Celtic Genetics of France

[aapark221]

Hello. I am new to posting so I apologize if this topic has been discussed in another thread but I would like to ask and get some feedback:

My mother who is undoubtedly 100% French Canadian (from Canada/All French surnames/speaks French) took the MyHeritage DNA test which came back with a result of 66% Irish, Scottish and Welsh. Would it be fair to say that this is accurate and that this is indeed a Celtic genetics that it is picking up on but those of France. MyHeritage Labels this as "Irish, Scottish, and Welsh" because this is where Celtic culture/language/genetics are still familiar to the average person. My assumption is that 66% Celtic would make sense, but most of these ancestors never stepped foot on the British Isles.

Feel free to criticize this in any way. Thanks!

[Óttar]

Hello. I am new to posting so I apologize if this topic has been discussed in another thread but I would like to ask and get some feedback:

My mother who is undoubtedly 100% French Canadian (from Canada/All French surnames/speaks French) took the MyHeritage DNA test which came back with a result of 66% Irish, Scottish and Welsh. Would it be fair to say that this is accurate and that this is indeed a Celtic genetics that it is picking up on but those of France. MyHeritage Labels this as "Irish, Scottish, and Welsh" because this is where Celtic culture/language/genetics are still familiar to the average person. My assumption is that 66% Celtic would make sense, but most of these ancestors never stepped foot on the British Isles.

Feel free to criticize this in any way. Thanks!

What is your father's side?

Irish, Celtic Scots, and Welshmen belong to a sort of Celtic that is called 'Insular Celtic'. Further, Irish and Celtic Scots are called 'Goidelic' Celts. Welsh are called Brythonic Celts along with the Bretons in the Northwest of France. Prior to the Roman and Germanic Frankish invasions, the Gauls, the prehistoric population of modern-day 'France' were Continental (as opposed to Insular) Celts. I would imagine, that a DNA test worth its salt would be able to differentiate between Insular Celts and their subdivisions Goidelic and Brythonic Celts and Continental Celts (split between the Gauls and the later Bretons who are related to the Welsh).

An alternative possibility is that they may have initially been Irish but then assimilated into the French Canadian population. I bring this up as a possibility because one of my English ancestors, surname Farnsworth, migrated to Canada, converted to Catholicism, and Gallicized his name to the more French sounding Phaneuf. Maybe yours is a case of assimilation. All of this is, of course, conjecture. More info is needed.

[aapark221]

Great explanation. I appreciate it.

My mothers DNA results were Irish/Scottish/Welsh Greek, Iberian, and Italian which makes sense. 50% of MY results came from these groups. The other 50% consisted of English, Scandinavian and Baltic so it would appear there is little or no Celtic influence from my fathers side.

My Heritage only offers like 13 ethnic groups of Europe so any distinction between "Insular Celts" and "Continental Celts" would not be clear. This is my suspicion that any type of Celtic group would placed all together and just given the label of Irish/Scottish/Welsh. This just bothers me because it is given the geographic range of the western British Isles which would not be accurate if it is as you say a "Continental" influence. I would say this percentage is something similar to Welsh or Breton. I've considered the Irish assimilation into then French Canadian population also but I don't think it would be the point that 2/3 of my ancestors from Quebec were Irish, but it is a possibility.

[celticdragongod]

Hello. I am new to posting so I apologize if this topic has been discussed in another thread but I would like to ask and get some feedback:

My mother who is undoubtedly 100% French Canadian (from Canada/All French surnames/speaks French) took the MyHeritage DNA test which came back with a result of 66% Irish, Scottish and Welsh. Would it be fair to say that this is accurate and that this is indeed a Celtic genetics that it is picking up on but those of France. MyHeritage Labels this as "Irish, Scottish, and Welsh" because this is where Celtic culture/language/genetics are still familiar to the average person. My assumption is that 66% Celtic would make sense, but most of these ancestors never stepped foot on the British Isles.

Feel free to criticize this in any way. Thanks!

Is it possible that she has Breton ancestry?

[Grace O'Malley]

Hello. I am new to posting so I apologize if this topic has been discussed in another thread but I would like to ask and get some feedback:

My mother who is undoubtedly 100% French Canadian (from Canada/All French surnames/speaks French) took the MyHeritage DNA test which came back with a result of 66% Irish, Scottish and Welsh. Would it be fair to say that this is accurate and that this is indeed a Celtic genetics that it is picking up on but those of France. MyHeritage Labels this as "Irish, Scottish, and Welsh" because this is where Celtic culture/language/genetics are still familiar to the average person. My assumption is that 66% Celtic would make sense, but most of these ancestors never stepped foot on the British Isles.

Feel free to criticize this in any way. Thanks!

I'd be interested in seeing her updated results. A lot of French-Canadians are now getting 100% France in the updated results. The Irish, Scottish and Welsh category is from before the update.

[aapark221]

I have re uploaded the raw data a few times and it has the same results roughly. I'm not sure if getting results would require the actual sample to have to be redone or not. The only other group that would reasonably replace it would be the "Broadly North and West European" which covers all of France.

[Grace O'Malley]

I have re uploaded the raw data a few times and it has the same results roughly. I'm not sure if getting results would require the actual sample to have to be redone or not. The only other group that would reasonably replace it would be the "Broadly North and West European" which covers all of France.

I just presumed it was Ancestry but you are using MyHeritage results. I don't think MyHeritage is accurate for a lot of populations. Where did you mother originally test and what result did they give? Like celticdragongod said Bretons appear to be quite connected to Britain and Ireland and Northern French in general get a lot of cross over in dna tests.

[aapark221]

I just presumed it was Ancestry but you are using MyHeritage results. I don't think MyHeritage is accurate for a lot of populations. Where did you mother originally test and what result did they give? Like celticdragongod said Bretons appear to be quite connected to Britain and Ireland and Northern French in general get a lot of cross over in dna tests.

That is pretty much what I have concluded. That this element is from North/West France. Not Brittany necessarily but from what I have read most French Canadians came from western France and I have heard through family members that at least some of my ancestors came from the Orleans area of France. This test was original done about 11 Months ago only through MyHeritage. I have uploaded the DNA to a few other sites and it is even more general. I think the MyHeritage test is accurate, just not detailed enough, and does not give enough of an explanation about the ethnic group, instead its more about culture.

[J. Ketch]

The MyHeritage ethnicity estimate is pretty useless unfortunately. Better to analyse your raw data/put it through Gedmatch.