Oct15
Zeroing in
I’ve been reading about Haplogroup testing this past month. In fact, I learned that I had misused the words “Haplotype” and “Haplogroup”. They are not interchangeable. Haplogroup testing is done to determine the Haplogroup that a man’s Y-DNA belongs to, and anymore it can be very specific. Scientists are zeroing in on Haplogroups, looking at more and more subgroups and determining where they come from. There is an especially large amount of research being done on the R1b Haplogroup, with many subgroupings appearing. Our ancestors, William and John Vaughan were both type R1b1c. The last “1c” are subgroupings, and that can even be taken down several levels, after having a Haplogroup test.
These tests are about $70 and are different then the 37 or 67 marker Y-DNA tests. They have the potential to pinpoint an area where an ancestor lived. I suspect that further research may pinpoint a Welsh subgroup type and it just may be that William and John’s ancestor would fit into this group. Also, scientists are beginning to use Y-DNA and Haplogroup testing to identify lines from specific individuals. Descendants of the ancient Lord of the Isles Somerled are beginning to zero in on his specific DNA by comparing various lines of descendants. As Somerled’s descendants include the mighty McDonald clan, there are many to test. In fact, I am a descendant of Somerled through one sept of the McDonald clan, but sadly my line is mixed with female and male descendants several times over, so my Y-DNA is not of the McDonald line.
Yet it could be that some day there will be research on Sir Roger Vychan’s descendants and just like Somerled’s lines, our Vaughans might match. In hopes of this happening, I am beginning the process of raising money to have one of our prior Y-DNA test subject’s DNA sample tested for it’s Haplogroup. I really suspect that it will one day point out a line of descent from either Sir Roger or another Vaughan line.
What an exciting time to conduct Genealogical research!
Eddie Davis