In general, however, tribes use either the blood quantum system or the descent system. The former approach uses an ancestry threshold to determine an applicant's fitness for membership. Many tribes require that aspirants possess a certain degree, or percentage, of the relevant "Indian blood," in addition to satisfying a few other ancestry requirements. read more
However, no DNA testing can “prove” an individual is American Indian and/or Alaska Native, or has ancestry from a specific tribe. Genetic testing can provide evidence for the biological relationship between two individuals (e.g., paternity testing), but there are no unique genes for individual tribes or American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) ancestry in general. read more