Elvis Presley’s Ancestry Revealed with DNA Testing

DNA tests are becoming increasingly popular for people who want to determine their roots and ancestry. There are even tests that you can take that show if you’re related to somebody famous like Genghis Khan. And there is no shortage of people claiming to be related to Elvis Presley – even if DNA tests prove them wrong. The fact that the world has so many Elvis impersonators says it all about Presley mania. Some say they can channel his spirit from the dead, others believe he’s still alive. Like every famous person who died tragically young, Presley has inspired a host of conspiracy theories, whacko followers and crazed impersonators – there’s no mistaking it, the man is a legend.

DNA Tests – The Only Scientific Truth

DNA tests offer scientific evidence for those thousands of people who claim to be Presley’s illegitimate son or long lost cousin. One theory that has become famous thanks to Presley’s worldwide influence is that he was in fact Scottish. Presley was however born in Tupelo, Mississippi. He had a twin who was stillborn and grew up as an only child. He never visited England but he did in fact have one fleeting visit to Scotland in his lifetime.

Rock’n’Roll Was His DNA

DNA tests may be the only way to prove to many of those claiming to be related to Presley that they are deluded. Presley married Priscilla Beaulieu in 1967 and had only one child, daughter Lisa-Marie. He died on August 16, 1977 at Graceland. Many people like to wish they were related to somebody famous, especially somebody as legendary as The King. Researchers have gone through the Presley family tree with a fine tooth comb to find out what it was that made Presley so special. No tests however have been discovered to show up the gene for talent. His mother Gladys had black hair and dark eyes and was said to love music and dancing. His father was also into music, but worked as a car mechanic. Its thought there is evidence to show Presley, like most Americans, has heritage from a variety of nations including Welsh, Scottish, German and Cherokee. DNA tests would confirm his genealogy and ancestral make-up in more definitive detail.

Is He Scottish?

Using DNA to discover ancestral origins is big. People seem to have an insatiable desire to know their ancestral roots and with DNA, our quest to discover our ancestry can take us thousands of years back. People use maternal lineage testing as well as paternal lineage testing to find out what parts of the their world their ancient maternal and paternal ancestors came fro, helping them understand more about aspects of their lineage they could not discover in any other way. The idea that Presley was Scottish has never been proven by DNA-  the notion began as a PR idea by the Aberdeen and Grampian Tourist Board. The story was that the Presley family name derived from Paisley and became Presley over time. But one man has traced Presley’s Scottish ancestry back to Andrew Presley in 1713 – his son fled Scotland to America in 1745. Who knows if the story has truth in it or is a publicity scam – only DNA tests would discover the truth.

More reading for Presley Fans

The legend will never die in our collective unconscious. Known as ‘Big Elvis’, Pete Vallee is not only an impersonator of the King, he claims he is one of at least three other Elvis love children. But DNA tests are the only way of putting his claims to rest. The full story about Pete Vallee, Presley’s Spiritual Son, can be viewed here.