Family Tree DNA Holiday Sale through December 31

[Cheri Mello]

(Cross posted to Azores, Madeira, and Island Routes lists)

Family Tree DNA (FTDNA) has begun their Holiday Sale through 31 December 2021 (1:59 a.m CST, UTC - 6, 1 January 2022). They are closed on that day so there's a chance that they may extend that date by a couple of days (as sometimes someone has technical issues. Please, don't wait until the last minute).

DNA is just another tool to use in your genealogy. And you can find more cousins you didn't know about and expand your tree!

Below is the sale pricing. FTDNA has many types of tests and it can be overwhelming. For those who have never tested before, start off with the Family Finder for $49 USD (add $9.95 S&H - includes return postage for U.S. residents). This is what is generically called an autosomal DNA test (it's the same one sold by Ancestry, 23 and Me, etc). It covers all your lines back about 200 years from your birth (i.e. You were born in 1950 so you have DNA in you back until about 1750).

If you are working on a pai incognito line, you will need a strict line male from that line to take a Y-DNA test (all men who are the son of the son of the son of that pai incognito). Because it will take longer to get a workable match, you'll probably want to add on Family Finder so you can work with those matches while you wait for a workable match on your Y-DNA.

For the first time, I'm starting to recommend the Big Y test. I was reluctant to recommend such an expensive test. Now that the pioneers have gone out and built the town, things are starting to happen with the Big Y database. There's nothing wrong with starting off with a smaller Y-DNA test and working your way up to Big Y (although it will cost you about $77 more in the long run at the current prices). This 30 minute video done by an FTDNA employee explains Big Y and how it solved a genealogy problem: https://www.familysearch.org/rootstech/rtc2021/session/big-y-what-is-it-why-do-i-need-it

The mtDNA traces everyone's mother's mother's mother's line or the bottom of the pedigree chart. Once that database reaches critical mass, about half of the matches will be within a genealogical time frame.

If you have tested with Ancestry, My Hertiage, or 23andMe, you can transfer to FTDNA for free an unlock their tools for $9 USD instead of $19!

For those who have tested with FTDNA and want to order a different type of test or upgrade to more markers, log into your FTDNA page and order from there.

For those who have never tested or are testing a relative who has never tested, order through one of the projects below (if you have ancestry from both, just pick one and send me an email and I'll send instructions how to add you to the other project).

Azores: https://www.familytreedna.com/group-join.aspx?Group=AzoresIslands

Madeira: https://www.familytreedna.com/group-join.aspx?Group=MadeiraPortugal

Questions? Feel free to ask away via the list or directly to email.

Cheri Mello, Family Tree DNA Administrator (volunteer), Azores DNA Project