So happy to be Polish-American

I just got my Ancestry DNA results back; huge surprise:

It turns out that I am mostly Polish -- 38%. Next is Slovakia at 20% and French at 18%. Russian a scant 5%; English at 8%. Ireland 8%. Belgium/Lichenstein 3%.

It gets confusing in Europe. My grandfather was born in Belarus -- and Tarasovic is a Russian name. But the DNA says Polish. There were many catholic Polish people living in Belarus - 40%, so it appears my ancestors were one of them.

So being Polish is cool. Damn, we were constantly being controlled by Germanic states or Russia - back and forth. Both Russia and Germany made a mess in Poland and being occupied by either was horrific. But the Poles are a proud race! Did you know that the kingdom of Poland and Lithuania were an empire in the 1600s? They then dominated the Germanic States and Russia - having occupied Moscow in 1610.

Of interest: Poland under King John III were the main armies that kept Islam from spreading to Europe when they stopped them at Vienna. Poland is right now one of the only European nations (along with Russia and Slovakia) to deny the current invasion of Muslims from Syria - choosing instead to preserve their Christian Culture and deny the marauding invaders from committing the atrocities that are happening right now in Sweden , Germany and France (but don't get reported.)

Poland is one of the few European nations that does not have gun control. People are allowed to protect themselves. Isn't it interesting that Poland also has the lowest crime rate in Europe!

Not strictly true you need a license and its not easy to get one but a colt six shooter replica black powder no problem good for 200 yards.... caused some damage in the american civil war .

thank you, ok.

But you know if you come to live in Poland as I have you will soon see there is no need for guns crime and nasty things rarely happen in Poland, pepper spray and tasers are legal if you feel the need to keep a few tools in the closet.

I would love to come live in Poland. I am a US citizen so it would take some doing. I am a high school English teacher.

I love the "Don't Tread on Me" point-of-view that many Polish citizens share with US citizens (50% of us, anyway) who understand what is happening in the world. Anyway thanks for responding! -

You do know that those DNA tests are mostly for fun right? 20 percent Slovakian? Think about it... Slovakian DNA? Yeah, I'd recheck that info on gun control in Poland too.

From the research, the DNA results from ancestry.com are considered accurate. Yes - people do it for "fun," but I don't.
If I have the gun control issue wrong, I do apologize. I certainly do not live in Poland so I may have overstepped there. If I did, it was a result of simply being so ecstatic about being of Polish blood....there is a history here. So, I can dial it down..but I am writing on one of the happiest days of my life. More to come....

These test results are not 100% reliable when it comes to pinpointing the geographical origins of your ancestors. You'll have to back everything up with documents like civil registration records or church book entries before you can be certain.

The rest of your post sounds like trolling.

I'm glad you're happy about it, you probably have some slavic DNA and maybe some markers from the region which is currently Poland but if you read into it, from a biological perspective there is no way they can tell for sure and if you think about it, modern Poland has only existed in its current form for over 70 years and used to be home to a variety of people encompassing a vastly different amount of land

You are a teacher ?

You didn't overstep your bounds at all. Its because you're an American like me. Be prepared for a lot of abuse from expats on this forum, they will start picking apart everything you say just for sake of arguing.

Time will tell, but it sounds very much like the posts of others who have come to this forum in various guises and after a while it becomes pretty apparent that the real reason they have joined is to bang on about the Muslims/Jews etc......



LIke there isn't enough sh1te about Muslims dominating most threads here these days.

As for gun control, Poland is a very safe country, there is no need for guns.

No...not trolling. And yes, I know that I am suspect here because I am an American. And yes, I am an English Teacher but I speak virtually no Polish.

You're not a suspect here. Just a few people here are Poles from Poland.
It's not always a nice place, btw.
Why were the dna results a surprise to you? Didn't you know your ancestors were Polish immigrants? Were they?

Welcome !

I asked because there were a large number if untrue things in your few sentances -

Poland does not have the lowest crime rate in Europe, far from it. There are 13 EU countries with lower crime indexes including some like Austria and Netherlands that have substantial immigrant populations

Poland has strict gun control laws - thankfully there is almost zero public support for relaxing them.

Russia has a large population of Muslims - 9m, way more than any other European nation. Many are well integrated and have been for many generations there. Some were probably there when the Poles briefly held Moscow.

You are probably mixing Slovakia with Hungary in your discussion of immigration.

As for the stuff about atrocities then whole immigration is a huge challenge for Europe, there is little to back up your claim about unrecorded ones but plenty of other threads if you want to stir things up on a continent far from your own house.

@kaprys
My grandfather came here in 1917 from Belarus. He spoke Russian and Polish. He always said he was Russian.
Yes, I do see this can be a cranky place, and I suspect that Americans are not welcome because every other country basically hates us too, so why should Poland be different. I get that. So sorry for the first post - I am here to learn.

Wrong, Americans are VERY welcome in Poland, They are here helping to strengthen our eastern border and also there are plenty of American visitors in Poland, I would go as far to say that Many Poles are Trump supporters, probably more than in any other European country.

Please do not view this forum as a portal into the way things are in Poland, there a very few Poles here (maybe 5 regular posters) who actually live and work in the country .

The rest are a minority of friendly polams and poles living abroad, very many here are expats and migrants with blunt axes to grind, they mainly have issues with Poland not conforming to their western socialist view of the world and usualyy try and pick apart new posters especially if they are poles.

Just my point of view from my time spent here over the last few years.

He may have been Belorussian which is not the same as Russian. But he may have indeed been an ethnic Russian who came from Russia to live Belarus which was in 1917 part of the Russian empire. Belarus had been within the borders of the Polish-Lituanian Commonwealth since about the late 14th century until 1772 to 1795.


What are their criteria of establishing such percentages would be a most interesting thing to know!

Thank you Ziemowit - yes, My grandad was from Belarus and left there in 1917 when all the commotion was going on - but as you mention that was part of the Poland-Lithuania commonwealth so the DNA says Polish stock. I am going with that.

I am researching the criteria for percentages and hope to report back on it. It is all new to me. But the Polish-Americans I know in my part of the worlds are proud and hard working. I am going with that.

You know that most Europeans have up to 2.6% Neanderthal DNA? Does that mean anything? Nope. Your test results claim you're 38% Polish. Is that information of any value? Not really. If you're truly interested, trace your ancestors like all genealogists do -- by digging through naturalization records, census data, ship's manifests, church records and civil registration records. You'll need proper documentation if you want proof. The DNA test results are only meant as a hint in the right direction, but maybe you're lucky to hook up with distant relatives who also submitted their DNA to Ancestry. In any case, be prepared for decades of work.

And a large number of Russians trolls who want to **** stir racism and anti-western/Americanism.

None-Poles who hate Poland are in the majority on this forum.

I never used the word hate, but there are foreigners who come to Poland and to this forum who wish to foist their multi culti marxist, soft justice ideals upon us, well as we know they have no chance but notice how they scream and shout the most on this forum because Poland does not adopt the ideals of their home nations, I have no idea why they come to Poland or this forum, they would be better off at home wallowing in their own multiculti crime and terror ridden cesspits, my fellow brits seem to be the main offenders.

I think it's interesting but is by no means an exact science as such. Read through this first link and you will will see what I mean:

dna-explained.com/2017/04/21/concepts-percentage-of-ancestors-dna

There is also some information in Ancestry FAQ's:

ancestry.co.uk/dna/legal/faq

Because they live in Poland.


In your own way, you are just as bad. Poland isn't your personal heaven, a very large part of the population have very different beliefs to your extremist views.

What utter rubbish Harry and you know it.


Its more than just that Harry its the country of which I am a citizen, unlike you who will never be granted it.

I got my ancestry DNA back and knew I was half polish but then I seen the bust of the sarmatian knights and thier faces look exactly like every Brefka I ever knew all my uncle are 100 percent polish and look even more like the sarmatian knights so my family definitely have to be decended by them lol

Then you are actually an American of Polish decent. Perhaps, your Grandparents were Polish.

Stop using a hyphen ( - )


Have you even been to Poland?

38% of ancestral lineage hardly qualifies you to latch on to a county and culture you know nothing about.


Fantasy full-filled!

Joker - Yes - I do find being of Polish decent very fulfilling. However, I wanted to read and post on this forum but I was met with such hostility that I decided to move on. Why post just to be insulted? .My grandad was a Pole living in Lithuania, He came to the states in 1927 when he was 14. Thanks for responding!

You are SOOO right about that damn hypen! It drives me nuts.

The first immigrant with a hyphen can be excused because he is both. His son born using a hyphen is totally without justification. The lack of common-sense reason to hyphen yourself is so evident: if a US-born person has a hyphen, than all the future generations in that person's family tree would have the same exact reason to hyphenate themselves. Which means there are no unhypenated Americans in the US! Like those "African-Americans" after 300 years here.

Im sorry you had such a bad experience on this forum it's a notorious anti-American lefty troll farm that for sure, but its getting better now that some of the british bullies have been booted off:)


It used to bother me. Just look who its coming from mostly expats that couldn't make it in their own countries and are very unhappy with the low Polish working wages.They have a serious axe to grind (jealousy) against the USA as well. Let them eat Cake!

All the insults in the world are going to change the fact that Europe has been destroyed through PCness.


I would say your 100% American, like me:)