DNA-Based Testing & Slavery

During the slave trade, millions of Africans lost their lives, were stripped of their culture, and debunked of their existence. Those who survived the horrific experience were uprooted from their families and their cultures, brought into the U.S. with little idea of their origins.

Present day technology, in the form of DNA analysis, affords us the opportunity to find out more about ourselves by examining our genetic makeup and developing a genetic fingerprint. Research conducted at Howard University in Washington, D.C. has shown that a DNA-based test can be used to help African Americans determine their African ancestry. By designing a huge database of DNA data from indigenous Africa populations, researchers look for matches of genetic markers shown in African Americans.

These markers, which have been selected to determine genetic lineage, reveal maternal or paternal lineage, while others identify a combination of both. The level of resolution in most of the African American samples analyzed thus far are high enough to discriminate differences between some regions, such as Senegambia (Gambia and Senegal),the Windward Coast (Ivory Coast and Liberia), the Gold Coast (Ghana), Bight of Benin (between the Volta and Benin Rivers), Bight of Biafra (Benin River to Gabon). All of these are ancestral regions for the bulk of African Americans. Although it is not guaranteed that specific ethnic groups can be matched, there have been promising findings thus far.

We are continually updating our database of DNA data of African populations and hope to begin testing soon. Please open the web page and find out more information. http://www.africanancestry.com/