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Ancestry refers to the lineage or descent of a person, family, or group, tracing back through generations to identify their origins, heritage, and familial connections. It encompasses the genetic, cultural, and historical ties that link individuals to their forebears, shaping their identity and sense of belonging. Ancestry is a multifaceted concept, intertwining biology, genealogy, history, and culture, and it plays a significant role in how people understand themselves and their place in the world.

At its core, ancestry is rooted in genetics. Each individual inherits a unique combination of DNA from their parents, who in turn inherited their DNA from their own ancestors. This genetic material carries information about physical traits, predispositions to certain health conditions, and even behavioral tendencies. Advances in genetic testing, such as DNA analysis, have made it possible for individuals to trace their biological ancestry with remarkable precision. Companies like 23andMe and AncestryDNA offer services that analyze genetic markers to provide insights into a person's ethnic composition and geographic origins, often revealing surprising connections to distant relatives or previously unknown heritage.

Beyond genetics, ancestry is deeply tied to genealogy, the study of family history and lineage. Genealogical research involves constructing family trees, documenting relationships, and uncovering historical records such as birth certificates, marriage licenses, census data, and immigration documents. This process often reveals stories of migration, resilience, and adaptation, offering a window into the lives of ancestors and the challenges they faced. For many, genealogy is a way to honor their forebears and preserve their legacy for future generations.

Cultural ancestry is another critical dimension, encompassing the traditions, languages, customs, and values passed down through generations. It connects individuals to their ethnic or national heritage, shaping their cultural identity and worldview. For example, someone with Irish ancestry might celebrate St. Patrick's Day, learn traditional Irish dance, or explore the Gaelic language, while someone with Japanese ancestry might practice tea ceremonies, study calligraphy, or observe Obon festivals. Cultural ancestry fosters a sense of continuity and belonging, linking individuals to a broader community with shared experiences and values.

Historical ancestry delves into the broader context of a family's or group's past, including significant events, social conditions, and historical movements that shaped their lives. For instance, the transatlantic slave trade, the Irish Potato Famine, or the Jewish diaspora have profoundly influenced the ancestry of millions of people, leaving lasting imprints on their descendants' identities. Understanding historical ancestry often involves grappling with complex narratives of triumph and tragedy, resilience and oppression, and the interplay of individual and collective experiences.

Ancestry also has a deeply personal and emotional dimension. For many, exploring their ancestry is a journey of self-discovery, offering insights into who they are and where they come from. It can foster a sense of pride, connection, and continuity, as well as a deeper appreciation for the struggles and achievements of those who came before. At the same time, it can raise questions about identity, belonging, and the complexities of heritage, particularly for individuals with mixed or multicultural backgrounds.

In a globalized world, ancestry serves as a bridge between the past and the present, connecting individuals to their roots while also highlighting the interconnectedness of human history. It underscores the diversity and richness of human experience, reminding us that every person's story is part of a larger tapestry woven over centuries. Whether through genetic testing, genealogical research, cultural practices, or historical exploration, ancestry offers a profound way to understand ourselves and our place in the world.

A diversification score measures the diversity of ancestries in the county. As the value appoaches 100, ancestry diversity decreases and therefore increasing the risk of a lack of cultural diversity. The ancestry diversification score for this county is:

Most common ancestry not including "Unknown" is:

Ancestry Report Part I
Description	Total Population	American	Native American	Hawaiian	Caribbean (Latino)	Mexican	Central American	South American	Other Hispanic	African American	Sub- Saharan	Caribbean (Black)

District of Columbia	714,407	6,607	1,463	373	13,993	15,447	28,518	16,087	6,577	174,803	61,041	54,937
District of Columbia (in 000's)	714	7	1	0	14	15	29	16	7	175	61	55
National (in 000's)	343,251	13,890	2,213	626	11,327	38,879	6,181	4,644	3,687	25,893	7,852	7,174
Fairfax County	1,175,136	22,147	1,479	776	19,985	24,311	84,603	53,886	19,058	57,205	37,364	16,722
Montgomery County	1,096,961	16,903	1,423	468	22,943	18,905	107,394	49,937	22,679	96,399	66,751	34,785
Prince George's County	978,050	4,563	1,934	336	20,844	33,368	127,546	11,539	13,488	350,716	129,129	100,084
Arlington County	244,052	3,875	253	117	5,091	5,822	13,498	9,617	4,028	11,796	6,921	3,317
Alexandria city	162,049	2,187	224	78	3,975	4,969	14,043	4,202	2,122	15,951	11,509	4,680

Per Cent to Total Population	Diversity Index

District of Columbia	11.18	0.92	0.20	0.05	1.96	2.16	3.99	2.25	0.92	24.47	8.54	7.69
District of Columbia	11.18	0.92	0.20	0.05	1.96	2.16	3.99	2.25	0.92	24.47	8.54	7.69
National	7.83	4.05	0.64	0.18	3.30	11.33	1.80	1.35	1.07	7.54	2.29	2.09
Fairfax County	6.71	1.88	0.13	0.07	1.70	2.07	7.20	4.59	1.62	4.87	3.18	1.42
Montgomery County	6.97	1.54	0.13	0.04	2.09	1.72	9.79	4.55	2.07	8.79	6.09	3.17
Prince George's County	18.38	0.47	0.20	0.03	2.13	3.41	13.04	1.18	1.38	35.86	13.20	10.23
Arlington County	7.35	1.59	0.10	0.05	2.09	2.39	5.53	3.94	1.65	4.83	2.84	1.36
Alexandria city	7.52	1.35	0.14	0.05	2.45	3.07	8.67	2.59	1.31	9.84	7.10	2.89

Comparisons to State Norms	% to Total >= 150%		% to Total < 50%

District of Columbia		100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00
District of Columbia		100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00
National		437.56	314.86	349.51	168.48	523.84	45.11	60.08	116.67	30.83	26.77	27.18
Fairfax County		203.78	61.46	126.48	86.83	95.68	180.35	203.64	176.16	19.89	37.21	18.50
Montgomery County		166.61	63.35	81.71	106.78	79.71	245.25	202.16	224.57	35.92	71.22	41.24
Prince George's County		50.45	96.56	65.80	108.81	157.79	326.69	52.39	149.80	146.55	154.52	133.07
Arlington County		171.68	50.62	91.82	106.50	110.33	138.55	175.00	179.28	19.75	33.19	17.67
Alexandria city		145.93	67.50	92.19	125.23	141.82	217.09	115.15	142.24	40.23	83.12	37.56

Comparisons to National Norms	% to Total >= 150%		% to Total < 50%

District of Columbia		22.85	31.76	28.61	59.35	19.09	221.67	166.44	85.71	324.36	373.52	367.92
District of Columbia		22.85	31.76	28.61	59.35	19.09	221.67	166.44	85.71	324.36	373.52	367.92
National		100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00
Fairfax County		46.57	19.52	36.19	51.54	18.26	399.79	338.93	150.99	64.53	138.99	68.08
Montgomery County		38.08	20.12	23.38	63.38	15.22	543.65	336.47	192.49	116.49	266.01	151.72
Prince George's County		11.53	30.67	18.83	64.58	30.12	724.17	87.20	128.40	475.36	577.16	489.60
Arlington County		39.24	16.08	26.27	63.21	21.06	307.13	291.26	153.66	64.07	123.97	65.03
Alexandria city		33.35	21.44	26.38	74.33	27.07	481.22	191.66	121.92	130.49	310.47	138.18

Ancestry Report Part II
Description	Total Population	Canadian	British	Dutch	French	German	Italian	Polish	Scandinavian	Scotish/ Irish	Spanish	Other European

District of Columbia	714,407	1,592	22,492	1,933	4,909	21,366	12,404	5,940	6,190	26,930	3,836	23,084
District of Columbia (in 000's)	714	2	22	2	5	21	12	6	6	27	4	23
National (in 000's)	343,251	1,350	18,069	1,828	3,642	24,708	9,027	4,667	5,969	20,625	1,140	9,563
Fairfax County	1,175,136	2,689	55,211	3,604	7,646	50,417	23,564	10,921	12,175	59,638	4,110	37,068
Montgomery County	1,096,961	1,752	35,388	2,386	6,804	35,688	17,713	10,708	8,292	44,051	3,612	45,085
Prince George's County	978,050	298	5,247	339	922	6,035	2,823	1,215	1,036	7,560	586	3,513
Arlington County	244,052	772	14,815	980	2,386	13,096	7,288	2,985	3,755	18,386	1,615	11,827
Alexandria city	162,049	414	8,897	421	1,266	7,281	3,727	2,149	2,011	10,348	373	5,412

Per Cent to Total Population	Diversity Index

District of Columbia	11.18	0.22	3.15	0.27	0.69	2.99	1.74	0.83	0.87	3.77	0.54	3.23
District of Columbia	11.18	0.22	3.15	0.27	0.69	2.99	1.74	0.83	0.87	3.77	0.54	3.23
National	7.83	0.39	5.26	0.53	1.06	7.20	2.63	1.36	1.74	6.01	0.33	2.79
Fairfax County	6.71	0.23	4.70	0.31	0.65	4.29	2.01	0.93	1.04	5.07	0.35	3.15
Montgomery County	6.97	0.16	3.23	0.22	0.62	3.25	1.61	0.98	0.76	4.02	0.33	4.11
Prince George's County	18.38	0.03	0.54	0.03	0.09	0.62	0.29	0.12	0.11	0.77	0.06	0.36
Arlington County	7.35	0.32	6.07	0.40	0.98	5.37	2.99	1.22	1.54	7.53	0.66	4.85
Alexandria city	7.52	0.26	5.49	0.26	0.78	4.49	2.30	1.33	1.24	6.39	0.23	3.34

Comparisons to State Norms	% to Total >= 150%		% to Total < 50%

District of Columbia		100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00
District of Columbia		100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00
National		176.51	167.20	196.82	154.40	240.69	151.47	163.52	200.69	159.40	61.87	86.23
Fairfax County		102.68	149.23	113.35	94.69	143.45	115.49	111.77	119.57	134.63	65.14	97.62
Montgomery County		71.67	102.47	80.39	90.27	108.78	93.00	117.40	87.24	106.53	61.32	127.20
Prince George's County		13.67	17.04	12.81	13.72	20.63	16.62	14.94	12.23	20.51	11.16	11.12
Arlington County		141.95	192.81	148.41	142.28	179.42	171.99	147.10	177.58	199.85	123.24	149.98
Alexandria city		114.65	174.39	96.02	113.69	150.23	132.46	159.50	143.23	169.40	42.87	103.36

Comparisons to National Norms	% to Total >= 150%		% to Total < 50%

District of Columbia		56.65	59.81	50.81	64.77	41.55	66.02	61.15	49.83	62.74	161.64	115.97
District of Columbia		56.65	59.81	50.81	64.77	41.55	66.02	61.15	49.83	62.74	161.64	115.97
National		100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00
Fairfax County		58.17	89.25	57.59	61.33	59.60	76.25	68.35	59.58	84.46	105.29	113.22
Montgomery County		40.60	61.28	40.84	58.46	45.20	61.40	71.80	43.47	66.83	99.12	147.52
Prince George's County		7.75	10.19	6.51	8.89	8.57	10.97	9.14	6.09	12.86	18.04	12.89
Arlington County		80.42	115.32	75.40	92.15	74.55	113.55	89.96	88.48	125.38	199.21	173.94
Alexandria city		64.95	104.30	48.78	73.64	62.42	87.45	97.54	71.37	106.28	69.29	119.87

Ancestry Report Part III
Description	Total Population	Chinese	Filipino	Japanese	Korean	Vietnamese	South Central Asian	South East Asian	Other Asian	Middle Eastern	Other Ancestry	Unknown

District of Columbia	714,407	8,126	2,873	1,266	3,847	2,355	10,044	2,154	1,824	5,862	112,213	53,321
District of Columbia (in 000's)	714	8	3	1	4	2	10	2	2	6	112	53
National (in 000's)	343,251	4,461	3,010	793	1,541	1,913	5,452	1,643	1,229	1,931	47,322	51,000
Fairfax County	1,175,136	35,565	15,937	3,528	42,277	33,739	77,488	16,369	12,674	25,791	206,925	100,264
Montgomery County	1,096,961	46,045	15,273	4,130	18,388	13,738	53,535	10,469	6,682	14,254	182,815	81,566
Prince George's County	978,050	6,211	8,743	522	3,079	3,072	12,070	3,956	2,614	1,290	79,774	33,598
Arlington County	244,052	5,910	2,053	1,171	2,828	1,916	8,599	2,556	2,311	4,548	46,250	23,670
Alexandria city	162,049	1,423	1,919	392	1,415	479	2,685	786	1,684	2,737	27,715	14,575

Per Cent to Total Population	Diversity Index

District of Columbia	11.18	1.14	0.40	0.18	0.54	0.33	1.41	0.30	0.26	0.82	15.71	7.46
District of Columbia	11.18	1.14	0.40	0.18	0.54	0.33	1.41	0.30	0.26	0.82	15.71	7.46
National	7.83	1.30	0.88	0.23	0.45	0.56	1.59	0.48	0.36	0.56	13.79	14.86
Fairfax County	6.71	3.03	1.36	0.30	3.60	2.87	6.59	1.39	1.08	2.19	17.61	8.53
Montgomery County	6.97	4.20	1.39	0.38	1.68	1.25	4.88	0.95	0.61	1.30	16.67	7.44
Prince George's County	18.38	0.64	0.89	0.05	0.31	0.31	1.23	0.40	0.27	0.13	8.16	3.44
Arlington County	7.35	2.42	0.84	0.48	1.16	0.79	3.52	1.05	0.95	1.86	18.95	9.70
Alexandria city	7.52	0.88	1.18	0.24	0.87	0.30	1.66	0.49	1.04	1.69	17.10	8.99

Comparisons to State Norms	% to Total >= 150%		% to Total < 50%

District of Columbia		100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00
District of Columbia		100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00
National		114.26	218.08	130.35	83.39	169.06	112.97	158.74	140.28	68.55	87.77	199.07
Fairfax County		266.07	337.23	169.42	668.10	870.96	469.01	461.99	422.42	267.47	112.11	114.32
Montgomery County		369.03	346.21	212.46	311.29	379.92	347.12	316.53	238.58	158.36	106.10	99.62
Prince George's County		55.83	222.28	30.12	58.46	95.28	87.78	134.15	104.68	16.07	51.93	46.03
Arlington County		212.90	209.18	270.76	215.19	238.16	250.61	347.36	370.88	227.11	120.65	129.95
Alexandria city		77.20	294.47	136.51	162.16	89.67	117.85	160.87	407.02	205.84	108.89	120.51

Comparisons to National Norms	% to Total >= 150%		% to Total < 50%

District of Columbia		87.52	45.85	76.72	119.92	59.15	88.52	62.99	71.28	145.88	113.93	50.23
District of Columbia		87.52	45.85	76.72	119.92	59.15	88.52	62.99	71.28	145.88	113.93	50.23
National		100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00
Fairfax County		232.87	154.64	129.97	801.17	515.19	415.16	291.03	301.12	390.20	127.72	57.42
Montgomery County		322.98	158.75	163.00	373.30	224.73	307.26	199.40	170.07	231.02	120.88	50.04
Prince George's County		48.86	101.93	23.11	70.11	56.36	77.70	84.51	74.62	23.45	59.16	23.12
Arlington County		186.33	95.92	207.73	258.05	140.88	221.84	218.82	264.38	331.32	137.46	65.28
Alexandria city		67.57	135.03	104.73	194.46	53.04	104.32	101.34	290.14	300.29	124.06	60.53

Sources: STI: PopStats, Circa April 2025

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