Extraordinary Diversity of Scottish DNA

[cessna152towser]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-17740638

The DNA of people living in Scotland has "extraordinary" and "unexpected" diversity, according to a new study.

The Scotland's DNA project, led by Edinburgh University's Dr Jim Wilson, has tested almost 1,000 Scots in the last four months to determine the genetic roots of people in the country.

The project discovered four new male lineages, which account for one in 10 Scottish men.

It also found that actor Tom Conti is related to Napoleon Bonaparte.

Scotland's DNA was set up by Dr Wilson along with historian Alistair Moffat, the current rector of St Andrews University.

Using new technology, scientists were able to pinpoint a participant's DNA marker, from which they tracked the person's history and lineage.

Conti and Napoleon both share the M34 marker, which is Saracen in origin.

The project found that Scotland has almost 100 different groups of male ancestry from across Europe and further afield.

More than 150 different types of female DNA from Europe, Asia and Africa were discovered.
Royal line

Researchers believe that Scotland's location could be a factor in the "astonishing and unique" origins of people from the country.

In a statement, Dr Wilson and Mr Moffat said: "Perhaps geography, Scotland's place at the farthest north-western end of the European peninsula, is the reason for great diversity.

"For many thousands of years, migrants could move no further west. Scotland was the end of many journeys."

Scotland's DNA also found that more than 1% of all Scotsmen are direct descendants of the Berber and Tuareg tribesmen of the Sahara, a lineage which is around 5600 years old.

Royal Stewart DNA was confirmed in 15% of male participants with the Stewart surname. They are directly descended from the royal line of kings.

Scientists believe comedian and presenter Fred MacAuley's ancestors were slaves, sold at the great slave market in Dublin in the 9th Century, despite his name suggesting a Viking heritage.

They said MacAuley's slave ancestor was taken by ship to the Hebrides and had an affair with his owner's wife, thereby intruding DNA into the MacAulay line.

Scotland's DNA will soon be renamed Britain's DNA as the project aims to widen its genetic study to include the English, Welsh and Irish.

[tulloch]

Very interesting. Thanks for sharing that.

[unaspenser]

What a cool article! Arlen participated in some DNA study in Scotland a few years ago, not sure if this was the one or not, they IDed his DNA as almost exclusively Pictish, with a small amount of Eastern European due to a Polish ancestor who emigrated to Ireland in the 18th century.

[Bugbear]

Interesting. I wonder if this information, or perhaps those techniques, can now be used to detect the many Scottish seeds sown around the world, now that we know the world has sown it's seeds in Scotland.

[Mael Coluim]

Yep, interesting stuff!

My haplotype is most predominate today, in Donegal County! A swath of men with it goes across Northern Ireland to the Argyll through Stirlingshire. Then there is a wee group of us in the NE tip of Scotland.

[The Wizard of BC]

My wife Bobbie walked into the kilt shop this afternoon with a present.

A new book

"The Scots - A Genetic Journey"
By Alistair Moffat & James F. Wilson

Published by Birlinn Limited, Edinburgh

ISBN 978 1 84158 941 1

This appears to be the book talked about in this article. I've only gotten into it about 80 pages so far but a very good read so far.

[MacSpadger]

It's also been a 6 part BBC Scotland radio series over here. Linked up with this book and radio series, there's also been a television series, Digging For Britain, in which old bones are DNA tested. You may be able to hear an interview with Alistair Moffat here.

It seems to be another nail in the coffin for the old Victorian "Celtic" stories, we are all the decendants of immigrants from a wide and varied source, (although our immigration began just after the ice age, so records are patchy ), and it's where we are born and raised that gives us our cultural aspects.

However, DNA can back up some old stories once dismissed as myth. There was an earlier project over here called "Face of Britain", (although it included all of Ireland :confused: ). It was a large 5 year experiment where 2000 people in each area/town/city was tested for their DNA by Bryan Sykes, an Oxford University professor.

People from Shetland, Orkney and even Lewis had absolutely no Briton/Pictish male DNA whatsoever, but there was a surviving line of Pictish female DNA. This supported what both history and folklore tells us, that the islands were inhabited by Picts, then the Vikings arrived and massacred all the Pictish males, forcing their women and daughters into slavery/partnership. Chilling.

On the north mainland around 60% of the Scottish men have Norwegian Viking DNA, with the remaining 40% having markers similar to the Ancient Britons, with no evidence of Anglo-Saxon or Danish influences. In the Hebrides, the figure for Norwegian Viking DNA was around 30%, so obviously Norwegian Viking colonised the Orkneys and the north of Scotland in a heavier manner because they were nearer and didn't have Somerled to contend with.

The North of England also had Norwegian Viking DNA incursion, but southern England had a similar R1b-L21 input as the population of mainland Scotland and Ireland, showing that not only were the English never "homogenous Anglo-Saxons", but neither were the Scots or Irish predominantly or exclusively "Celtic".