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Map of kinship
From a genetic point of view we are all unique, but some individuals are more similar than others.
Generally speaking, genetic differences reflect geography. People from the same geographic area tend to be more genetically similar than people from distant parts of the world.
How it works
In this tool, you can examine your genetic relationship to people from all over the world at the same time as seeing how they are related to each other. Each small circle on the map represents one person from one of the world populations.
You are represented by a an icon of a person and you can also see the positions of your deCODEme friends.
What you see is like a map. Instead of cities or towns separated by geographical distances, we show the genetic distances between you and over 1000 individuals from 50 different worldwide populations. You will notice that people from the same population tend to form tight clusters on the map of kinship. Likewise, populations from the same regions of the world also tend to cluster together on the map.
Your position on the map tells you how closely related you are to the individuals and populations that are shown.Initially, you are shown a map of kinship showing all the 50 world populations. By moving your mouse over the individuals on the map, you will see the world regions to which they belong. If you click on one of the individuals on the world map, you will see a more detailed map of the region this individual comes from. If you are not shown on one or more regional maps, then this is because you are not closely related to its people.
The map of kinship is based on a statistical method called principal components analysis, sometimes called PCA for short. This method takes the genetic code of many individuals and uncovers hidden genetic patterns or dimensions involving many different SNPs. The technical term for these dimensions is “principal components” or PCs for short. Each dimension or PC reflects a different thread of shared ancestry between individuals and can be used to arrange individuals to show how they are related. You can explore these relationships in the three-dimensional map of kinship that can be opened by clicking on the “Open Map of Kinship” button above.
By default, we show the three strongest dimensions (1-2-3) found in the set of individuals shown. However, you are free to explore up to six different dimensions for the world map or the six regional maps.