Navigating Your Jewish DNA Results

“Navigating Your Jewish DNA Results” will be the topic of a virtual presentation by genealogist Adina Newman for the Sunday, Jan. 23, 2022, meeting of the Jewish Genealogical Society of Illinois at 2 p.m. CST.  Register/RSVP for the Zoom session by clicking the button at left.

The online presentation, which will be free and open to the public, will focus on interpreting so-called “Jewish DNA” results from the major commercial testing companies (i.e., Ancestry, 23andMe, Family Tree DNA, and MyHeritage), with primary focus on Ashkenazi Jewish heritage. The speaker will dig into common beliefs and misconceptions related to interpreting these results and provide context and strategies to maximize successful research.

Topics will include ethnicity estimates, tools to understand and locate DNA matches, nuances found at each testing company, and strategies to tackle endogamy. Although not required, familiarity with navigating the various DNA testing sites and viewing DNA matches is recommended.

Adina Newman, EdD, is the owner of My Family Genie, where she assists clients with their research and blogs about her own family history. Her main interests are in Jewish genealogy, genetic genealogy, and New England. She has a doctorate in educational leadership and a certificate in genealogical research from Boston University.

She volunteers as a Jewish genetic genealogy Facebook group moderator, social media coordinator for NextGen Genealogy Network, and a discussion leader for ProGen, a self-study group for aspiring and professional genealogists. She was also a 2020 recipient of the AncestryProGenealogists scholarship. She presented four talks for the 2021 IAJGS International Conference on Jewish Genealogy.

The Jewish Genealogical Society of Illinois is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping members collect, preserve, and perpetuate the records and history of their ancestors. JGSI is a resource for the worldwide Jewish community to research their Chicago-area roots. The JGSI motto is “Members Helping Members Since 1981.” The group has more than 300 members and is affiliated with the International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies.

JGSI members have access to useful and informative online family history research resources, including a members’ forum, more than 65 video recordings of past speakers’ presentations, monthly JGSI E-News, quarterly Morasha JGSI newsletter, and much more. Members as well as non-members can look for their ancestors on the free searchable JGSI Jewish Chicago Database.