In the name of the father: surnames and genetics
TL;DR: Recent studies involving Y-chromosomal haplotyping and surname analysis are promising and indicate that genealogists of the future could be turning to records written in DNA, as well as in paper archives, to solve their problems.
About: This article is published in Trends in Genetics.The article was published on 2001-06-01. It has received 191 citations till now. The article focuses on the topics: Patronymic surname.
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TL;DR: Ireland has one of the oldest systems of patrilineal hereditary surnames in the world and there is a substantial role for the Y-chromosome and a molecular genealogical approach to complement and expand existing sources.
Abstract: Ireland has one of the oldest systems of patrilineal hereditary surnames in the world. Using the paternal co-inheritance of Y-chromosome DNA and Irish surnames, we examined the extent to which modern surname groups share a common male-line ancestor and the general applicability of Y-chromosomes in uncovering surname origins and histories. DNA samples were collected from 1,125 men, bearing 43 different surnames, and each was genotyped for 17 Y-chromosome short tandem repeat (STR) loci. A highly significant proportion of the observed Y-chromosome diversity was found between surnames demonstrating their demarcation of real and recent patrilineal kinship. On average, a man has a 30-fold increased chance of sharing a 17 STR Y-chromosome haplotype with another man of the same surname but the extent of congruence between the surname and haplotype varies widely between surnames and we attributed this to differences in the number of early founders. Some surnames such as O'Sullivan and Ryan have a single major ancestor, whereas others like Murphy and Kelly have numerous founders probably explaining their high frequency today. Notwithstanding differences in their early origins, all surnames have been extensively affected by later male introgession. None examined showed more than about half of current bearers still descended from one original founder indicating dynamic and continuously evolving kinship groupings. Precisely because of this otherwise cryptic complexity there is a substantial role for the Y-chromosome and a molecular genealogical approach to complement and expand existing sources.
71 citations
Cites background from "In the name of the father: surnames..."
...There is a clear, and long predicted, further potential for the Y-chromosome to reconstruct the origin and history of individual surnames (Jobling 2001)....
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TL;DR: It is shown that, in a given location, the descendants of those individuals who inhabited the area at the time of origin of surnames can be as low as approximately 20%, which suggests the major role played by recent migrations that are likely to have distorted or even defaced ancient genetic patterns.
Abstract: Several studies showed that surnames are good markers to infer patrilineal genetic structures of populations, both on regional and microregional scales. As a case study, the spatial patterns of the 9,929 most com- mon surnames of the Netherlands were analyzed by a clustering method called self-organizing maps (SOMs). The resulting clusters grouped surnames with a similar geographic distribution and origin. The analysis was shown to be in agreement with already known features of Dutch surnames, such as 1) the geographic distribution of some well-known locative suffixes, 2) historical census data, 3) the distribution of foreign surnames, and 4) polyphyletic surnames. Thus, these results validate the SOM clustering of surnames, and allow for the generali- zation of the technique. This method can be applied as a new strategy for a better Y-chromosome sampling design in retrospective population genetics studies, since the idenfication of surnames with a defined geographic origin enables the selection of the living descendants of those families settled, centuries ago, in a given area. In other words, it becomes possible to virtually sample the popu- lation as it was when surnames started to be in use. We show that, in a given location, the descendants of those individuals who inhabited the area at the time of origin of surnames can be as low as 20%. This finding suggests 1) the major role played by recent migrations that are likely to have distorted or even defaced ancient genetic patterns, and 2) that standard-designed samplings can hardly por- tray a reliable picture of the ancient Y-chromosome vari- ability of European populations. Am J Phys Anthropol 126:214 -228, 2005. © 2004 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
68 citations
Additional excerpts
...It could be argued that the isonymy method does not take into account the cumulative effects of inbreeding, because founding groups are often from a small region, or even composed of relatives (Jobling, 2001)....
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TL;DR: It is argued why Y-chromosomal analysis and its genetic genealogical applications will still perform an important role in future interdisciplinary research.
Abstract: The Y chromosome is currently by far the most popular marker in genetic genealogy that combines genetic data and family history. This popularity is based on its haploid character and its close association with the patrilineage and paternal inherited surname. Other markers have not been found (yet) to overrule this status due to the low sensitivity and precision of autosomal DNA for genetic genealogical applications, given the vagaries of recombination, and the lower capacities of mitochondrial DNA combined with an in general much lower interest in maternal lineages. The current knowledge about the Y chromosome and the availability of markers with divergent mutation rates make it possible to answer questions on relatedness levels which differ in time depth; from the individual and familial level to the surnames, clan and population level. The use of the Y chromosome in genetic genealogy has led to applications in several well-established research disciplines; namely in, e.g., family history, demography, anthropology, forensic sciences, population genetics and sex chromosome evolution. The information obtained from analysing this chromosome is not only interesting for academic scientists but also for the huge and lively community of amateur genealogists and citizen-scientists, fascinated in analysing their own genealogy or surname. This popularity, however, has also some drawbacks, mainly for privacy reasons related to the DNA donor, his close family and far-related namesakes. In this review paper we argue why Y-chromosomal analysis and its genetic genealogical applications will still perform an important role in future interdisciplinary research.
67 citations
Cites background from "In the name of the father: surnames..."
...Third, the most popular applications of Y-chromosomal analysis in family history are without any doubt the surname projects (Jobling 2001; King and Jobling 2009b)....
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TL;DR: The findings are consistent with a relatively small number of Norse settlers (and descendents) migrating to Ireland during the Viking period suggesting that Norse colonial settlements might have been largely composed of indigenous Irish.
Abstract: The Vikings (or Norse) played a prominent role in Irish history but, despite this, their genetic legacy in Ireland, which may provide insights into the nature and scale of their immigration, is largely unexplored. Irish surnames, some of which are thought to have Norse roots, are paternally inherited in a similar manner to Y-chromosomes. The correspondence of Scandinavian patrilineal ancestry in a cohort of Irish men bearing surnames of putative Norse origin was examined using both slow mutating unique event polymorphisms and relatively rapidly changing short tandem repeat Y-chromosome markers. Irish and Scandinavian admixture proportions were explored for both systems using six different admixture estimators, allowing a parallel investigation of the impact of method and marker type in Y-chromosome admixture analysis. Admixture proportion estimates in the putative Norse surname group were highly consistent and detected little trace of Scandinavian ancestry. In addition, there is scant evidence of Scandinavian Y-chromosome introgression in a general Irish population sample. Although conclusions are largely dependent on the accurate identification of Norse surnames, the findings are consistent with a relatively small number of Norse settlers (and descendents) migrating to Ireland during the Viking period (ca. AD 800-1200) suggesting that Norse colonial settlements might have been largely composed of indigenous Irish. This observation adds to previous genetic studies that point to a flexible Viking settlement approach across North Atlantic Europe.
66 citations
TL;DR: These findings represent the first genetic evidence of Africans among ‘indigenous’ British, and emphasize the complexity of human migration history as well as the pitfalls of assigning geographical origin from Y-chromosomal haplotypes.
Abstract: The presence of Africans in Britain has been recorded since Roman times, but has left no apparent genetic trace among modern inhabitants. Y chromosomes belonging to the deepest rooting clade of the Y phylogeny, haplogroup (hg) A, are regarded as African-specific, and no examples have been reported from Britain or elsewhere in Western Europe. We describe the presence of an hgA1 chromosome in an indigenous British male; comparison with African examples suggests a Western African origin. Seven out of 18 men carrying the same rare east-Yorkshire surname as the original male also carry hgA1 chromosomes, and documentary research resolves them into two genealogies with most-recent-common ancestors living in Yorkshire in the late 18th century. Analysis using 77 Y-short tandem repeats (STRs) is consistent with coalescence a few generations earlier. Our findings represent the first genetic evidence of Africans among ‘indigenous’ British, and emphasize the complexity of human migration history as well as the pitfalls of assigning geographical origin from Y-chromosomal haplotypes.
65 citations
Cites background from "In the name of the father: surnames..."
...region of the Y, defined by slowly mutating binary markers Received 19 September 2006; revised 23 November 2006; accepted 28 November 2006; published online 24 January 2007 *Correspondence: Professor MA Jobling, Department of Genetics, University of Leicester, University Road, Leicester LE1 7RH, UK. Tel: þ 44 116 252 3427; Fax: þ 44 116 252 3378; E-mail: maj4@leicester.ac.uk European Journal of Human Genetics (2007) 15, 288–293 & 2007 Nature Publishing Group All rights reserved 1018-4813/07 $30....
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