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Archiver > GENEALOGY-DNA > 2003-05 > 1053110723


From: "John F. Chandler" <>
Subject: Re: [DNA] Haplogroup I and the Vikings
Date: Fri, 16 May 2003 14:18 EST
In-Reply-To: peterebay@yahoo.com message <20030516162011.18438.qmail@web20002.mail.yahoo.com> of Fri, 16 May 2003 10:17:55 -0600


Peter wrote:
> FamilyTreeDNA's Haplogroup page notes that "Haplogroup
> I lineages ... would most likely have been common
> within Viking populations."

Note how carefully that statement is phrased. It does NOT say that
haplogroup I most likely means Viking ancestry. All it says is that
haplogroup I was common among Vikings. This is based on the observation
that haplogroup I is common among modern Norwegians, along with other
populations all over northern Europe.

> Oxford Ancestors offers a
> Viking Ancestry Test

The "inner workings" of the OxAnc "Viking" were discussed in this group
last year. It turns out to be the most simple-minded test imaginable,
and terribly misleading. Basically, they look at just one locus:
DYS392. If it's 11, they say "Viking"; otherwise not. The test relies
on the observation that one of the two other haplogroups common in
modern Norway shares a property with haplogroup I -- in both cases, the
model haplotype has DYS392=11. Unfortunately, the third common
haplogroup in Norway does NOT share this property, and so the "test" has
a huge number of false negatives, as well as a huge number of false
positives.

John Chandler

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