DNA testing in a school may sound like a Jeremy Kyle-esque disaster waiting to happen, but no punches were thrown at Southwold Primary in Clapton.
Thirty-four parents took part in a landmark project by Ancestry to discover the ethnic background of an average primary school – and 26 ethnic regions were discovered in their DNA.
One man, Eliseu Goncasves discovered he was one of the most diverse people on the company’s database of 4million people worldwide with 18 regions in his results.
The 42-year-old from Hackney Downs, and apparently everywhere else, said: “It was amazing to sit opposite my son as he kept counting on and on to the number of places I come from.
“I had no idea I could be from so many. It’s incredible as I really feel like a citizen of the world now.”
His wasn’t the only surprising result, either. Two parents who had never met before discovered they were in fact fourth cousins, sharing a great-great-great grandparent.
Entertainment presenter Naomi Locker, 34, said: “I had guessed my ancestry might be pretty diverse and knew we had family from the Caribbean but to discover I also had family in my daughter’s school was incredible and so exciting.
Her newly discovered cousin, Tracey Fergus, 39, added: “It’s unbelievable to think someone you’re related to could be just around the corner, or on the same school run as you.”
Scandinavian, Russian, Greek, east Asian, Nigerian, north African, native American and Polynesian were all found in the parents’ DNA.
Another man from the south of France discovered, for better or worse, that he was actually more Anglo-Saxon than he was French.
Ancestry’s DNA expert Brad Argent encouraged kids to ask their parents questions about their heritage and what they expected from the results.
He said: “As experts in DNA, this unique experiment has been fascinating every step of the way. “In a single London school, we uncovered 26 ethnicities, reinforcing the fact that the capital, and our country as a whole, is a melting pot of different nationalities.”
To find out more visit Ancestry.
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