We discussed ethnicity estimates previously. See our post. A shared match is someone who appears on both your list of matches and someone else’s. If you and some else have taken a DNA test, and based on the trees linked to those DNA tests, have the same person on both trees, that is a shared match. Shared matches can help you figure out how you’re related. Companies like Ancestry let’s you filter your matches by parent, even if your parents have not taken a DNA test.
For instance, according to Ancestry, “we can group your matches according to the parent they’re related to. To assign your matches to one parent or the other, we need to find shared DNA segments that cover your whole genome. That means we need a lot of shared DNA segments on both sides of your family to work with. Then, we divide the shared segments into the halves from each parent. If we can link at least 90% of the DNA segments you share with a match to one side of your family, we assign the match to that parent.”
Ancestry does indicate they can’t determine which parent is which, meaning your research will help you determine if parent one is your maternal or paternal line and which is parent two.
Matches appear in different categories based on the suspected relationship you have with those matches. These categories include Parent/Child, Immediate Family, Close Family, and Cousins. The closer the relationship is, the higher the match.
On your matches list, select the match you are interested in and click it. There you can view their tree, if there is one, to see if you have common surnames or a common ancestor. On some programs, you can edit relationships and send messages to connect with your matches. You can also add notes to your matches.
Matches are a good genealogy tool to further your research and connect with relatives you didn’t know you had.
FamilyFinders