40% European Jewish. Specifically, Ashkenazi Jew. Seriously? I guess the data doesn't lie, but who ever would have thought??
What is most amazing about this is that when I was first diagnosed with breast cancer, my oncologist specifically asked me if I was of Ashkenazi Jewish descent. I said "no, of western European descent". Which was a kinda dumb answer cause I really didn't know the answer since I'd not done the DNA test. Turns out the kind of breast cancer I had was prevalent in the African American and Ashkenazi Jewish populations. I'm 1% African American. 40% European Jewish. Go figure.
Talk about knocking my socks off. For real.
Not that I have a single thing against being of Jewish descent. But golly...I come from a long long long line of Baptist preachers and moonshiners. There wasn't a Jew in the bunch, far as I knew.
Looks like there was. A Jew in the bunch. How cool!
European Jews were primarily found in Poland, Belarus, Ukraine, Russia, Hungary and Israel with a smattering in Lithuania, Slovakia, Czech, Romania, Bosnia, Serbia and Estonia.
Ashkenazi Jews made up more than 2/3 of the souls killed in the Holocaust. Albert Einstein was an Ashkenazi Jew. Genetic testing is highly recommended for folks descended from the Ashkenazi. They are prone to Tay-Sacks Disease, Breast Cancer, Parkinson's and all sorts of other horrid illnesses.
Lucky us.
Now I need to figure out what to do with the results. I attending an introductory DNA workshop over the weekend. It was about 75% over my head. The other 25% was very helpful. Hopefully, I can use my test results to connect with lots and lots of cousins who are rich in family information and pictures! Keeping my fingers crossed.
Not as uncommon down here as you might imagine. I look like my Irish/Scottish ancestors but have a fair amount of European Jewish blood. I've always known though.
ReplyDeleteWe are from Kentucky on that side.I never knew about a particular breast cancer that we get though. Time for another mammogram here. I hope you can beat it :)
Laura - women of Ashkenazi Jewish descent are prone to the gene mutation for BRCA1. It puts us at a whopping 80% chance of developing breast or ovarian cancer. I did indeed beat my cancer - stomped it right into the ground, I did! Life is good.
DeleteHello Carla is Stancil is your original surname or through marriage. Which family side is Ashkenazi. Im a Stancil with both Sephardic and Ashkenazi roots
DeleteHello Carla are you a Stancil with Ashkenazi Jewish Ancestry. My name is Shawn my last name is Stancil who have both Sephardic and Ashkenazi Jew ancestry
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DeleteI did dna with Nat. Geo. some years ago and it came back Katrine which also shows Ashkenezi Jewish and also the ice man. Being female and going back mother to mother I thought it went back as far as I could to Eva Dryden but you are saying not so sure about Eva Dryden. Now this dna is through mother's line and not father's etc. Lois
ReplyDeleteCarla are you a Stancil who have Jewish ancestors through you father or mother line. Im a Stancil myself we have both Sephardic and Ashkenazi blood in me
ReplyDeleteHello are you a Stancil thats Ashkenazi through your paternal line. Im a Stancil that is Sephardic and Ashkenazi
ReplyDeleteThe only reason why I say I have both ancestries because I took dna test it shows both on the markers on my father side of the family. We are Sephardic from with Morroco and Portugal
ReplyDeleteI'm 40% Ashkenazi Jewish and my parents told me I am 100% White Anglo Saxon Protestant. The Jewish part of me what from my dad. My mother certainly didn't know because she was big on not mixing faiths or races....she accepted anyone as a friend, but many people of her generation felt that way. My eldest brother always dated Jewish women and after my mother passed away, he married an Ashkenazi Jewish woman. I think that is so funny. I had a Jewish boyfriend and his mother hated that I was a "shiksa", lol. It goes to show us, not everything we think we know is always the truth!
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