User Tag List

Thanks Thanks:  6
Likes Likes:  11
Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 12
  1. #1
    Join Date
    Dec 2010
    Location
    Brooklyn, New York, Earth [lol]
    Posts
    312
    Reviews
    Read 0 Reviews
    Post Thanks / Like
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Rep Power
    0

    Default African Ancestry/Genealogy

    Hi everyone,

    I have a question for you all. Have you ever heard of an African in search of their ancestry despite the fact that they were born and raised in the continent of Africa? Like me for example, I was born in Nigeria but I wondered, how is it that my family ended up staying in West Africa while the continent of Africa was being torn apart? And while thinking about that question, I started to wonder, if we stayed in Nigeria, does that mean that we were one of the people who helped capture and sell other Africans to Europeans? I know its a horrible thought but I was just curious to know if there were other Africans who have thought of this. When I look at my mother and father's lineage, I end up like this >>>

  2. Likes Miss T liked this post
  3. #2
    mariajay is offline Active Nappturality Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    London, England
    Posts
    341
    Reviews
    Read 0 Reviews
    Post Thanks / Like
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Rep Power
    0

    Default

    Well, my ex is of Nigerian background who is well read on Africa ancient and more recent history. He tells me that Igboo people are descendants of Ethiopeans. Don't know if anyone else has researched this. It is an interesting topic though as most people i know who are searching or have searched their lineage are the ones whose Ancestors were taken out of Africa. Can i just say that slavery is the European man's history and i know that some of our ancestors were offered to Europeans by their own,but my belief is that they did this in innocence. also some of those same people were turned on and also captured. We were the ones to lose out not Europeans.

  4. Likes underthehood liked this post
  5. #3
    Join Date
    Dec 2010
    Posts
    144
    Reviews
    Read 0 Reviews
    Post Thanks / Like
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Rep Power
    0

    Default

    If Igbo descend from Ethiopians, I wonder if the Fulani aren't as well, and even some Ugandan ethnic groups. I found out they my recent ancestor on my African side was half Ethiopian and I'm always being told by others that I look like women from these Ethnic/National groups. That's so interesting.

    I also read that Igbo descend from Jews, but there are Ethiopian Ethnic Jews, so...

    My African parent knows very little about their specific lineage. And even though they are west African, and were born into a single ethnic identity, their blood line has significant and recent admixture of people from all over the African diaspora.

    We have lineage from repatriated/liberated African slaves from the Americas. Many people don't seem to take this into account we thinking about West/Central African ancestry.

  6. #4
    Join Date
    Jul 2011
    Location
    Detroit/Motown, Mi
    Posts
    61
    Reviews
    Read 0 Reviews
    Post Thanks / Like
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Rep Power
    0

    Default

    I don't see anything wrong with being a person born in Africa tracing back their African Ancestry... you never know how a certain individual may have gotten to a specific area in Africa and started a family...especially with all the traveling that was going on in Ancient times.

    As far as slavery...from my understanding...there are different reasons Africans sold other Africans to the Europeans. African slavery...was not the same as European slavery....so perhaps...they did not think it would be what it turned out to be...initially.
    Some traded slaves for Guns and such...
    Some did not know the slaves would be taken forever...
    I recently found out I am a descendant of the Igbo tribe...and what I've researched about their slavery...was that the slave..did no more work than the master...and was even allowed to have slaves of their own. The slaves in Africa..were not done like the ones taken by Europeans.

    ...Peace&Love...

  7. Thanks ~GAN~ thanked for this post
  8. #5
    Join Date
    Dec 2010
    Location
    Glen Ellyn, IL
    Posts
    480
    Reviews
    Read 0 Reviews
    Post Thanks / Like
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Rep Power
    14

    Default

    I just received my MtDNA test results from African Ancestry.com. I am a 99.7% match to Akan people living in Ghana today.

  9. Likes ~GAN~, Bithiya liked this post
  10. #6
    Join Date
    Dec 2005
    Posts
    6,268
    Reviews
    Read 0 Reviews
    Post Thanks / Like
    Mentioned
    2 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Rep Power
    30

    Default Re: African Ancestry/Genealogy

    I just mailed off my packet to africanancestry.com! My dad took the swabs and then I will eventually do one to get my mom's side. I can't wait to get the results!

  11. Likes underthehood liked this post
  12. #7
    Join Date
    Dec 2005
    Posts
    6,268
    Reviews
    Read 0 Reviews
    Post Thanks / Like
    Mentioned
    2 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Rep Power
    30

    Default Re: African Ancestry/Genealogy

    I got my results back and there is a 100% match for the Ibo tribe in Nigeria!
    Last edited by ~GAN~; 11-29-2014 at 01:32 AM.

  13. Thanks underthehood thanked for this post
    Likes underthehood, Bithiya liked this post
  14. #8
    Join Date
    Aug 2011
    Location
    Canada
    Posts
    514
    Reviews
    Read 0 Reviews
    Post Thanks / Like
    Mentioned
    3 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Rep Power
    16

    Default Re: African Ancestry/Genealogy

    Quote Originally Posted by ~GAN~ View Post
    I got my results back and there is a 100% match for the Ibo tribe in Nigeria!

    Congratulations GAN!!!!!!!!!! I'm so happy for you

    How does it feel?????? Any next steps? Does knowing this make you want to do anything?

    I found out a little while ago where my mom's side of the family is from, still working on figuring out dad's side.
    ----------It is not the eyes that are blind, but the hearts - Quran 22:46 ----------
    ╔═══╗
    ║███║ ¸¸.•*¨*•♫♪
    ║ (o) Now Playing: Confessions of a Long Hair Diva
    ╚═══╝

  15. Thanks ~GAN~ thanked for this post
    Likes ~GAN~ liked this post
  16. #9
    Join Date
    Dec 2005
    Posts
    6,268
    Reviews
    Read 0 Reviews
    Post Thanks / Like
    Mentioned
    2 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Rep Power
    30

    Default Re: African Ancestry/Genealogy

    Thank you!! It feels great!! It confirms for me that I truly am "African-American". Since it was 100% from that tribe, I can't help but want to trace as much ancestry as possible from Nigeria to the US. I know its going to be hard but I'm dying to know. I want to do my mom's side next but its going to be a minute before I can. I've been researching that tribe to see what they live like and what they believe.

    Its like, the melanin in my skin has made it all the way from Nigeria to the United States! I wonder how many families were sold and separated, what was my original last name? How were they treated? What were their slave masters like. My maiden name is pretty common so I have a feeling the slave master probably had many slaves. I wonder if the women were raped and mistreated by this particular slave owner. I wonder who rebelled and tried to fight back. What happened to them after the civil war? Were any ancestors possibly free or were they all enslaved? So many questions!! In my lifetime, I want to get these questions answered. Maybe find out how they do all that they do on "Finding Your Roots" so I can get a detailed family tree. Maybe see what land my ancestors lived on. I know my grandpa was always very stern and a very hard worker, but he didn't talk much about his life. Maybe because it was too painful. I don't know. He passed away before I even had an interest in this so I never got to ask. My grandma is on life support and has Alzheimer's so I can't ask her either. My dad doesn't know much about it. So many things to learn and I probably won't even be able to know most of these questions. I would like to try though!


    ETA: underthehood, once you found out, were your relatives able to piece anything together once you knew what country in Africa your ancestors were from?
    Last edited by ~GAN~; 11-30-2014 at 03:25 PM.

  17. Thanks underthehood thanked for this post
    Likes underthehood liked this post
  18. #10
    Join Date
    Aug 2011
    Location
    Canada
    Posts
    514
    Reviews
    Read 0 Reviews
    Post Thanks / Like
    Mentioned
    3 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Rep Power
    16

    Default Re: African Ancestry/Genealogy

    OMG sis, I was getting goosebumps as I was reading that!!!!!!!!

    I'm really lucky in that I have only a generation of separation between me and Africa. My two grandparents that are still alive are there. My parents came to N. America to study in the 80's. But because I'm from a mixed Arab-African bloodline it's really hard to get the side of my family that hold tightly to it's Arab-ness to admit that they are BLACK AFRICANS (I mean take a look at a mirror ppl!!). I only got my mum to say to me that she considers herself an "Arabized-African" very very recently. Like a month ago. And I'm in my twenties. So if I was to pinpoint which tribe/group/people/pueblo/nation (whatever that white ethnographer wants to label it) it would be Nubian. So right about where south Egypt meets northern Sudan. Along the nile river

    I would love to talk to my grandparents about it but (a) they are on the 'we are Arab, not African' side of the family and (b) there are language barriers. My Arabic is not good enough to talk about genealogy the way I would want to talk about it. I think instead of coming out respectful and curious, my limited vocab would make if sound interrogative and harsh and I wouldn't want to put them through that (c) also distance, it would take a lot of travel (and $$) to make it to where they are. I hope to save up some time soon.

    There is so much to learn and ancestry is generally very important to African cultures/ways of being. I just finished reading a book "Introduction to Africana Philosophy" by Lewis Gordon and it was excellent in outlining the general philosophies of Africana (African diaspora) peoples. I highly recommend it. I never took a philosophy course and I skipped some parts when he started getting technical but most of it is actually notes on history and culture that I found that very valuable. I had some issues with the way he talked about Islamic-African philosophy (I would say I'm better versed in the subject that he is, given that I kind of just LIVE it every day lol). But overall, like I said great book

    We should keep each other posted!!
    ----------It is not the eyes that are blind, but the hearts - Quran 22:46 ----------
    ╔═══╗
    ║███║ ¸¸.•*¨*•♫♪
    ║ (o) Now Playing: Confessions of a Long Hair Diva
    ╚═══╝

  19. Thanks ~GAN~ thanked for this post
    Likes ~GAN~ liked this post
Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •