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Archiver > LACY > 2003-09 > 1063964151


From: "Clay Daniels" <>
Subject: [LACY-L] Surnames & DNA
Date: Fri, 19 Sep 2003 04:35:51 -0500


I have noticed with great interest the resurgence of our LACY email list,
and think it's a good thing. I've tried to put my two cents worth in
regarding my particular line, which is made up of step by step connections
and stories that lead back to Thomas Lacy who apparently came from abroad in
1680/1685. This is my mom's line, so I will be of little help in my
following proposal.

>From FamilyTreeDNA:

"In England, it was not until the early 12th century that surnames became
hereditary among the nobility. Surnames then spread gradually amongst the
ordinary people in the next century, from the town to the country and from
the south of England to the north. Most people in England did not have
anything approaching an hereditary surname until the end of the 14th
century.

Names became hereditary later in Scotland and Ireland than in England, and
in Wales and Shetland a large proportion of the population did not develop
stable hereditary surnames until the 18th century. Many of the surnames in
Wales did not become stable until the middle of the 19th century."

My surname is DANIEL(S), and I have become involved in a DNA project for my
Y-chromosome male line. It has turned out to be very interesting, and
although we only have a few dozen participants so far, it has connected me
with cousins I would have never known otherwise, and made it clear that not
everyone with the same surname is actually related.

I would like to suggest that the known male LAC(E)Y descendants start a DNA
project. Our Daniel project is at FamilyTreeDNA.com but GenTree offers a
similar service. I think it would help sort out the various Lacy/Lacey
lines, and as the database builds, provide a great new tool for our family
research.

Best Regards,
Clay Daniels

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