explore their likely ancestry and begin to imagine who they might have been. The story deepens, details emerge, and a clearer picture of your family history begins to take shape.</p>



<p>Importantly, your privacy remains central. You control who sees your Reconstructed Ancestors, your Family Tree and how your information is used, ensuring your journey into your family’s past is both meaningful and secure.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Why It’s Different</h2>



<p>Reconstructed Ancestors is the first and only feature of its kind. It covers more than just inheritance; it rebuilds the genome of the person behind the inheritance. And it’s not limited to parents. At launch, the feature will include ancestors up to grandparents. Our hope is that one day you will be able to accurately piece together your entire family tree, including the gaps, with DNA as your guide.&nbsp;</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="786" height="624" src="/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/reconstructed-ancestors-dna-1.png" alt="" class="wp-image-34987" style="width:323px;height:auto" srcset="https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/reconstructed-ancestors-dna-1.png 786w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/reconstructed-ancestors-dna-1-300x238.png 300w, https://blogcms.23andme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/reconstructed-ancestors-dna-1-768x610.png 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 786px) 100vw, 786px" /></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Real Stories, New Connections</h2>



<p>More than 200,000 23andMe customers who self-report as an adoptee have already found close relatives in our database. For those who cannot make that connection yet, Reconstructed Ancestors offers a new kind of discovery, a way to learn about their ancestry inheritance, a way to feel closer to a relative they’ve never met.</p>



<p>It’s about more than just genetics. It’s about reclaiming pieces of your past that history forgot.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Available for Subscribers</h2>



<p>Reconstructed Ancestors will be available for <a href="https://www.23andme.com/membership/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">23andMe+ Premium</a>™ and <a href="https://www.23andme.com/total-health/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Total Health</a>™ members. There’s no need to provide another DNA sample or wait for results.</p>



<p>And this is just the beginning. Your family story is still unfolding. Every new relative who joins 23andMe helps add more pieces to the puzzle and brings you one step closer to understanding where you come from.</p>



Sarabeth Hamberlin

Meet Your Reconstructed Ancestors: A New Chapter in Your Family Story




<p>Whether you’re a seasoned genetics explorer or just beginning to dive into your DNA, the most exciting part of the journey is often discovering how you’re connected to others.</p>



<p>Today, we’re thrilled to introduce <strong>DNA Relatives Clustering</strong>, a powerful new tool for <a href="https://www.23andme.com/membership/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">23andMe+ Premium</a>™ members that helps you get more out of your genetic connections. Track down shared ancestors and visualize family branches seamlessly, instead of manually piecing together how your genetic relatives are related. This feature automatically organizes your DNA Relatives into visual groups based on their shared genetic connections.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-it-s-a-game-changer">Why It’s a Game-Changer</h2>



<p>In the past, identifying which relatives belonged to your mother’s side versus your father’s side, or deeper into specific great-grandparent lines, required lots of manual searching.</p>



<p>Clustering does the heavy lifting for you. By providing a visual map of your genetic network, it’s easier than ever to find this information. It’s not just a list of names anymore; it’s a blueprint of your history.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-it-works-a-visual-map-of-your-family">How It Works: A Visual Map of Your Family</h2>



<p>DNA Relatives Clustering generates an intuitive &#8220;map&#8221; of your family connections. By analyzing how your relatives share DNA with one another, not just with you, the tool creates a grid that brings your family branches to life.</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Clusters (Blocks of the Same Color): These represent a specific branch or part of your family. A cluster typically corresponds to people who share a set of specific ancestors, such as a pair of great-great-grandparents. Individual colored squares within a cluster show two people who share sufficient DNA with each other and with other relatives in that group. You can hover over each square to learn about the DNA shared between those two relatives.</li>



<li>“Single Square” Clusters: Occasionally, you’ll see a single colorful square on the diagonal. These are DNA relatives who are connected to relatives in other clusters but don&#8217;t share DNA with enough people to be included in those clusters. Nevertheless they can help you figure out how the clusters relate to you and each other.&nbsp;&nbsp;</li>



<li>Dark Gray Squares: These squares appear &#8220;off the diagonal&#8221; and represent people who share DNA but aren’t grouped into the same cluster. These can be useful for seeing how clusters reflect different branches of your family tree.</li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-science-behind-the-scenes">The Science Behind the Scenes</h2>



<p>Our scientists are always looking for ways to make genetic data more actionable. DNA Relatives Clustering was inspired by the popular Leeds Method, a manual sorting technique used by genealogists.</p>



<p>However, we’ve taken it a step further. Our scientists designed a novel algorithm specifically for the 23andMe platform. While our tool uses optimal defaults to get you started, we’ve also included advanced filtering controls, allowing you to customize the parameters of your map more than any other tool on the market. You can change settings to adjust who gets included, make the clusters more closely or loosely related, or focus the analysis on just the DNA Relatives shared in common with another DNA Relative. <a href="https://customercare.23andme.com/hc/en-us/articles/38509301730839-How-to-Use-DNA-Relatives-Clustering-at-23andMe" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Learn a little more about how to run clustering analyses</a>, and have fun exploring!</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-get-started">Get Started</h2>



<p>DNA Relatives Clustering is available now for 23andMe+ Premium members. Ready to see your family in a whole new light?</p>



Ancestry Service