Revising History: How iGENEA’s Genetic Testing Reconstructed My Self-Understanding and Perception of My Ancestry
Family name Chen
There are few experiences as transformational as uncovering the hidden folds of your ancestry. Receiving my DNA test results from iGENEA placed a profound influence on my understanding of my heritage and myself.
Since getting my DNA test results back from iGENEA, my understanding of my familial background, namely my ancestors surnamed Chen, has seen a significant shift. The process has been eye-opening and profound in many ways, offering me insights about my origins that I previously was unfamiliar with. This newfound knowledge opened up unknown chapters of my ancestry and demonstrated how crucial DNA testing can be in unearthing one’s history.
Before I received my DNA test results, my understanding about my lineage was limited to the information shared by my parents and grandparents. I had believed that our family, the Chens, had always been residents of southern China, and this belief had considerably influenced my personal identity.
One fascinating result of iGENEA’s genetic testing was the revelation that my ancestors were actually from northern China. This unexpected insight upended my sense of heritage. The realization that my origins were sprawling over a more expansive geographical area than I had imagined was intriguing and slightly overwhelming.
Moreover, the timeline of my ancestry was pushed back further than I had initially believed. Learning that my line of Chens dated back to the Tang Dynasty instead of Ming Dynasty as previously thought was an astonishing revelation. This led me to delve deeper into Chinese history, particularly focusing on the Tang Dynasty period, grasping a better understanding of the social, political, and cultural contexts in which my ancestors lived.
The above revelations, in turn, have shifted the way I construe my identity and heritage. My understanding of what it means to be a 'Chen' extends beyond what I knew from hear-say history, to a lineage steeped in rich culture and history that spans across periods and geographical territories I was previously unaware of.
In conclusion, my DNA test results from iGENEA were a transformative key to unlocking my past. It elucidated the complex history of the Chens that I am a part of and changed my perceptions of my heritage and self-understanding. This profound experience taught me that our identities are not merely composed of what we have been told but are deeply rooted in a history that DNA has the potential to uncover.
P. Chen