Sicilian DNA

[perhaps]

my testee used Myheritage.com and he knew his father born Caccamo, Sicily, and the genetic MAP showing ethnicity was spot on, circled the area there with 'high' confidence then just to the west, with 'medium; confidence. I really like the autocluster tool myheritage has. i print, then write on the 'groups' the names they have and helps me keep organized.

[darkerhorse]

Did it give a percent Sicilian?

[Lenauk]

my testee used Myheritage.com and he knew his father born Caccamo, Sicily, and the genetic MAP showing ethnicity was spot on, circled the area there with 'high' confidence then just to the west, with 'medium; confidence. I really like the autocluster tool myheritage has. i print, then write on the 'groups' the names they have and helps me keep organized.

Is there a difference between East and West Sicily?

[Lenauk]

They said mine was Ragusa

[darkerhorse]

They said mine was Ragusa

Which company?

[pdchenderson13]

Good afternoon.

I have Sicilian and Northern Italian parents and was born in UK. My father was from Sicily and I have tested with both Ancestry and more recently 23 and me.

Ancestry - Is better for seeing the common ancestors and the amount of DNA you share with a DNA match, and recently has added a feature where you can state (if you know) the connection to them. e.g my brother and mother have both tested and it is easy to see with the large number of cm(centimorgans) they are close family. It is then easy to either look at the potential match's tree (if public and linked, if they have a tree, because many do not).
The matches can be added to groups which you allocate yourself. I have groups for a city in common, in my case Canicatti, for names in common, and it is much easier to use and get information from then 23 and me.

23 and me - I have made connections on this site that were no on ancestry, however had to message the potential matches and had limited success.

familysearch - not a DNA site, but the ability to view and research scanned documents from sicily, Canicatti, Palermo and many others. I also use it for my northern Italian ancestry.

I must admit that it has been very difficult to research my mothers line, as she only had a name for her father, and location he lived in, but there is far less information on both sites with regards to DNA.

I wonder if this is in part because any of the Southern Italians emigrated in coparison to those in Northern Italy, and therefore more people researching their ancestry from Southern Italy.
I summary I think the wider you search the more likely you are to find something. I have been searching for over 10 years now....its a slow, but fascinating process. I only wish I had the chance to have my father tested before he died, but I got the answers he needed before then anyway. I think your success very much depends if your family are from an area that has online records.
Patience and persistence is required whichever route you go.

Good luck.

Screenshot 2021-07-24 123102)_PH DNA screenshot Sicily.jpg

[darkerhorse]

Thanks for your feedback. The map you attached looks interesting.

My father was 100% Sicilian by paper trail, with all ancestors from the same small town in Sicily documented back to the 1700s.

I suppose DNA testing could turn up a surprise but I already know the family history since the 1700s, so I'm still not convinced of the value for me. I have little interest in finding relatives through matches, though matches may provide or validate family information as you have found.

[darkerhorse]

I still think it's more for amusement in it's current state.

[MarcuccioV]

My FTDNA mtDNA result matches (only 4) showed that the only one which listed an earliest known ancestor originated in Agrigento, Sicily.

This is my grandmother's line which I never thought contained ANY Sicilian...

[Italianthro]

Sicilians are approximately 44% Middle Eastern and North African (mostly from Phoenician colonists and Arab/Berber conquerers [...] 18% Northern European (In part from the Normans [...] Northern Italians have a high amount of Northern European DNA, probably because of the invasions of Northern Italy by various Germanic groups

That's all incorrect. Italians (including Sicilians) are fully Southern European and almost identical to Ancient Romans and Ancient Greeks, because there's been genetic continuity since the Bronze/Iron Age, and the Alps and Mediterranean have been barriers to gene flow. Admixture from more recent groups like Phoenicians, Moors, Normans, Lombards, slaves, immigrants etc. has been negligible.

Read: Italians 101

Also see:

Pre-Roman Population Structure

Ancient-to-Modern Genetic Distances

[darkerhorse]

Just looking for an update.

Does any DNA testing company now offer a percentage specifically for Sicilian ancestry?

[darkerhorse]

Also:

By paper trail, I’m 50% Sicilian (paternal) and 25% French, 19% Norwegian, 3% Danish, and 3% German (maternal).

If DNA testing found substantially less than 50% Sicilian and substantially more French, Scandinavian, Danish, or German might that suggest some of my Sicilian ancestry comes from France, Scandinavia, or Germany?

For example, with DNA testing, what if Sicilian dropped to 40% and Danish increased to 13%? Might that suggest some of the Sicilian came from Denmark?

Since the paternal paper trail in Sicily goes back to the 1700s, I’m thinking migration to Sicily wouldn’t have been recent enough to show up in the DNA.

I have no reason to suspect French, Scandinavian, or German roots to my Sicilian heritage. I was just looking for clever ways to uncover the past.

My Y haplogroup points to Great Britain, so perhaps some British/Scottish would show up?

[MarcuccioV]

So here is another GEDMATCH oracle example (slightly different than the one I posted on your 'Scandinavian' thread).

Note the pie chart is similar to the other one, and this time using THREE population groups, I STILL get 50% east Sicilian.

Now the # (5 vs 2 on the other one) indicates it is somewhat less accurate; however I find it interesting that the east Sicilian remained constant (50%) but the other 50% is completely different.

Not surprisingly, 14 of the 20 different surnames that I have unearthed thus far at the 4GG level (on the Italian side) can be found in Sicily.

Now I DO carry those other N European ethnicities, but in lesser amounts (at least by paper trail).

I checked a few others, & most give me a preponderance of Southern Italian/Sicilian/Med, with various northern European mixes which tend to be more varied and changeable.

If you really want to get a good examination of Sicilian ancestry, this is probably your best bet...

[darkerhorse]

Thanks for the advice.

[darkerhorse]

Any updates or new recommendations of DNA testing companies for exploring Sicilian ancestry?