A la recherche des identités transatlantiques : des boucles conceptuelles au croisement de la société, l’histoire et la génétique

This article examines the way in which genetic « ancestry » tests have been promoted and developed over the last two decades as a genealogical tool, ostensibly capable of finding the geographic and « ethnic » origins of diasporic groups in the US. We follow the case of the descendants of enslaved Af...

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Main Author: Sarah Abel
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Centre de Recherches sur les Mondes Américains 2016-10-01
Series:Nuevo mundo - Mundos Nuevos
Subjects:
Online Access:https://journals.openedition.org/nuevomundo/69589
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author Sarah Abel
author_facet Sarah Abel
author_sort Sarah Abel
collection DOAJ
description This article examines the way in which genetic « ancestry » tests have been promoted and developed over the last two decades as a genealogical tool, ostensibly capable of finding the geographic and « ethnic » origins of diasporic groups in the US. We follow the case of the descendants of enslaved Africans, emphasizing the historical context and political discourses that led to the proposal of these tests as a means to repair the social and psychological harm done by the transatlantic slave trade. Furthermore, by analysing the theories and processes implicated in the creation of « ancestry » tests, we point out how they have led to the reproduction of a vision of the world as divided into « indigenous » and « mixed » populations, in which « true » human diversity is conceived of as quantifiable, mappable, and biological. Finally, we evaluate how these genetic concepts are being translated in the discourses and practices of social actors in the search of their ancestral « roots ».
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spelling doaj.art-2ec6d1744d3848cb9e2c9ec8f45138132024-02-14T16:53:59ZengCentre de Recherches sur les Mondes AméricainsNuevo mundo - Mundos Nuevos1626-02522016-10-0110.4000/nuevomundo.69589A la recherche des identités transatlantiques : des boucles conceptuelles au croisement de la société, l’histoire et la génétiqueSarah AbelThis article examines the way in which genetic « ancestry » tests have been promoted and developed over the last two decades as a genealogical tool, ostensibly capable of finding the geographic and « ethnic » origins of diasporic groups in the US. We follow the case of the descendants of enslaved Africans, emphasizing the historical context and political discourses that led to the proposal of these tests as a means to repair the social and psychological harm done by the transatlantic slave trade. Furthermore, by analysing the theories and processes implicated in the creation of « ancestry » tests, we point out how they have led to the reproduction of a vision of the world as divided into « indigenous » and « mixed » populations, in which « true » human diversity is conceived of as quantifiable, mappable, and biological. Finally, we evaluate how these genetic concepts are being translated in the discourses and practices of social actors in the search of their ancestral « roots ».https://journals.openedition.org/nuevomundo/69589ethnicityancestrygeneticsgenealogytransatlantic.
spellingShingle Sarah Abel
A la recherche des identités transatlantiques : des boucles conceptuelles au croisement de la société, l’histoire et la génétique
Nuevo mundo - Mundos Nuevos
ethnicity
ancestry
genetics
genealogy
transatlantic.
title A la recherche des identités transatlantiques : des boucles conceptuelles au croisement de la société, l’histoire et la génétique
title_full A la recherche des identités transatlantiques : des boucles conceptuelles au croisement de la société, l’histoire et la génétique
title_fullStr A la recherche des identités transatlantiques : des boucles conceptuelles au croisement de la société, l’histoire et la génétique
title_full_unstemmed A la recherche des identités transatlantiques : des boucles conceptuelles au croisement de la société, l’histoire et la génétique
title_short A la recherche des identités transatlantiques : des boucles conceptuelles au croisement de la société, l’histoire et la génétique
title_sort la recherche des identites transatlantiques des boucles conceptuelles au croisement de la societe l histoire et la genetique
topic ethnicity
ancestry
genetics
genealogy
transatlantic.
url https://journals.openedition.org/nuevomundo/69589
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