Expanding Your Indian Ancestral Knowledge with DNA

Understanding Your Asian Family Origins

In my own family, I grew up with a clear understanding that my father’s family were Sikhs from the Punjab region, who were known as being the “warrior” class. However, because the Sikh religion rejects India’s historic notion of caste* and because of the political turmoil that the Punjab region went through during the 1947 Partition and independence of India from Great Britain, I knew little else about the family’s origins or even my ancestral paternal clan. Sadly, by the time I became interested in this family history, my father and grandparents had passed, and I could only trace my family tree on that side to my paternal great-grandparents.

Like many Asian countries, India has a rich genetic diversity due to its complex history of migrations, invasions, and cultural exchanges. This diversity in DNA can, upon analysis, reveal connections to various regions and ethnic groups within India and beyond.

While my family’s earliest documents recorded my paternal grandfather’s birth in 1917 in Rawalpindi, British India, my DNA results extended our origins by almost another 100 years and revealed genetic ties to the Khatri and Arora Punjabi clans.

The Khatris and Aroras are described as closely related geo-ethnic groups from Sindh and Punjab who over time frequently became highly successful merchants. They are mostly Hindu, but also with connections to Sikhism. In the Sikh Empire, many Khatris and Aroras also worked as munshis, or scribes; others built fortunes and imposing havelis (small palaces) from trading cloth, spices, and other goods. After India’s independence, many Khatris and Aroras used their business networks to build success in its economy or migrated to find new opportunities elsewhere. These various ethnic groups in India tend to intermarry and associate with each other. Interestingly, these are characteristics that appeared to be passed down through the ages to my own family, as both my grandfather and father were entrepreneurial businessmen.

Surnames and the FAN (Friends, Associates, and Neighbors) technique can also provide clues to confirm DNA findings in Indian family history research. For example, after my father immigrated to the U.S. for college in the 1960s he formed close friendships with other Indian immigrants that lasted into my childhood and beyond. Malhotra, Mehra, and Subarwal families were all among our closest family friends, and interestingly I discovered that those surnames are also associated with the Khatri clan. While my father always enjoyed a varied and wide circle of friends, I remain connected and in touch with these families even today and they will forever hold a special connection to my family history, both recent and ancestral.

Overcoming the Matriarchal Block

One of the most powerful aspects of DNA testing is its ability to connect individuals with long-lost ancestors, even when we don’t know their names. Because an AncestryDNA test looks at your autosomal DNA you can gather information from all your family lines. This is important because most Asian cultures are patriarchal. Even when ancestral family lines are recorded on scrolls held at temples, they typically only record the names of males going back in time. Additionally, by using SideView™ technology,  you can also see your ancestral journeys separated by the parent you inherited them from. This offers extra insight into origins that stem from the ancestral mothers in our lines, providing us with a more complete and nuanced understanding of our heritage.

Preserve and Extend your Asian Family History Today

Backed by industry standard privacy protection, you can discover more about your Indian origins with an AncestryDNA^® test. And recording and preserving your known ancestors and family history by creating a family tree has never been easier with an Ancestry^® membership.

* Sikhism rejects the Indian caste system, which is most often associated with discriminatory practices based on one’s socio-economic class. However, there can sometimes be parallels between these castes and specific clans of people that over generations share a distinct cultural and geographic region and thus can be identified by specific shared DNA markers.