Ancestry & DNA Testing: Adventures Of A Curious Chicana
Ever since I can remember people have always wondered about my “unique features”. Things I have become accustomed to hearing include “So what are you?”, “Where are you from *originally*?”, “Are you Persian?” “You have such unique features, where are those from?”, “What are you mixed with?”, and the ONLY comment I genuinely dislike: “You don’t look Mexican.” Insert massive eye roll here.
I take a lot of pride in telling people that I am a first generation Mexican-American, aka "Chicana". I am the daughter and granddaughter of Mexican immigrants and that’s that. I've never actually thought twice about it. In fact, I genuinely get a kick out of disappointing people with my answer. I always get the feeling that it's not exotic enough for them. But it's always been enough for me. The older I get, however, the more I start to wonder about my genetic history. Where DO I get my features from? A basic understanding of world history tells us that Mexican is not an ethnicity. So, then, what AM I?
"Mexican is not an ethnicity"
I have partnered up with Ancestry to test my DNA and hopefully find some answers. I am so excited to have received my kit and will be mailing in some saliva to be tested. My results will tell me more about my ethnic background and history. By filling up a small tube with one's own saliva, Ancestry can test your DNA against a large number of geographic regions all over the world to see where you match closest to. Not only that, but they have recently completely upgraded their systems and improved the science by collecting more samples than ever before, which of course translates to a more precise ethnicity estimate. SO EXCITING!
I have absolutely no expectations as far as my results go and there is nothing this test can tell me that would disappoint me, nonetheless I am super nervous and a little emotional about the whole thing, it’s so bizarre!
DISCOUNT: Ancestry is also offering 15% off to my friends and readers, so if you want to do this for yourself, click HERE order yours at a discount!
Or here:
http://refer.dna.ancestry.com/s/victoria0
-V.