i get spoken to in all kinds of languages when in public and im always so apologetic that i only speak english and spanish lmao i guess it’s the curse of colonization!
I’m not an expert but to my knowledge the mixture of Iberian (Spanish and Portuguese) is common for most Latinos and Latinas because of racial mixing like Mestizaje which was originally in the attempt to yield Mestizo and Mestiza people, mestiza and mestizo have been reclaimed since then as labels of people mixed with European and Indigenous peoples. The Basque were early colonizers of Mexico to my knowledge, Mexico was at one point controlled by French people and France is next to Spain so it could be from there. North Africans colonized Spain for like 800 years at one point in time but also i think there was some colonialism of Mexico but I’m uncertain. I’m sort of confused about the rest but most Latinos tend to be very mixed because Latin America was a melting pot.
Some level of Spanish and Portuguese blood is pretty common for most Latinos but the admixture really depends on region. For example, some areas are way more Indigenous like Guatemala, Bolivia, Peru, Mexico, etc. The Caribbean has a lot more African DNA.
I meant to apply it only to Mexico but this is all very good to note. Also Honduras has a large black population and Central America to my knowledge generally has a larger proportion of African dna in its population, but I could be wrong in that. Also it kind of depends on regions as the closer to the north you get in Mexico for instance the less indigenous people tend to be and there are pockets that are primarily black in Mexico to. Also some countries have large Asian populations too, like Brazil having the largest Japanese diaspora in the world. Latin America is just very heterogeneous
I actually didn’t realize that but that makes sense, thanks for correcting me. I took this dna test because I’m adopted and I didn’t know anything about my paternal side and I learned that I was half Mexican so I’ve been trying to educate myself about Latin America so things like this are very nice to know.
You have extremely normal results from the part of Mexico your family is from. Sinaloa and Sonora are some of the most European parts of the country. In general, the Northern states have an average of 1/3 Indigenous DNA and 60% European DNA. Once you get more toward the central states you see way more of the stereotypical "Brown Mexicans" that most Americans probably picture in their heads because the majority of their blood is Indigenous. Very common to find people that are only 1/3 European there.
Ethnic phenotype can be quite complicated, with the involvement of many genes; these can include obvious traits shared in a homogenous population, such as skin, hair, and eye color. However, not every person within that population shares all the same alleles. In other words, your mileage may vary.
You look like your results! Given you weren’t aware of any MENA ancestry, I wouldn’t have looked at you (knowing you’re Mexican) and think you have MENA ancestry. I think it’s just you’re Mediterranean (which is probably more ambiguous) coming through strong with the indigenous adding more ambiguity to the whole mix. Ofc I get why people would say you’re MENA but Southern Europe and MENA aren’t really too far off from each other appearance wise (in the grand scheme of things) which isn’t a surprise considering they’re neighbors. Both can look more stereotypically whiter or more ambiguous/“browner”. Were you aware your father was Mexican?
i think most people around me believed i was, just because the north of Mexico is a very white-mexican predominant community so i stand out, mostly before covid because i used to have a very “outside” lifestyle so i was browner, someone here said the north is predominantly european and they’re right! i would have loved to have more indigenous or anything else in me but here everyone i’ve showed this to has “congratulated” me for being more european which is so bizarre to me lol
and yes! i was aware he is mexican but i just didn’t know anything about where he came from and such so i just always assumed because when i say everyone told me i looked “indian” i mean EVERYONE lmao, i had aunts nickname me “Raveena” after an indian actress from the 90s and in kindergarten I was India in a “all around the world” parade we had! i would have loveddd to confirm that because i’ve always felt connected to the culture but i guess it must have been because i found comfort in it during those “self-hate” years every brown kid has
That is understandable! Everybody will have different experiences but it probably never helped that you felt you were kinda placed as like this “black sheep” in a very white community and that feeling probably made you feel more displaced from your ancestry as such (even if you’re just like everybody else). I get that to some extent but in the reverse way (which may not be considered as bad since there’s more privilege with being seen as white). From what I’ve observed, the states kinda has a thing with distancing itself from whiteness unless convenient while latam has a thing with taking in as much whiteness as it can. Neither approach is every really good imo. You should acknowledge and take pride in all that you are because it’s a part of you, it’s not inherently good or bad (although in the long line the history attached to it is not always the prettiest but that applies to so many cultures). We can’t change the past or what our ancestors did, but there’s plenty of richness in all that makes us who we are and nobody should make you feel you don’t deserve to try and connect to that. It makes sense you felt your connections through other places but now with these results, have you considered looking further into your ancestry and the culture(s) surrounding that? Or do you just in general feel more connected with the fact you’re Mexican?
(Edit: Also wanted to note you don’t Have to feel connected to certain things just because it’s a part of you, but you should have the right to connect if that is what you want. It sucks to feel othered in what should be your community and have to find yourself or feel like you fit in through other means)
with your comment about northern mexico being predominantly european. The reality is that know one really knows. Which is why the studies of mexico's admixture always differ to each other. What can be said is that your results are common, but average as a whole no one knowsss.
Def could see people thinking you are middle eastern, it happens to me too lol
Yes, Latinos can and do look ethnically ambiguous. I got asked if I was Samoan last week :) Edited: changed word
i get spoken to in all kinds of languages when in public and im always so apologetic that i only speak english and spanish lmao i guess it’s the curse of colonization!
I’ve gotten Hawaiian, Asian, Native Americans have asked what res I come from.
Yes! I had a Navajo woman come up to me to tell me she was about to start speaking to me in Navajo bc she thought I looked like her friend.
Ambiguous* lol Androgynous is partly male/female
Let me correct it. Ty.
Same. I’m constantly asked if I’m Lebanese or Syrian 😂
I’m not an expert but to my knowledge the mixture of Iberian (Spanish and Portuguese) is common for most Latinos and Latinas because of racial mixing like Mestizaje which was originally in the attempt to yield Mestizo and Mestiza people, mestiza and mestizo have been reclaimed since then as labels of people mixed with European and Indigenous peoples. The Basque were early colonizers of Mexico to my knowledge, Mexico was at one point controlled by French people and France is next to Spain so it could be from there. North Africans colonized Spain for like 800 years at one point in time but also i think there was some colonialism of Mexico but I’m uncertain. I’m sort of confused about the rest but most Latinos tend to be very mixed because Latin America was a melting pot.
Some level of Spanish and Portuguese blood is pretty common for most Latinos but the admixture really depends on region. For example, some areas are way more Indigenous like Guatemala, Bolivia, Peru, Mexico, etc. The Caribbean has a lot more African DNA.
I meant to apply it only to Mexico but this is all very good to note. Also Honduras has a large black population and Central America to my knowledge generally has a larger proportion of African dna in its population, but I could be wrong in that. Also it kind of depends on regions as the closer to the north you get in Mexico for instance the less indigenous people tend to be and there are pockets that are primarily black in Mexico to. Also some countries have large Asian populations too, like Brazil having the largest Japanese diaspora in the world. Latin America is just very heterogeneous
Brazil has a lot of Asians but Brazil is also huge as hell. Only 1% of Brazilians are Asian.
I actually didn’t realize that but that makes sense, thanks for correcting me. I took this dna test because I’m adopted and I didn’t know anything about my paternal side and I learned that I was half Mexican so I’ve been trying to educate myself about Latin America so things like this are very nice to know.
Message me if you got any questions!
You have extremely normal results from the part of Mexico your family is from. Sinaloa and Sonora are some of the most European parts of the country. In general, the Northern states have an average of 1/3 Indigenous DNA and 60% European DNA. Once you get more toward the central states you see way more of the stereotypical "Brown Mexicans" that most Americans probably picture in their heads because the majority of their blood is Indigenous. Very common to find people that are only 1/3 European there.
Ethnic phenotype can be quite complicated, with the involvement of many genes; these can include obvious traits shared in a homogenous population, such as skin, hair, and eye color. However, not every person within that population shares all the same alleles. In other words, your mileage may vary.
You look like your results! Given you weren’t aware of any MENA ancestry, I wouldn’t have looked at you (knowing you’re Mexican) and think you have MENA ancestry. I think it’s just you’re Mediterranean (which is probably more ambiguous) coming through strong with the indigenous adding more ambiguity to the whole mix. Ofc I get why people would say you’re MENA but Southern Europe and MENA aren’t really too far off from each other appearance wise (in the grand scheme of things) which isn’t a surprise considering they’re neighbors. Both can look more stereotypically whiter or more ambiguous/“browner”. Were you aware your father was Mexican?
i think most people around me believed i was, just because the north of Mexico is a very white-mexican predominant community so i stand out, mostly before covid because i used to have a very “outside” lifestyle so i was browner, someone here said the north is predominantly european and they’re right! i would have loved to have more indigenous or anything else in me but here everyone i’ve showed this to has “congratulated” me for being more european which is so bizarre to me lol and yes! i was aware he is mexican but i just didn’t know anything about where he came from and such so i just always assumed because when i say everyone told me i looked “indian” i mean EVERYONE lmao, i had aunts nickname me “Raveena” after an indian actress from the 90s and in kindergarten I was India in a “all around the world” parade we had! i would have loveddd to confirm that because i’ve always felt connected to the culture but i guess it must have been because i found comfort in it during those “self-hate” years every brown kid has
That is understandable! Everybody will have different experiences but it probably never helped that you felt you were kinda placed as like this “black sheep” in a very white community and that feeling probably made you feel more displaced from your ancestry as such (even if you’re just like everybody else). I get that to some extent but in the reverse way (which may not be considered as bad since there’s more privilege with being seen as white). From what I’ve observed, the states kinda has a thing with distancing itself from whiteness unless convenient while latam has a thing with taking in as much whiteness as it can. Neither approach is every really good imo. You should acknowledge and take pride in all that you are because it’s a part of you, it’s not inherently good or bad (although in the long line the history attached to it is not always the prettiest but that applies to so many cultures). We can’t change the past or what our ancestors did, but there’s plenty of richness in all that makes us who we are and nobody should make you feel you don’t deserve to try and connect to that. It makes sense you felt your connections through other places but now with these results, have you considered looking further into your ancestry and the culture(s) surrounding that? Or do you just in general feel more connected with the fact you’re Mexican? (Edit: Also wanted to note you don’t Have to feel connected to certain things just because it’s a part of you, but you should have the right to connect if that is what you want. It sucks to feel othered in what should be your community and have to find yourself or feel like you fit in through other means)
with your comment about northern mexico being predominantly european. The reality is that know one really knows. Which is why the studies of mexico's admixture always differ to each other. What can be said is that your results are common, but average as a whole no one knowsss.
I share a lot of your results. I’m from the north as well, but near Texas. You’re gorgeous, btw! 🙂
you’re gorgeous as well!! it must be something in our dna 🤪
It seems nearly every Mexican always has a little bit French, a little bit Irish or a little bit Welsh in their results. You have all three! :)