Find Your Most Recent Common Ancestor Using GEDmatch

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

🤔Do you want to learn more about the MRCA Score? Watch 👉🏼 kzbin.info/www/bejne/oHOThX2hpJqUosU

[@knockshinnoch1950]

A really informative clear and easy to follow video- it's easy to be overwhelmed by the science and a page filled with numbers and abbreviations!

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

Thanks for your praise. It means a lot.

[@puncheex2]

Many people can't find the tool. It is, as of today, 7 Mar 2021, it is on the home page under "Tier 1", 12th down, named "Find common ancestors (MRCA) from DNA matches NEW"

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

Thanks for the update.

[@GenealogyTV]

Great info Andy!

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

Thanks!

[@toniasalways]

Oh, I hope this is all it's hyped to be!

[@aaronwells1574]

It will depend on how deep your pedigree is in your tree. If you tree is shallow, you may not get many matches. If it's deep, you'll likely get many MRCA hits.

[@CaomhanOMurchadha]

I've often wondered about how likely you may share a 10cM with someone who just so happens to share say 12th great grandparents with you if it is really a segment from those ancestors or sometimes a coincidence.

[@dnoellee1]

It's a tool out of beta with the chances to get feedback to improve. So if it's not amazing now, just wait. Folks also have to add their family tree files to GEDmatch for it to work.... Something that is the case with all of the platforms.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

Thanks Devon (my wife) for responding to this)

[@mariacapaldi5062]

When I get back home to Pennsylvania I will be checking this out! Thanks Andy👍💻📑✍📚🧬

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

Hope you enjoy it!

[@maryjenniferwalker477]

This tool sounds wonderful, can not wait to try it.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

Yeah!

[@barblee5294]

Great info, Andy. My second time through it and I learned more things today! Do you know of a video or blog that shows an easy way to create a direct line GEDcom from Ancestry or MyHeritage?

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

I'll have pass this off to Devon. She does more of the Ancestry or MyHeritage movies.

[@lizphillips6380]

Very clear instructions, if only I didn't get lost by the time I get to the end, but thank you.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

If there are any questions you have from when you got lost, let me know. I'll try to help out. Start a new comment thread so I see your response.

[@jl8138]

What is the real benefit to gedmatch when their database is so small compared to most recognizable DNA services?

[@Ankhael9]

Honestly it was reveal to me that ancestry compositions from 23andme and others are nothing but comparing your DNA in terms of how similar in genetic make up you are compared to a specific group of people or ethnic group rather actually confirming your relationship as actually family. It doesn't necessarily mean they are your ancestors especially if they are living populations they are comparing your dna too, which has been proven that populations across the world today mostly likely wasn't there a 100 years ago because of course human migrate and move around alot.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

There are actually a lot of different comparisons going on. Ethnicity results are a comparison to a reference population that give a rough indication of where your ancestors came from in the last 300-500 years. kzbin.info/aero/PLcVx-GSCjcdlvwsLScE4NPKwGA-XUNhhM The match lists are direct comparison of your DNA to others in the database and are an indication of the closeness of your relationships. kzbin.info/aero/PLcVx-GSCjcdmsw25mbI-wJin_9_9QQUzI

[@GorkovenkoY]

Where can I find the Gedmatch MRCA search tool?

[@marriegle8317]

I don't see a MRCA search tool available . Is that only on the paid subscription version on Gedcom?

[@Christmaselve111]

I want to upload a GENCOM file but do not know how to exclude people who are alive and may not want to be included. Any help would be appreciated

[@marpop4056]

I downloaded a gedom file from Ancestry and was going to upload it to Gedmatch until I read the instruction stating that names of the living, or those I don't know for sure are deceased, need to be changed to LIVING. How do I do that without screwing up my Ancestry tree and losing all the cousins, nieces, nephews, etc., that I've already identified?

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

Watch this video. We finally made it when RootsMagic 8 was released. kzbin.info/www/bejne/aIqqYZuGrLureZY

[@jcjc3914]

I don’t understand so are you saying that if they’re too distant have a relative it’s not really worth exploring or are you saying that the DNA could be wrong if it’s too low?

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

I did a follow-up video that attempted to address your question. GEDMatch Most Recent Common Ancestor Tool - Understanding the Scores kzbin.info/www/bejne/oHOThX2hpJqUosU

[@russelllaity1672]

What does this mean Estimated number of generations to MRCA = 4.3

[@joeshmoe7789]

Where do you find the MRCA Search Tool?

[@lynneatkinson8084]

How do you add a gedmatch file? Ie where does it come from?

[@BonnieDragonKat]

Andy? Where do we find the tool? I am having a Dickens finding it.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

Is it not on the welcome page after logging in? It should be one of the tools in the right side column.

[@jessie9384]

I would like to know if when you submit a kit number to a specific DNA PROJECT it would seem obvious your not going t be accepted unless you are showing a certain amount of the desirable markers? Is this correct ? I think these projects lack a lot of participant info that should automatically be sent to people when your accepted . After all your giving them your data.

[@bobfugate6394]

Had Big Y done had a GED # now have another one it now says my Haplogroup is confirmed. what is the Difference. I have a completed Family tree

[@yonnieyonsta3061]

Problem with GEDcom: no matter what I do, the gedcom comes up incorrect. It keeps placing the parent for the child. Almost every generation in my family there are two or more parents and in almost every case, the "step"-parent gets shown as the biological parent. How do I edit the gedcom on GEDmatch to correct for their stupidity? As it is I can't show half-aunts and uncles on the gedcom whose kits are on GedMatch now

[@LouisianaPlanting]

Omg.. mine was very difficult to have it upload correctly. I had to keep changing the setting (List/Fact type List) on Rootsmagic when exporting my GEDCOM file to get it to upload correctly on GEDmatch. My ancestors names were uploading as alt. names instead of the correct names.

[@yonnieyonsta3061]

@@LouisianaPlanting No matter what I do it is still incorrect. I haven't decided if I should leave it or delete it. I created a reduced gedcom just for this, altered it several times and re-installed it. No-matter-what I did, the gedcom is still incorrect. A simple text-editor could resolve the problems in minutes.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

You can't edit GEDCOM on GEDmatch. You need to do it in another program. I would suggest creating a biological/genetic family tree by stripping out all of the non-biological relationships. That way people only will have 1 set of parents and the program won't get confused.

[@yonnieyonsta3061]

Been there done that, tree still wrong

[@donnanorth7324]

Why does Jane Gordon match, if she is not a relative? Is the lack of DNA matching being ignored?

[@caroludart9907]

I have the same question

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

The person who owns this tree matches DNA with me. We both have a Jane Gordon in our trees, just different Jane Gordons (ergo, we don't relate through Jane Gordon).

[@swhopkinson]

Can you add more than one DNA kit to a GEDCOM or is it just like Ancestry - everyone with their own tree.

[@paulbaltzer4745]

Shane Hopkinson I had the same question as you at GEDMATCH. I believe at Ancestry you can attach multiple kits to 1 tree.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

You can add multiple people to the same GEDCOM file.

[@puncheex2]

4:09 - "Next we have the name, in our GEDCOM kit, of who that match is..." No, you have the name of the detected common ancestor; the match is between you and the person in the second column. In most cases, there are two common ancestors, that person named as "Common Ancestor" and their spouse; in fewer cases, the MRCA spouse is different on the two sides of the match9 and are therefore not common to both sides. And I have some questions for you, Andy: Most all of my matches are listed at generation 8 9, 10 and 11, even an occasional 12. I was told that common DNA doesn't often occur beyond the 8th generation back because of dilution, but I'm getting common ancestors that verify out, as far as I can check, born back to the high 1500s. Is this normal, or am I just odd? Are matches often found that far out? We're talking like 10-11th cousins matching here. Do you have any information that the search algorithm searches from the closest relatives outwards? If not, then there is the possibility (as I seem to have found in a few cases) that the most likely common ancestors (the ones most likely to be generating the DNA that matches) aren't the ones being displayed. It's important to point out that the match size is between you and the other testee; that size has little to do with finding MRCAs in the two trees (GEDCOMs). I've gotten several matches that look good; the names verify out, but when I take them back to a one-on-one comparison, there is no match. A glitch in the software? Finally, do you know how this compares to Ancestry's Thrulines? It seems to be essentially the same product.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

For the MRCA scores, watch this video kzbin.info/www/bejne/oHOThX2hpJqUosU Remember, the trees are only as good as the people who put them together. So, which GEDmatch can recommend a possible link through the GEDcom files, when you go to one-to-one comparision, they might not show up where you thought because the genetic side of things don't bear out. GEDmatch tree comparison, Ancestry ThruLines, and MyHeritage Theory of Family Relativity are essentially the same product. However, GEDmatch could help you compare with people who didn't test with Ancestry, but rather one of the other commercial genetic genealogy companies.

[@junebutka6571]

I set it for score 3. Out of 1047 matches I have 34 Most Recent Common Ancestors found. Comparisons took 9800.27730 seconds.nts.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

That's 34 items to add to your research list!

[@christobinskiterry5820]

Should I update my gedcom file regularly as I update it?

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

It wouldn't hurt.

[@txgirl4ever716]

Hi I am trying to use this feature on GedMatch and I am following your video. It appears that there must have been updates that your video has that is no longer available. Can you help me find my MCRA, please?

[@DannyTP1888]

You'll find it on the home page under "Tier 1", 12th down, named "Find common ancestors (MRCA) from DNA matches NEW" You need to upgrade mebership to use it.

[@logothaironsides2942]

OK I got it to work and what I did was upload a Gedcom again with new name and then go straight into the tool. Originally it was showing zero on all 4 of my GEDCOMS but since uploading anew it is finding links.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

I'm glad it's working out.

[@algal6840]

I am new with DNA . Do you share DNA with your closest match ? So you are related somewhere ? Or is this just comparing ged files (your created trees ) ?

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

"Closest match" by definition means you share DNA. If that match shares more than 50cM with you, definitely you are related somewhere.

[@Mike1962nz]

Can I use an ancestry tree with floating people for my gedcom file?

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

You can use any GEDcom file. However, the MRCA tool doesn't work as well if you don't have lines of connection with the people in the tree. GEDmatch can not make the leap like Ancestry's ThruLines.

[@musicmixerking7845]

so i put in my kit number but it says its invailid gow do i fix that

[@Greywolfgrafix]

I have searched for over 30 years for my paternal grandfather Smith's family. He died in 1930, twelve days before Dad was born. We don't know anything much about him. I tested through FTDNA in 2004, and Ancestry last year. Also uploaded to GedMatch. STILL NOTHING! I don't know what to do.

[@CorneliusThompson]

Hello....I am having the same issue but trying to locate my Maternal Grandfather...my mother only met him once as a teenager. I had my mother tested on 23&me and I am still trying o learn that, and had her tested last month for Ancestry, now waiting for the results. Let me know if I can be of assistance to you because I love doing this genealogy research.

[@andre1987eph]

There was alot of paternity fraud even back in the day. It's now harder to hide who the real father is due to modern dna testing.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

Smith? Couldn't there be a less common name? It might be an unsolvable mystery (remember, all of the great stories you hear are just the ones that are solved, the unsolved ones usually don't make it into a presentation, there are far more unsolved ones than solved ones).

[@cathyc6725]

Powerful tool. Would you recommend using this in conjunction with the cluster tool in cases of unknown parentage?

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

You can try, the problem with unknown parentage is that each GEDCOM file needs to have the identical person.

[@chazzi4454]

Since surnames do not come inside the DNA I suggest getting your Autosomal DNA results upgraded to Full Mitochondrial sequence and follow the science whereever it takes you. Or Y-Chromosome DNA full sequencing will trace through your male line ONLY. Follow all your male ancestors into places you might not want to admit. But this is who you are.

[@tigerfish949]

Alredy have a profile on Ancestry, 23andme and MyHeritage... not shure there is an added value to do my GEDmatch...

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

There's always value in having your DNA in multiple databases. Each company has different DNA matches but also different tools.

[@diannenurse518]

i am now learning how to use.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

You can do it!

[@JustAGuitarPlayer]

SO at the 5:28 mark in your video, I see that in your Gedcom, you included all the children of that couple, (in this video, Jane Gordon's siblings), but I thought that our Gedcom was only supposed to include our grandparents and great great etc grandparents as opposed to all of our great (and 2nd great, 3rd great etc) aunts and uncles. Am I incorrect in that? I have many of those great aunts and uncles listed in my Ancestry family tree and each of their families as well. SO by the example above, I'm thinking I need to create a Gedcom that includes all of those great aunts and uncles to increase the possibility of finding a MCRA. But perhaps not include the families of those great aunts and uncles? And it looks like GEDMATCH is pretty much like Ancestry's thru lines (to DNA Matches trees) where it is dependent on you both having the same spelling of an MCRA. The challenge in my case are my Finnish ancestors that have long names that are not as standardized as my American and English/Scottish Ancestors names.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

You can include extended family, as long as you keep within the GEDmatch GEDCOM limits (10 MB or 10,000 people)

[@larrymcclain8874]

Most at Gedmatch don't even have Gedcom files at Gedmatch. I don't know why some of these people even bother. What's the point without a Gedcom file?

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

The same could be said for the lack of family trees on Ancestry and MyHeritage. As people become more interested in DNA matching rather than ethnicities, the usefulness of the tools will be evident.

[@maxtrenck8511]

Cannot wIt to try this. Thank you for this video.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

You are so welcome!

[@maundrialcrawford8951]

Do you just upload your DNA or add a tree?

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

You need to do both.

[@authorlindajcoate]

Does the cM column in this MRCA ancestors indicate the total number of cM's in common or the longest segment size in common between possible cousins?

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

Total cM in common.

[@anneadams3158]

But what if the information in your tree or gedcom file is inaccurate or you’re uncertain about it?

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

It likely won't work out the way you wish. That will be a problem with any tree building + genetic tool. It's only as good as the information people add to the family trees.

[@jwwellcome2961]

I keep on getting an error whenever I use the MRCA . It states that there is no GED Com file associated with the DNA file. This is even though I have linked them.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

That's a question for the support team. www.gedmatch.com/contact-us

[@EM-cg7lg]

This tool doesn't seem to be available. Where is it?

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

It's a Tier 1 Tool

[@deborahdozier6908]

Hello I was looking at your video.And I m trying to help my fiancee with his lineage.And for sometime I see this ancestor he s top ancestor(common)U could say.Would this be helpful in locating his history.But he has over 7 generations but It says orphan on him.But I can t seem to find records on this common ancestor

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

Without knowing anything more about your question, I'm not sure if I can answer it. Genealogy is about time and location. Not every place we could research has the documentation we need to validate from one generation to the next. And the further back in time you research, the fewer records were available. I would suggest you watch my wife's video about getting started in genealogy research. kzbin.info/www/bejne/fKmVhZmcYrdgr6s Then, after building what you can with genealogy records, then compare that with DNA evidence.

[@shannondenbow]

Can several people be linked in the GedCom files?

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

A Gedcom file is a family tree file, so many people can be matched in it.

[@shannondenbow]

@@FamilyHistoryFanatics yes I know that. In your video you make a comment about people being link on the Gedcom file via GedMatch. I was wondering how many people, or if only person can be attached to the GedCom at a time. Sorry for the confusion.

[@margielemasters7047]

When doing adoption research, can gedcom be added and removed ? Can it be made private so that it does not confuse others?

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

GEDmatch does not allow privatized family trees. But you can add and remove trees on GEDmatch. You can also privatize living persons on your GEDmatch tree and put multiple theories in your tree to see what works. Here is a video about privatizing living persons. kzbin.info/www/bejne/aIqqYZuGrLureZY

[@JohnLubenow]

I'm getting some pretty bad results with this tool. Multiple cases where using the one to one DNA compare the MCRA is 5 generations back but with the Gedcom match, they are showing the MCRA as from 1520 with no matches in the Gedcom file past about 1600

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

Which is why you shouldn't rely on this as the be all end all. The tool uses computer matching (based on what people have put in their GEDCOM files). It still requires you to evaluate each one.

[@JohnLubenow]

@@FamilyHistoryFanatics After I went through all my matches, not a single one was anywhere close. But as you said its basing it on the two gedcom files. While the links between the gedcom files were correct, the connections to the people shown as matches was always wrong.

[@kelvinize]

MRCA is greyed out for me. Does anyone know how to activate it?

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

Do you have a free account or a paid account? This tool is apart of their premium features.

[@junebutka6571]

I noticed that the path says my 7th ggf is my 9ggf. similar paths noted for other ancestors.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

They have been working out some bugs the last couple of weeks. Now that more people are using it, problems are easier to spot.

[@penelopesoady5849]

I have over 5 thousand people in my tree. Will Gedmatch accept a Gedcom with so many in the tree?

[@paulbaltzer4745]

Penelope Soady Yes, my GEDCOM has over 5,000 and was accepted.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

Yes. But make sure your privatize the living and don't have any non-biological relatives. Check out this video to privatize and upload your file. kzbin.info/www/bejne/aIqqYZuGrLureZY

[@TravelingPumpkinWitch]

If there is a rainbow dna symbol next to a name what does it mean? I been googling it and can’t find any information

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

That person is linked to a DNA kit.

[@barblee5294]

Will GEDmatch privatize living people when a gedcom is uploaded, or do I need to do that prior to uploading?

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

They will privatize living people.

[@PrazHymn83]

It looks like living people are labeled as HIDDEN.

[@michellemounts6677]

I was hoping you would click on the name with the score of 6.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

Well, I can't click on everything. Another video another time will do a more in depth analysis on these potential MRCAs.

[@sarahlouanncookholmes3279]

Does this only work if both you and the match have uploaded a tree?

[@sarahlouanncookholmes3279]

Okay, you just answered my question.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

Great question. Glad you found the answer. Never be afraid to ask questions in this community. If we have answered it, we'll let you know. If we haven't, it might be the source of a future video.

[@roberthopgood1894]

What does the * beside Name mean?????

[@PMC-Japan]

Alias

[@roberthopgood1894]

@@PMC-Japan Isn't it better to use the Also Known As fact??

[@PMC-Japan]

@@roberthopgood1894 That is not an available option in the Gedmatch profile I don't think.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

Yep, PMC is right - alias name. And alias and also known as are interchangeable. One is shorter than the other.

[@robalexander417]

It appears this tool is only available to Tier1 members

[@denisela3403]

Ohhhhh

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

It is

[@seanforbe]

I have now watched 1½ minutes still no info on how to find common ancestor :-(

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

In the description, I created chapters so you can know where to skip ahead to get to the content you're interested in. 0:00 Introduction 0:40 A Brief History of GEDCOMs on GEDmatch 1:15 Prepare to Use the Define the MRCA from Your DNA Matches Tool 3:45 A Review of the Potential Recent Common Ancestor 6:47 Descendant DNA Research with GEDmatch 7:19 Not all MRCAs are Accurate 9:55 GEDCOM X Comparison

[@logothaironsides2942]

it doesnt actually sound any different to thrulines on ancestry which is a free facility if you have your DNA done by them

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

It's very similar to ThruLines but ThruLines only compares DNA from other Ancestry test takers. GEDmatch can compare your DNA to those who have tested at Ancestry, 23andMe, MyHeritage DNA, and Family Tree DNA (among others). That's the game changer.

[@logothaironsides2942]

@@FamilyHistoryFanatics or find absolutely nobody as in my case despite my 4 large multinational gedcoms

[@logothaironsides2942]

incidentally I have numerous thrulines on ancestry, one couple , I have about 19 cousins on . My rellies are in OZ,canada ,USA and south Africa as well as Europe. Wouldnt care about the lack of matches BUT I just paid for a month to use the tool :(

[@mrs.bodge-it]

I had ZERO MRCA :(

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

That's entirely possible. The most likely reason is that your matches aren't in GEDmatch with family trees. .

[@wsanders1]

Is this a paid tool? I don't see it on the list of "free tools".

[@Belboz99]

Gedmatch has "too many connections"... lol, I think this video just caused a bit of a Slashdot effect.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

Perhaps

[@vincentfarris]

951 and no matches

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

GEDmatch isn't as large as other websites. I can see why you don't have matches.

[@klondo]

Looks like your grandfather and I match..lol

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

Perhaps. That would be fun.

[@klondo]

@@FamilyHistoryFanatics I ran your grandfathers gedmatch kit against mine,so however accurate that is

[@dgsmith9969]

Too many people marking all ancestors as "private." No help in this case.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

On Gedmatch?

[@paulfromperth5713]

Looks like the more common a name the lower the score is.

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

There is some truth in what you say. Common name ancestors are difficult to research whether in genetic genealogy or traditional research.

[@billdillon8139]

That's a Tier 1 tool :(

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

It is.

[@marybolton9814]

My son had 23& me DNA done and they didn't get it right at all ‼️‼️‼️ It is a rip off 😡

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

Do you mean the matches or the ethnicity results. I'm not fond of the ethnicity results. However, the DNA relative matching is fairly accurate for close relatives. In that respect, the DNA tests are not scams.

[@freddymachado3895]

This is about the most unnecessarily confusing website I have ever seen. Do not waste your time!

[@FamilyHistoryFanatics]

I'll admit, for those people who don't use it regularly, it is very confusing.