While researching your ancestry, you come across a possible Native American in your family tree or perhaps there is a family story that one of your ancestors may have been Native American.  Your interest peaks as you realize that you could possibly be Native American and maybe have access to special programs including free housing, free education, sharing in casino revenues, etc.

Whoa!  what many people don't realize is that it's just not that simple.  The burden of proof is on you to prove that you are of Native American descent.  Each tribe has their own requirements such as going through blood testing and more recently DNA testing to prove Native American heritage.  Due to the increased numbers of people trying to claim Native American heritage in the hopes that they can claim their share of the tribe's casino revenues (only 25% of tribal casino's profit share with their members), many tribes are requiring, that in order to be considered a member of their tribe, that a grandparent or possibly a great-grandparent must have been a menber and you must prove that you are descended from that individual through DNA testing.  In many cases, this means that one of your parents must be a member because if your grandparents or great-grandparents are deceased, the only way to prove Native American heritage is to conduct a DNA test with your parents.  Of course, if your grandparents are still alive, testing can be performed with them as well.

Make sure that you speak to someone with the tribe who can properly inform you as to all of the requirements for membership.  In almost every tribe, the DNA test must be either ordered through the tribe or the results of the test must be mailed from the lab, directly to the tribe.  Most tribes also will only accept results from an AABB accredited laboratory, so make sure that you use a lab or DNA services provider who uses AABB certified laboratories. 

So what types of tests are available to prove Native American heritage?  There are many tests available, but only the tests specifically required by the tribe you are seeking membership in will be allowed to prove your Native American heritage.  There are tests out in the market that claim that they can tell you what tribe you may have descended from.  These tests are based on databases of samples taken within the respective tribes.  Unfortunately, these tests are not allowed to prove heritage because they are usually not from AABB accredited laboratories and the sample sizes for each tribe are just not large enough in most cases to get a very strong and conclusive result.  For those individuals who just want to know if they have Native American heritage and what tribe they may have descended from and are not interested in becoming a member of a specific tribe, these tests can definitely help.

Again, the keys here are to speak to the tribe and find out all of the requirements prior to beginning any testing process.  You must make sure that you follow the tribes requirements exactly, otherwise you could waste a lot of time and money.

Write a comment

Alethea M. Robinson
Posts: 5

Claiming my Cherokee and Black Hawk Heritage
Reply #5 on : Sun January 15, 2012, 16:14:33

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My grandmother was part Cherokee but is deceased also my father is deceased as well. My maternal grandfather was part Black Hawk and my mother is alive. How can we tested and complete the proper paper work for claiming our heritage?

patrick smith
Posts: 5

Re: Using DNA Testing To Prove Native American Heritage
Reply #4 on : Mon December 26, 2011, 21:34:23

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my grandmother had past away years ago and she was the only one with info about my history they said i have sioux indian i need to know for my own self and for relegus reasons what can i do

vicodin
Posts: 5

vicodin online
Reply #3 on : Tue October 18, 2011, 09:51:25

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Hello, nice site. Posted by myself in bookmarks

Darryl McCowan
Posts: 5

Native American Heritage
Reply #2 on : Wed June 15, 2011, 18:50:03

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I would like to know what steps I must follow to see what is my native american heritage.

Anonymous
Posts: 5

Any type of help
Reply #1 on : Sun May 08, 2011, 10:54:23

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All my life I have been told by my adopted family that Iam Indian. I was also told my mother only placed Mexican American on my birth certificate due to the prejudice in Texas were I was born and did not want me to grow up having people being racist towards me. I was sent to social services at around 3 due to both my parents involved in drugs and alcohol. I was fostered by several family's until my (white) fathers adopted parents adopted me. I was in contact with my real father over the years and was told my mother was Apache. I was never allowed to be in contact with my mother but I do know her name. I am not looking for my heritage for any type of monetary gain I just want to know where I come from and what I am.