The Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle, has disclosed that she is 43% Nigerian.
I’m 43% Nigerian — Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle
The mother of two made this known during a conversation with Senegalese-American actress and comedian Issa Rae, and Nigerian-American comedian and writer Ziwe Fumudoh.
According to her, a couple of years ago she took a genealogy test which revealed that she is 43% Nigerian.
”I had my genealogy test done a couple of years ago and I am 43 percent Nigerian.
The revelation came as a shock to Ziwe who excitedly shouted “No way” and further asked about the tribe in Nigeria she was from.
But Meghan answered, “I am going to start to dig deeper because anyone that I told especially Nigerians women is always like what?”
Meghan had previously spoken about being biracial – her mother is African-American and her father is Caucasian – but did not delve deeper into her roots until more recently.
In a 2015 essay published in ELLE Magazine, the duchess opened up about her mixed-race heritage and said: “Being biracial paints a blurred line that is equal parts staggering and illuminating.
“While my mixed heritage may have created a grey area surrounding my self-identification, keeping me with a foot on both sides of the fence, I have come to embrace that. To say who I am, to share where I’m from, to voice my pride in being a strong, confident mixed-race woman.”
In September 2019, Meghan addressed her racial heritage for the first time since marrying the Duke of Sussex a year earlier, during the couple’s tour of Africa.