The controversial dating app created to prevent you from sleeping with a family member

As the Spanish saying goes, “cuanto más primo, más me arrimo,” translated to, “the closer the cousin, the tighter the bond.” And while almost no one will admit to having ever overly flirted with a relative, there’s a reason this piece of folk wisdom has been passed down over the years.

Avoiding dating a relative

While accidentally dating a cousin in Spain, the U.S. or elsewhere is fairly unlikely, in some countries it’s more than possible. One such case is Iceland – a nation of just 320,000 people where running into an ex is less worrying than running into a relative. To tackle the risk, the Icelandic government supported the creation of a dating app called ÍslendingaApp, a Tinder-style platform designed to prevent accidental incest.

“Suddenly I realized my boyfriend and I shared a great-great-grandmother born in 1742”

App user

“Bump on the app before you bump in bed” is the catchphrase of the app, which was developed by three software engineering students at the University of Iceland. Backed by the government, the app draws on genealogical records spanning over 1,200 years to flag potential matches between people who are too closely related.

“We’ve built in an incest prevention alarm that users can activate in the settings. It alerts them if the person they’re chatting with is too closely related,” explains Arnar Freyr Adalsteinsson, one of the developers. The database is impressively comprehensive – covering an estimated 95% of Iceland’s population.

Limited popularity

Launched in 2013, the app saw limited success in Iceland, with only around 5,000 downloads. Still, the idea made headlines worldwide – and even helped some couples discover unexpected family ties. “Suddenly I realized my boyfriend and I shared a great-great-grandmother born in 1742,” confessed one surprised user, who chose to stay in the relationship given the generational distance.

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