To care that my children’s great grandparents were first cousins?

[Antipoodean]

Not particularly unusual perhaps, but I come from a very diverse gene pool myself (different hemispheres). I only learnt that my MIL’s parents were first cousins after we had children. Would this bother you? My dcs are healthy and I am not worried about them, I’d have had them
with the knowledge, it’s just a bit disconcerting.

My children’s Great grandparents were second cousins, and there was a lot of intermarriage in my family and in DH’s . Normal in many communities until quite recently.

This was common throughout history until recently. It’s really immature and ignorant to be so shocked about it.

Don’t forget that relationships between first cousins weren’t like they are now - there was often no growing up together so there wasn’t that bond.

Everyone has weird shit in their family history, whether they know it or not. Bit strange to be bothered about it now. It’s not like you can do anything.

If you’re worried about genetics, that would only be an issue if there were numerous generations of cousin weddings. One pair of married cousins is neither here nor there, really. That’s why it’s legal for cousins to marry in plenty of countries.

Personally I wouldn’t touch a cousin with a barge-pole but why would you get worked up about two dead people you’ve never met getting married? You sound like you think your kids are going to be tainted or something.

I wouldn't be worrying if my parents were first cousins, let alone Great-grandparents. Its within legal parameters and the medical profession aren't concerned either.

This was quite common and acceptable at one time. Read Mansfield Park.

I think it is what it is now.

Do I? Really?

Antipope here is some maps showing stats on cousin marriage

I wouldn't worry or overthink this OP. Your children are healthy.

It is unsettling, yes, but what is in the past is in the past.

My great great grandparents were first cousins and my great grandmother was told she was not to marry a cousin under any circumstances. Several of her siblings (out of a large sibling group) were disabled, which was attributed to the interfamily marriage, but it's really impossible to say because it's not like disability is extremely rare even with the most diverse genetics you could get. She herself lived into her 90s and was always very healthy, so I think it's unlikely that it was harmful. Certainly several generations later I could not care less, even though I definitely wouldn't have wanted to marry any of my cousins.

It still is in many sectors of the U.K…

There's areas in Wales and Ireland I know where the gene pool was too small that caused genetic issues. Cousins can have much larger gene pools

My great grandparents were cousins. I've never really thought about it to be honest.

Why is it "ick"? It's legal and often happens, you are being silly.

Not something I would want myself due to the social taboo however I think your dc should be fine because your DNA will bring in diversity. Even dh should be fine if his father was unrelated.

Each parent only passes on half their DNA, the hazard comes when there is a recessive gene which is rare in the general population but is found in that family. There is then much greater possibility of both parents carrying the same recessive gene and hence the child being affected. Even if your dh had inherited a recessive gene, because you are completely unrelated your children would just have the same risk as any other child of random parents.

Assuming both great grandparents are dead it would not bother me too much, I would not be as comfortable if they were people I regularly had to interact with especially if there had been a substantial age gap too. I would think the younger one (probably the girl) might have been coerced.

Not illegal, no direct blood line.

Errr, if my child bred with my brothers child it is a direct blood line, as we come from the same 2 parents. No, not illegal but shudderingly awful.
Imagine my dad being able to say that his grandkids of the same family are married to one another.

are the 'why it it ick?' people okay with the thought of their kid marrying their sibling's kid??

I think if it were going to result in genetic abnormality it would have done back then, not a few generations down the line. Totally get where you’re coming from though!

Consanguinity in England has always been uncommon. We have been outbreeding for a very long time, longer than other European populations. A small percentage of the English upperclass bred with first cousins in the late 19th Century, but they and the general population had been outbreeding since 1300-1500 anyway. This has all been confirmed via genetic studies. The people replying to you are very much outliers - possible confirming a Mumsnet stereotype?! To most Brits, this would not be thrilling news. I sympathise! x

Links to a blog on English marriage patterns for anyone interested in learning more about the topic. It's pretty interesting.

hbdchick.wordpress.com/2012/07/11/more-on-consanguinity-in-england-and-scotland/
hbdchick.wordpress.com/2011/09/01/but-what-about-the-english/
hbdchick.wordpress.com/2013/06/28/runs-of-homozygosity-in-the-irish-population/

My husbands grandparents were cousins. Their mums were sisters. Always seems a bit strange.

They are in excellent company, Victoria and Albert were first cousins. Their Great, Great eat grandchildren are The Queen and Prince Phillip

🤮 first cousins (to me ) are near enough siblings.

My great grandparents were first cousins. They were called James and Jamesina and called their eldest son James. I find those name choices more disturbing than them being cousins.

I only have one male cousin and grew up very close to him and still see him regularly because we still live close to each other. So can't imagine being sexually attracted to him because he's more like a brother. On the other hand DH only saw some of his cousins once in his childhood because they live on the other side of the world. So he obviously has a very different relationship with them to the one I have with my cousin.

I live fairly rurally, and a friend of mine has loads of relatives (seemingly hundreds of them!) in the surrounding villages. We always used to joke about it when we moved here, especially when it turned out we had bought her house from one of her many cousins. And then exDH's sister married another of her cousins so we ended up related to her by marriage. My dd's boyfriend is distantly related to another branch of her family.

It happens a lot more than you'd think.

Whoa. The response on here is insane😬 Yeah, OP can't do anything about it BUT she can think 'WTF?!' I'm shocked so many people are saying its normal tbh. Never in my life have I heard about this being a thing 😅

My Great Grandparents were cousins and the children of that relationship went onto marry each other (my Grandad and his first wife).

They had 2 children, one couldn't have children and it was thought that may be down to genetics and being so closely related. However the other child had two perfectly healthy children.