Robinsons: Ireland/Scotland

[blackbear]

Hey guys! I'm new here. I've been doing research on Ancestry, trying to find my Celtic roots. My last name is Robinson but I haven't been able to find out for sure if they come from Ireland or Scotland. But I did read on one site that the Robinsons that come from Ireland originally come from Scotland. Does anyone know if that's true? Thanks!
~Aaron

[Steve Ashton]

Please do not believe everything you read on the web.

The only way for sure to know where your people come from is to do your genealogy. This is a paper chase. You start with your birth certificate - That will give you your parents names, possibly where they were married or maybe even where they were born - You go to that place and find the next piece of paper in the trail.

Without an unbroken paper trail you really have no idea where your people are from. For example, everyone in a town does not have the same name. You can find people with the same name all over the place.

What you have to do is find where your particular people came from. Some people spend a lifetime working on their genealogy. They find it an interesting and fascinating hobby.

[neo71665]

DNA test will give you an easy fast idea where your family came from.

I love genealogy but it can be a headache and take years to get anywhere, granted with the internet it is a bit easier. What makes it hard sometimes is the exact reason you can't just say I have a Scottish name so my family must be from Scotland. Names got butchered and often more than once as families moved around. People changed their names looking for a new start or to fit in.

[MacRob]

Hey guys! I'm new here. I've been doing research on Ancestry, trying to find my Celtic roots. My last name is Robinson but I haven't been able to find out for sure if they come from Ireland or Scotland. But I did read on one site that the Robinsons that come from Ireland originally come from Scotland. Does anyone know if that's true? Thanks!
~Aaron

There are Scottish Robinsons and the name was used in Scotland, recorded in various records, since the early 15th century. There are, as mentioned by the other respondents, numerous spelling variations. There were and are Robinsons in England, especially in the more northern counties. The Robinsons in Ireland are most often found in Ulster (Northern Ireland) and are likely descendants of Scots-Irish immigrants. Even though they are part of the Scots-Irish migration, a lot of people who were counted in that group were from northern England, rather than from across the border in Scotland. The DNA test will help you find out the origins of your family, but the detail will depend on just how much you are willing to spend to get the information. In the final analysis, however, as mentioned, digging into your genealogy is the only way to truly know who your ancestors were.

[Steve Ashton]

The problem with using DNA for genealogical searches is the you can only get data back beyond the last time one of your genes mutated. You will have nothing of use after that that since the genes are the same.

And there are no names, language or nationalities attached to genes. All that can be known is that some other people, with the same mutation, can be found in a general part of the world.

People move around the world taking their genes with them but may move to different countries and may change their name, nationality and even learn new languages.

[Walkman]

The problem with using DNA for genealogical searches is the you can only get data back beyond the last time one of your genes mutated. You will have nothing of use after that that since the genes are the same.

DNA in combination with traditional genealogical research and deductive reasoning can yield incredible results. I've been a genealogist for 33 years and a genetic genealogist for 14. There is no point after which "genes are the same". Genes have been mutating since life began and continue to do so; as such they are our roadmap back to the beginning of man and his subsequent dispersal around the world.

[Steve Ashton]

DNA when paired with traditional genealogical work is a good tool, yes. But DNA alone will not tell you the whole story. It will not tell you what country your family lived in or what language they spoke.

Genes are the same since the last time they mutated. In my personal case that is around 4 generations back from me on my father's side and 6 generations back from me on my mother's side.

[Walkman]

DNA when paired with traditional genealogical work is a good tool, yes. But DNA alone will not tell you the whole story. It will not tell you what country your family lived in or what language they spoke.

Genes are the same since the last time they mutated. In my personal case that is around 4 generations back from me on my father's side and 6 generations back from me on my mother's side.

I agree that DNA alone will tell you very little. It has to be used in conjunction with traditional genealogical research. However, let's be clear that in the case of Y-DNA, yours may be exactly the same, or at least very close, to that of your brother, father, paternal grandfather, etc, but as you go back in time you will encounter more and more mutations and it is through those mutations that we can track our ancestors to other countries, across continents, and ultimately to the origin of our species.

DNA in conjunction with traditional genealogical research is a great tool, but you only get out of it what you put into it and there are no guarantees of success. In the case of Y-DNA, four to six generations is more than enough to solve many genealogical "brick walls" and it is beyond that point that things become truly fascinating.

I was stuck in Illinois with an ancestor with a common surname and given name. I knew my ancestor was from Tennessee and born in Virginia, but was lost in a sea of possibilities and locations in Tennessee. DNA testing allowed me to locate my extended family in eastern Tennessee (six generations back), trace it into Virginia (eight generations back) and then ultimately trace back to southwestern Scotland. I couldn't be happier with what I've discovered, and that is only my direct paternal line. I've had many more successes on other lines. I've also been able to help several adopted people discover their roots and reconnect with their birth families.

I will reiterate that there are no guarantees and some lines are certainly more difficult than others, but it really is a fantastic tool. If anyone is interested in doing DNA testing and would like advice on where to test and what tests to order for your particular situation/goals, just send me a private message.

[Walkman]

It will not tell you what country your family lived in or what language they spoke.

It actually did for me. I have a surname that can be English or Scottish. My verbal family tradition is that we are of Scottish origin. Y-DNA has confirmed that this is correct. My direct male line was in Scotland prior to coming to America and spoke Scots.

[Walkman]

DNA when paired with traditional genealogical work is a good tool, yes. But DNA alone will not tell you the whole story. It will not tell you what country your family lived in or what language they spoke.

Genes are the same since the last time they mutated. In my personal case that is around 4 generations back from me on my father's side and 6 generations back from me on my mother's side.

Have you done any deep clade testing, Steve? That can give hints to where your ancestors resided in the British Isles (perhaps you already know) and general ideas of where they had been prior to migrating there.

Randy