A while ago, I took up a special online offer from myheritage.com and received a DNA kit in the mail. The process was simple: swab the inside of my cheek and send the sample back. What was not so simple was the wait. It took months for the results to appear on the website. Whether my sample travelled to the lab via Timbuktu or whether my DNA was being unusually shy, I will never know. What I do know is that when the results finally came through, I could at least confirm one thing: I am 100% human. That said, the analysis did show DNA crossover with gorillas, dogs, mice, and even pine trees. This is not a glitch, but a reminder that we are all part of a long evolutionary chain. Life does not sit neatly in compartments. The boundaries we like to draw between species change the moment we look at our genetic code. Nothing in nature stands entirely alone; everything is connected, built on what came before.
Here is the breakdown of my DNA by ethnicity:
Breton – 22.6%
This is quite a specific result. MyHeritage distinguishes Breton from general “French” because Brittany has a unique Celtic heritage distinct from the Latinised rest of France. Genetically, Bretons often cluster closer to the British Isles than to southern France. This high percentage suggests either a strong lineage from Brittany or from areas with similar Celtic mixture. Historically, migrations from Britain into Brittany occurred during the decline of the Roman Empire, which explains the genetic continuity.
French – 22.5%
Together with the Breton result, that brings me to a combined 45.1% from modern France, which is entirely true because I have direct ancestry there. MyHeritage divides France into smaller clusters more aggressively than some other companies, so people with deep French roots often appear as part-Breton, part-French, even when they never left the country.
East European – 20.7%
This is a significant portion. “East European” in MyHeritage’s system typically includes populations from Poland, Czechia, Slovakia, western Ukraine, and sometimes parts of Hungary or Romania. I have a grandfather from Russia who may have had tied to Ukraine so it explains this percentage well.
Spanish, Catalan and Basque – 9.1%
This is another interesting cluster. MyHeritage is one of the few testing companies that attempts to separate “Spanish” into more regional subgroups. Catalonia and the Basque Country are both genetically distinct from central Spain. If this estimate is accurate, it might point to Iberian ancestors who were not from Castilian or Andalusian stock. Depending on how old this contribution is, it could come from medieval times, especially as Basques also migrated into southern France.
Baltic – 5.8%
This overlaps genetically with East European but pushes further north—Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia. This is often tied to Hanseatic or other North-Eastern European ancestry. People with Ashkenazi Jewish background, small traces of Baltic often appear, but it could also indicate migration routes through Eastern Europe, particularly in the 18th or 19th century.
Germanic – 5.8%
This typically corresponds to central German populations, regions like Bavaria, Hesse, and Saxony. Given my strong French component, this could reflect the usual Rhine border fluidity where populations from Alsace, Lorraine, and western Germany often mixed. Depending on how recent that ancestry is, this might tie into the shifting borders and identities in regions such as Alsace-Lorraine.
Balkan – 3.5%
The Balkan region includes countries like Serbia, Bulgaria, Romania, and surrounding areas. This could be a signal of old mixture from migrations into Europe, or more recently, a hint at some southeast European ancestry. Depending on my family history, this might even point to Romani (Gypsy) heritage or historical Ottoman movements, although the percentage is small.
English – 2.9%
This is relatively low, but not negligible. If I had one English great-great-grandparent, that would produce about 6.25%, so this may represent either a diluted English line or shared Celtic ancestry overlapping with the Breton side. Southern English DNA often blends into Northern French and Belgian populations due to millennia of contact.
Maltese – 2.9%
This is quite specific and unusual unless a link is known. The Maltese population is genetically distinct, with North African, Sicilian, and Near Eastern influences. However, MyHeritage sometimes assigns a “Maltese” label to ancestry that has deep Mediterranean roots without being truly Maltese. So this might reflect southern Italian or even Sephardic Jewish roots, especially given the proximity to Iberian and Balkan percentages.
North Italian – 2.7%
Northern Italy, especially regions like Lombardy, Veneto, and Piedmont, shares genetic links with southern France and Switzerland. This might reflect historical mixing or even seasonal migration patterns. The small amount could indicate a distant Italian ancestor or just Mediterranean blending.
Scottish and Welsh – 1.5%
This result is small but notable. Welsh and Breton are linguistically and genetically connected. It is possible that this is not a separate “Scottish” ancestor, but simply the algorithm struggling to differentiate between ancient British Isles and northwestern French Celts. The overlap is well documented in population genetics.
Overall, my results reflect a core French/Breton identity, with nearly half of the DNA rooted in France, complemented by substantial Eastern European influence and smaller amounts from Iberian, Germanic, and Mediterranean sources. This is entirely plausible for someone with ancestry from continental Europe, particularly with roots in border regions or cities that saw trade and migration.
Next will be the lengthy task of finding correspondence withn my family tree. Also, the website has found 34,000 DNA matches between me and people in its database. One match in particular is strong, enough to be called a distant cousin, a Russian from Moscow who is still alive.
If you can afford it, I recommend you take the DNA test. You never know what you will find and where it will take you.
