Alvie L. Walts

One of the “mysteries” that involve DNA research among the so called Tri-racial groups of early American history is the finding of South Asian or East Indian-Pakistan DNA among descendents of Melungeons and Redbones.

Although these groups have been said to be Tri-racial (Anglo, Native American and African) they were actually of multi-racial ancestry. Many descendents of these mixed racial people sometimes get information in DNA studies that can be misconstrued. It is the object of this piece to separate and try to explain how Bio Geographical DNA is used and how you can analyze your own DNA results that fit with your standard Melungeon and Redbone genealogy.

Bio Geographical DNA

Bio Geographical or BGA DNA is a result of several ancestors that contribute to an individual’s ancestral genetic makeup. The DNA is recumbent, meaning that you do not get equal amounts of ancestry from each parent. Brothers and sisters can have very different percentages of BGA DNA ancestry even though they have the same parents. BGA DNA is simply a tool that may or may not find multi-ethnic ancestry in an individual that is expected to have a mixed heritage. For example, brother number one has 20% Native

American DNA, but brother number two shows 0% Native American in his test results. The Native American DNA in the case of brother number one could be coming from one grandparent or it could be recombining from several different lines of Native American ancestry. Having 0% Native American in his BGA DNA tests results does not mean brother number two does not have Native American ancestors. It does mean that on a genetic level he did not receive any noticeable amount of Native American DNA and in this case his Native American ancestry was “swamped out” on a genetic level by another ancestry in his family history.

The two companies that I prefer to use for BGA DNA are: DNAPrint and DNATribes. Both of these companies use BGA DNA tests; however, the analysis is different and presented in a very different format.

Jim Crow Today Among Genealogist

The trouble with many American Mestee genealogists doing ethnic ancestry research is that they have a “cookie cutter” mentality when it comes to non-Anglo ancestry. Much of this mentality is related to the infamous Jim Crow laws that sought to separate communities based on a strict “White Anglo” or “Black African” only, prejudicial racial line during the 1800‘s. The stigma of

Jim Crow is still seen today in the genealogical community even if it is on an unconscious level.  These genealogists tend to focus on only one type of ethnic ancestry and dismiss the ancestries that are out of favor. These genealogists want to typecast this “cookie cutter” image of their ancestors even if their ancestry was already admixed long before ever reaching North American shores. Consequently, when they find an ancestor who was labeled “Mulatto” or “Free Person of Color” they automatically place that person to one side of the Jim Crow Color line. Usually, this “Mulatto” ancestor is placed in one of four possibilities: African, Anglo, Middle Eastern or Native American and any mention of any other ancestry is usually absent. Much of this has to do with the genealogical mentality itself that uses paper trails and research to base everything in “facts” and also on prejudicial “racial” preference.

What has been found is that nothing is an automatic “fact” in genealogy and that there exists (and always will to a degree) quite a bit of grey area in regard to traditional genealogical research and especially to ethnic research. A “Mulatto” ancestor could be from several ethnic ancestries and could be any combination of various ethnicities.

No greater divide exist today in the Mestee genealogical community than the Native American, African or Middle Eastern preferred ancestry for the “Melungeon type” or Mestee groups. Only in the United States with our prejudicial views on race and the “cookie cutter” mentality of the genealogist who descend from these Mestee groups could this happen. A Brazilian genealogist would not only acknowledge that all of these ancestries exist in his/her own ancestry but would not have a problem at all with any of them being “mixed” of various ancestries.   Brazilians do not attach a social stigma to race.  

Indeed, the Melungeon and Redbone people today are closer on a genetic DNA level to the people of Argentina than to modern Europeans or the vast majority of Anglo Americans. Does this not make the descendents of the Mestee, Melungeon and Redbone people of today different in regard to ancestry than the rest of Anglo America? Of course it does and places our people closer to some Latin American nations than to Anglo Americans who do not have ties to the Melungeon and Mestee groups. Probably no other ethnic ancestry has been more overlooked than the South Asian DNA that has been shown to exist in high levels among some descendents of Mestee groups.

South Asian DNA in the Mestee Groups

How can South Asian or East Indian-Pakistan DNA be found in the Melungeon and Redbone people today? We know that certain populations that came from Europe and India were on these shores during the early 1600’s. Not only has South Asian DNA been found in Melungeons and other groups; it should have been expected all along. There are three sources from which South Asian DNA could find its way into modern day Mestee descendents. The number one input is probably from true South Asian Indian indentured servants who came to America during the 1600’s. The Weaver family, for example, who intermarried with the Bass, Archer, Nickens and Collins families are on record in early America as being South Asian Indian indentured servants.

Several documents identify the Weaver family in Virginia as “East Indyy Indians”. The Weaver family descends from John and Richard Weaver who were of South Asian East India ancestry. Their descendents intermarried within Cherokee, Choctaw, Meherrin and Nansemond Native Americans.

The second source of South Asian DNA is from the Romani Gypsy people. English Romanical Gypsies were being transported to the Colonies and the Caribbean during the 1600’s by the thousands. The Gypsy people originally came from India and migrated to Europe more than 2000 years ago from the Hindu Kush area of Western India and Pakistan. A community of these Gypsies was said to exist in central Virginia. The Archer family from which I descend is said to not only have South Asian Indian ancestry but also Roma Gypsy ancestry.   In the Archer family, multi-ethnic admixture occurred even among two vastly different South Asian Indian groups who in turn intermarried with Native American and Africans to create a literal “stew” of mixed ethnic ancestry in that family.

The third source of South Asian DNA may come direct from the people of Spain and Portugal. Millions of Gypsies migrated to Spain from North Africa and Europe. Many Spanish Gypsies, the “Gitano”, during the Spanish Inquisition were exiled from Spain along with many Jews and Muslims. The Spanish people today, due to Gypsy admixture have about 14% percent South Asian DNA on average in their BGA DNA.  

South Asian DNA Analysis --- DNAPrint

In studying South Asian DNA one must first look for what percentages are normal for Anglo Americans and Europeans. Due to Gypsy admixture throughout Europe and genetic drift, some ancestry may be found in many descendents of European Anglos. The difference is that in the descendents of Mestee communities the results tend to be much higher than expected or above the “Static Line” for South Asian DNA, which shows that admixture has indeed occurred from either a recent Gypsy or South Asian Indian source.

Chart 1 below shows the averages for different European and U.S. Caucasoid population admixtures.  In my own case with almost 20% South Asian DNA, my South Asian DNA is closer to the Iberian and Turkish people than to any other. Spain and Turkey had millions of Gypsies who migrated to these areas and admixed with the populations in those nations. My results in this DNA test are reflective of my Archer family ancestry.  

South Asian DNA Analysis --- DNATribes

DNATribes is another company that does BGA DNA testing. However, unlike DNAPrint that looks at the ancestry of 175 individual AIMS (Ancestry Information Markers) DNATribes uses the CODIS (Used also by the FBI) system that uses a limited number of AIMS and compares them to other samples to get an idea of shared

ancestry. My top match in DNATribes is Spain.   DNATribes cannot tell me for certain that my ancestors came from Spain, only that I have the same overall ethnic ancestry makeup as the majority of people from that nation. As stated above most people from Spain will have about 15% South Asian DNA. This is why my number one match in the DNATribes results was Spain. It does not mean I have “Spanish” ancestry, only that I am, on a genetic level, closer to them than to any group from the British Isles because of the higher level of South Asian ancestry.

Mestizo DNA Analysis ---DNATribes

DNATribes does not combine Asia Minor and India even though Eastern Asia Minor has the same people in respect to South Asian DNA. This to me is a mistake. Pakistan, my number two match over all would be South Asian DNA in DNAPrint. When my Asia Minor results are combined with my India results in DNATribes it is about the same results that were seen in my DNAPrint results. The one result that was different is in regard to the Mestizo DNA score in DNATribes. Because DNAPrint only looks at Ancestry Information Markers and does not compare samples, it may be inadequate for looking at the shared ancestry of modern day populations. I had several Hispanic and some Native American matches in DNATribes. This combined to give me a very high Mestizo score. Mestizo, consists of Native Americans blended with Europeans and Africans. This is why I had some genetic similarity to Colombia. My ancestry does not come from Colombia, but I share some similar genetic traits with the people. This is also probably coming from the Archer family who did mix with Native American (Meherrin and other Native Americans) and African ancestors.

In comparison, my Mestizo score was so high that many people in the DNA forums thought I was a member of a Native American tribe! Indeed, my Mestizo score was as high or higher than many Hispanic people!  In Chart 5 below which compares Mestizo scores in people admixed with European and Northeast American Indian, my Mestizo score was very high for someone who was even half Native American Indian! Again, I have concluded that this must be coming from the Giddens and Mowery families who were of Cherokee ancestry along with the original Native American ancestry of the Archer family (Meherrin).  

In Conclusion

Ethnic admixture is quite diverse in the Mestee communities. Not all families had Native American just as not all families had African or South Asian ancestry. It is not as simple as a clean “cookie cutter” ancestry in regard to multiple admixture or one single admixture such as a Native American tribe. That the South Asian admixture occurred in some of these families is a fact, but we must caution that not all the families had this ancestry. There is not a complete definition for a Mestee community or even a family in regard to one type of non- Northern European ancestry nor should there be one. We should look closer at the possibility of these populations being of various multi-ethnic ancestries and should not adopt any one label or ethnic definition.

Extracted Records for Redbone Related Surnames