Gordon DNA Update - July, 2006
Gordon DNA participants and researchers,
Some exciting new breakthroughs in research and connections have been made in the Gordon DNA Project since our last update in January. Growing to over 107 participating Gordon families, it should be expected.
If you have not visited the project homepage recently, you will note that we have a new address.
Analysis of results and new matches will be continually updated on the Results section of the webpage, by clicking on -Results- button on the above link. To see a Gordon family history for a particular family, simply click their respective kit number.
When grouping results, since they change relatively slower, generally - it is best to think of the first twelve markers (1-12) as the Tree; the next 13-markers (13-25) as the Branch; and the remaining markers (26-67) as the Twig. Therefore, the more markers tested, the better we can focus in on a timeframe for a shared common ancestor.
In the House of Gordon, there are over 150 branches, each with its own distinct Y-DNA signature. So if your surname is Gordon and you have a well-documented Gordon family history - we need your DNA. Similarly, if you do not know which branch you belong to and have hit a brick wall, then DNA testing is probably your only option.
Consider the fact that many participants are from around the world and have only been able to trace back to our forefathers immigrant status. For those Gordons with ancestors that emigrated overseas, DNA testing can aid in finding their roots in Ireland and/or Scotland and maybe even help families obtain heraldic arms.
You may be thinking to yourself, “I already know my Gordon family history.” Well, true to some extent, but we are not just linking recent Gordon, we are also trying to determine where the Gordons originated prior to documented history and many other mysteries that only DNA can help solve.
For example, where did the main line of Gordons originate? Was it Macedonia or Gaul, as suggested by 18th century historian George Chalmers? Or maybe even Spain or Flanders as suggested by other Gordon aficionados?
The Seton-Gordons may also wonder whether they descend from the Seatons in France or is it possible that theories presented by JM Bulloch that the grandfather of Alexander Seton changed his name from Swinton to Seton when he married into the Seton family. The results so far are fascinating.
The fact is if we do not establish the genetic sequence of each of the branches, then we may all eventually encounter the same challenges of the Dukes of Gordon and the Gordons of Kenmure and Lochinvar. These lines are all believed to be extinct, at least in peerage title. Since records were traditionally kept only for eldest sons, identifying descendants of their younger siblings becomes difficult at very least and, once all males in a line are gone, so is their DNA signature.
I offer one final example to practical application of DNA. Gordons everywhere may be interested to learn that there are a dozen or so families that share our coat-of-arms, incl. variations on the heads of 3 boars. Most people accept the story of a Gordon saving the life of an early Scottish King from a charging wild boar while on a hunting expedition, etc. However, we may very well write off such lore as a great sale pitch. Research being done at the Eliphinstone Institute at Aberdeen University suggests that the story may be much deeper. One researcher tells me that the more icons on the arms, the more prestige in a family, i.e. each head represents: 1. King. 2. Priest 3. Warrior. Hence, the more boars on the coat-of-arms, the higher the rank of the family. The fact is that most of the arms with the Wild Boars come from an earlier period, which explains their simplicity in design and most likely the arms were created long before the period under discussion in which a Gordon saved the life of a Scotland King. The implication is that these dozen or so families may have the same paternal ancestor.
The only means available to answering all of these questions is DNA. Therefore, if not for yourself, do consider DNA-testing for future generations. Your descendants will be grateful and you can have a role in deciphering the history of the great House of Gordon.
If you have individual questions regarding your DNA results or would like to learn how you can participate, please contact one of the three administrators: T.A. Gordon, Janice McGough or Tony Gordon.
Bydand,
T A Gordon
Co-Administrator
tagordon@hotmail.comThe Gordon DNA Project
www.TheGordonDNAproject.com
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JOINING THE GORDON DNA PROJECT:For more information on joining the Gordon surname project, please click below:
https://www.familytreedna.com/surname_join.asp?code=P14485DNA kits may also be ordered through the joint IBM and National Geographic magazine Migration Project, found at:
https://www5.nationalgeographic.com/genographic/
