[Daniel S.]

Interesting thread! Well, as far as the DNA tracking is concerned I remember seeing an episode of 60minutes where African americans could have their ancestry tracked. It however turned out that by going to different companies they got different results as to which tribe, and even which part, of Africa they descended from. I believe the reason was that the knowledge about DNA is still so uncertain that there can be real big errors made. I would check out the method a lot before committing too many resources.

[Dominko Carev]

Searching for ancestors is very popular in the USA (for those originated from Europe). However, family lines traced back to the first settler in the USA are often correct, while expanding the search on Europe often gives doubtful results. It is virtually imposible to trace your ancestors into the middle ages because there are no records, expecially for the most noumerous population, the pesents.
It seems that everyone is determined to find noble ancestors. Nobility formed insignificant percentage of the european population, except in Poland, Hungary, Croatia and couple of other countries (up to 10% at best). End even among them most of them were mostly rich farmers (like yeomen in England). The tendency of all nobility wasn't only to have a male hair, but also to have a big estate=power. To gain that goal, first step was to ensure that the estate is not devided by many brothers. Brothers without estate would not marry unless they found a heiress or gained land from the king for their service. After several generations, their would not be male heirs.
People who deal with genealogy and even earn money for their services, help themselves with a trick. The same surname does not mean the same bloodline. For example, an american Johnson had an ancestor named john, but he was not related to the Lord Johnson from England who also had some other John as an ancestor. So what that people do? They connect those two bloodlines by doubtfull family tree only by their accidentally equal surnames.
Tracing your origin to kings, dukes, counts etc. is a fiction. Only several WASP families have blood connections with British nobility and gentry.
Bilding your family tree must be iin line with the reliable records. Everything other is fabrication and good wishes.

[Derek Wassom]

[quote=I also go back to King Malcom III of Canmore who slew Macbeth.[/quote]

Your ancestor killed my ancestor?! Does that make us enemies? Chaucer and King Egbert of Wessex are part of my history as well. We've also traced back to Vikings who fought in England and later settled there.

[J F. McBrayer]

A bit off the original subject, but worthwhile as a warning to the OP: genetic testing for genealogy has many shortcomings. Basically, what you get back is real information, but for a lot of reasons, it's not really the information you were looking for, and probably not what the testing company claims it is. Read the article; it's worth your time.

As for being related to nobility, if you're willing to take the "optimal" turning at each generation, then you can generally prove you're related to anyone you want by the time you get back 20 generations or so.

[Elling Polden]

Well, I can trace my, indirect of course, linage on the mothers side back to the medevial royal family, which could in turn trace their linage back to Odin....
At least according to Snorre Sturalson.

[Shahril Dzulkifli]

I'm a Malay and I have some Arab blood from my mother's parents.

[Chase S-R]

i traced my roots back to the bayeux tapestry my great...great.... grandfather got a land grant from william the conqueror
which was in the family until ten years ago