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Archiver > GENEALOGY-DNA > 2004-10 > 1097719259


From: Hikaru Kitabayashi <>
Subject: On the value of mtDNA
Date: Wed, 13 Oct 2004 19:01:10 -0700 (PDT)
In-Reply-To: <200410131921.i9DJL0uM024104@lists5.rootsweb.com>


I would like to assure anyone with doubts to the
contrary that mtDNA has great potential value. An
aquaintance was able to prove, with the help of a
fairly well documented paper trail, that an ancestress
who lived over 250 years ago was at least part
Cherokee. Another individual with the same fairly
unusual mtDNA that I have was able to narrow down his
genealogical research to a fairly narrow geographic
area based on a knowledge of my female-line ancestry
and a similarity in certain family names.

Nevertheless, mtDNA is underutilized. The biggest
handicap, as I see it, is (if I am allowed to borrow a
term from Corpus Linguistics) that it is untagged,
whereas the y-chromosome is. That is a surname
attaches to male-line descents, but, in most of the
world, not to female-line descents. One step that
could be taken which could improve the situation over
time would be if more women would organize female-line
based family reunions and/or would for genealogical
purposes more or less arbitrarily assign themselves
and their earliest documentable ancestress female-line
surnames that could later be used as identifiers in
much the same way that surnames are used in connection
with y-chromosome studies.

I would, in fact, be prepared to provide a domain name
and server space for free for anyone or any group
willing to undertake the maintenance of such a
female-line (mtDNA) based surname registry that could
serve as a genealogical tool for family history
researchers. This would not be of the same scope as
what was previously suggested, but, by creating a new
research tool and by acting as a source of unofficial
standardization, could eventually make such projects
more realizable.

One last comment, for most people it is impossible to
obtain by the paper trail a sure knowledge of anymore
than a very small percentage of one's ancestors and,
after a certain point, this percentage starts
decreasing fairly dramatically the longer one goes
back. The interest in mtDNA and y-chromosome
haplogroups is probably for almost all individuals not
an attempt to deny any part of their heritage, but an
attempt to identify yet another ancestral line and to
make connections where the the paper trail has
disappeared. The reason these one or two lines take on
a special importance is, in economic terms, a matter
of supply and demand. For every individual there are
literally millions of lines through which it will
never be able to make a connection with others.
Scarcity creates value and this is what makes
exceptionally precious the one or two more or less
vaguely identifiable ancestral lines for which DNA
genealogy can provide a certain bit of extra help.

Hikaru Kitabayashi


Date: Wed, 13 Oct 2004 14:01:55 -0400
From: "Anne" <>
To:
Subject: Re: [DNA] Re: mtDNA and Genealogy

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Got to jump in here even with all my ignorance. I wish
I'd never wasted
money on mtDNA. If it's worth anything at all it has
escaped my
attention,
even though that is actually why I joined this list. I
have a feeling I
might as well throw in the towel and leave you nice
folks.

Anne
----- Original Message -----
From: <>
To: <>
Sent: Wednesday, October 13, 2004 12:11 PM
Subject: Re: [DNA] Re: mtDNA and Genealogy


> In a message dated 10/10/04 1:35:08 PM Pacific
Daylight Time,
>
> writes:
>
>> I have, as many of you know, been a proponent of
the idea that mtDNA
>> isn't
>> being used as skillfully as it might be in
genealogy. While mito
search
>> is
>> a
>> great tool, It has also struck me that it might be
worthwhile to
think of
>> mtDNA
>> in terms of geographical locations, by decades.
>
> Conceptually, I fervently agree with you, but it
strikes me as being
hard
> to
> implement. In a sense, the Sorenson project is doing
something
similar
> with
> haplotype blocks on the paired nuclear chromosomes,
placing them in a
> time/space
> framework based on the pedigrees submitted by
volunteers. Maybe
they'll
> develop some geographic information database
techniques that can be
> translated to
> mtDNA.
>
> http://smgf.org:8081/pubgen/site21.jsp
>
>
> Ann Turner - GENEALOGY-DNA List Administrator
> Search or Browse the archives, Subscribe or
Unsubscribe at
>
http://lists.rootsweb.com/index/other/DNA/GENEALOGY-DNA.html
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