My DNA results are in!

So this week I got some exciting news from my Ancestry DNA test. I bought the test in October and sent my sample off in December. It can take up to 8 weeks, so I was surprised it came so quick. It provided me with an estimate of the regions my ancestors originated from. Below are my results: 93% Africa 6% Europe 1% West Asia

When I get the question where am I from, or what ethnicity is my last name, I don’t know how to answer them. For the longest I have depended on my family to figure out what we are. All of my family is from Louisiana, so we have a very Cajun creole heritage. I am just now learning more about our culture and traditions since I grew up mainly overseas, and in Texas. My last name is Polidore, which is Italian, French and Polish creole, so I’ve been told.  My mother’s maiden name is Jean Louis (French), and my grandfather’s last name is Mitchell.  My aunts on my dad’s side have always told us our great (x4) grandmother was full blood Native American, which the test showed no signs of Native American ancestry in my personal DNA. From research I’ve been told I have to do a DNA test on my dad to get his maternal matches to the regions specifically to confirm my aunts theories, but I am fine with what I got so far! I am excited to have these results, because I have in mind a portrait project on my identity, I just wanted to be sure I had a good grounding on what I am made of. Even though this is an estimate of my ancestry, it is a start in my research to learning and discovering cultures specifically related to me in some form or fashion.

Another cool thing was that Ancestry provided a list of possible relatives by 1^st -5^th cousins and distant cousins. When I went through the first 3 pages I saw a lot of people who were different races and ages, it was exciting to think that I could be walking down the street to a distant cousin anywhere I go, and never know it.