An interesting DNA match

[SueMay]

I wondered if anyone else has come up with something similar before.

This afternoon I have discovered that both my husband and myself have a person in common who we each share a DNA match with. However, when I look to see if, for example. if I share a match with anyone else with them, it comes up with no one. It's the same for my husband.

This is making it more intriguing.

My husband's match with them is 16cM across 1 segment.
And mine is 11cM across 1 segment.
Both predicting a 5th-8th cousin match.

Sadly the person's tree is private but I have contacted them and can't wait to work this one out. Especially after recently solving the mystery of a DNA match to someone in Canada, whose mother was given away as a child.

Hopefully we manage to solve this one too.

 

[Bryman]

when I look to see if, for example. if I share a match with anyone else with them, it comes up with no one.

This is a case of Ancestry not being completely truthful. It actually means that there are no matches where 20cM or less are shared, ie no close relatives, only distant relatives.

 

[peter]

This afternoon I have discovered that both my husband and myself have a person in common who we each share a DNA match with. However, when I look to see if, for example. if I share a match with anyone else with them, it comes up with no one. It's the same for my husband.

Are you assuming that because you and your husband both match the third party you should be showing up as shared matches? That could only be the case if you and your husband were matches for each other, which I assume you're not.

Something else to bear in mind is that we all have so many distant cousins, and so many matches, that the chance that the same match turns up in any two lists must be quite high. What's most surprising to me is not that the match was in both lists, but that you actually noticed.

Stick to the strategies in my Masterclass and you'll avoid wasting time on wild turkey chases (saying intentionally modified as it is Thanksgiving Day at the time of writing).

 

[SueMay]

No, I don't expect or think that my husband should be a match. I am assuming, though, that one of my ancestors' descendants and one of my husband's must have had a child which is why we both match the person concerned.

The only way I discovered it was when a match came up for my husband in an area I was exploring where I am trying to help solve an adoption case related to my husband, so I decided to check it out. In the process of opening it ancestry automatically always opens with my DNA test and I then have to change to refer to my husband's test. It caught me off guard at first and I was confused but was, as I said before, fascinated and found it quite interesting.

It would be interesting to hear if others have also had a similar experience, especially if you (Peter) think that the chances are quite high.

Not to worry, I do stick to your Masterclass and have found it helpful. A little bit of fun on the side doesn't hurt and can bring up some interesting stories.

Enjoy Thanksgiving!

 

[peter]

The reason I mentioned the Masterclass is because the strategies there aren't affected by other members' trees being private (rather like Common Ancestors and ThruLines which came along later).

I am assuming, though, that one of my ancestors' descendants and one of my husband's must have had a child which is why we both match the person concerned.

It's just possible, but it is probably at least a thousand times more likely that you and your husband have completely different connections to the third party.

That's why it's not worth following up unless you get access to the private tree and something jumps out. However if that were the case you would have found this person by following my strategies....

 

[Pauline]

My sister and I both have a match with a documented cousin who also appears among my husband's brother's matches. I share 20cM across 2 segments with this match, my sister 11cM and my brother in law 9cM, both across 1 segment.

 

[Pauline]

I am assuming, though, that one of my ancestors' descendants and one of my husband's must have had a child which is why we both match the person concerned.

It's just possible, but it is probably at least a thousand times more likely that you and your husband have completely different connections to the third party.

I've been trying to get my ahead around this - aren't these two extracts saying the same thing is different ways?

Unless it is spurious, then the match will be a blood relative of both SueMay and her husband, and while that doesn't mean that SueMay is related to her husband, it surely means they have relatives in common, doesn't it? And if so, that means that at some time in the past one of his blood relatives had a child with one of hers.

 

[SueMay]

Unless it is spurious, then the match will be a blood relative of both SueMay and her husband, and while that doesn't mean that SueMay is related to her husband, it surely means they have relatives in common, doesn't it? And if so, that means that at some time in the past one of his blood relatives had a child with one of hers.

That's exactly what I'm thinking.

 

[peter]

Unless it is spurious, then the match will be a blood relative of both SueMay and her husband, and while that doesn't mean that SueMay is related to her husband, it surely means they have relatives in common, doesn't it? And if so, that means that at some time in the past one of his blood relatives had a child with one of hers.

That might be true but it's not going to help. For example, the match with SueMay could be on the other party's mother's side, and the match with SueMay's husband could be on their father's side.

We're all related - the only thing that makes this match special is that it has been noticed. Wild goose chases like this can stop us from focusing on the matches that are less intriguing, but ultimately more important to our research.

 

[John Dancy]

My cousin's son is a 'fourth cousin' on my wife's DNA match list, although quite low down. We don't know at present whether the connection is through my cousin or her ex husband. We are uncertain as to why he had the test done as he has no tree, and is not answering queries, despite the badgering by his mum who is eager to find out whether my wife is another of her cousins.