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From: Lauren Boyd <>
Subject: [SCOT-DNA] Article of Interest: Interpreting Results: Why is the Surname relevant?
Date: Thu, 11 Sep 2003 09:36:59 -0700


Interpreting Results: Why is the Surname relevant?
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The Surname is a very important component of a Y DNA Project, which is one
of the reasons that the Projects are called Surname Projects. The use of
the Surname in a Y DNA Project is to establish a boundary in time for when
the persons are related. For example, when Surnames match and the 12
Marker or 25 Marker results match, then the common ancestor occurred since
Surnames were established.

Surnames were established in different parts of the world at different
times. At one point in time, people used just a one part name, or first
name. The use of Surnames then evolved, as well as the hereditary nature
of surnames.

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.

The present day form of many surnames is due to the spelling of 16th or
17th century clergy. The present spelling of a surname could even be a
result of the spelling recorded by the registrars of births in the 19th
century. There was no guide to the spellings of names, and those who
recorded events, such as the clergy and registrars, attempted to reproduce
phonetically the sounds they heard. The great majority of the population
were illiterate and had no notion that any one spelling of their name was
more 'correct' than any other.

Many surnames have been corrupted to such an extent that their original
forms may only be discovered after considerable research. Discovering the
original form of your surname will involve tracing your family tree
backwards in time, step by step.

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.

Throughout time, events could occur which changed the surname, such as an
informal adoption when a widow remarries. Occasionally there was a
voluntary name change, just as occurs today.

The spelling of a Surname could change when a family migrated, due to the
pronunciation being interpreted as a different spelling in the new local.
When selecting variants for a Surname Project, the IGI (International
Genealogical Index) is a good guide, since the IGI usually has all variant
forms of a Surname grouped together under a standard spelling. Many of
these forms of the Surname do not survive to the current day, either
because the male line ended, or the spelling was only recorded for a
period of time. To determine which variant forms survive today, the
variants from the IGI can be used to search various online Phone Books.

When the surname matches and the Y DNA result matches, you have
established that the persons are related since the adoption of Surnames.
The maximum time frame for the common ancestor would vary based on when
surnames were established in the local where the ancestors were located.

When the surname doesn't match, and the Y DNA result matches, a decision
needs to be made as to whether to pursue the match. The match could be
the result of any of the following:

1. convergence
2. adoption
3. extra marital event
4. related before the adoption of surnames
5. change of name

Most likely, a matching Y DNA result with a different surname was caused
by either convergence, or being related before the adoption of surnames.
These two situations should not be pursued. For the other situations, a
decision must be made. The odds are small that an adoption or extra
marital event occurred. Before deciding to pursue a match where the
surname differs, determine if there is any genealogical evidence that an
adoption or extra marital event is a possibility. For example, was a
child born within a few months of a marriage? Did a widow remarry? Did
people with the other surname reside in the same local at any time? Is
there any evidence of a change of name, such as a census entry for the
family with a new name?

Most of the time, Y DNA matches with other surnames are not worth
pursuing. If your Haplogroup is R1b, you will usually get a large number
of matches with other Surnames. You can eliminate these matches from your
results page for Matches, by setting yourself as Private.

For more information on convergence, see:

http://www.familytreedna.com/facts_genes.asp?act=show&nk=1.5


For more information on Private, see:

http://www.familytreedna.com/facts_genes.asp?act=show&nk=2.3
http://www.FamilyTreeDNA.com/facts_genes.asp?act=show&nk=2.1
................................
Copyright 2003, Family Tree DNA reprinted by permission
from Facts & Genes from Family Tree DNA
==================================
September 11, 2003 Volume 2, Issue 8

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