Results
Report as of 9/8/2009:
Y-DNA Results:
Various Scottish clans are finding that they are descended from more than one progenitor. Such is the case with Clan MacRae. We have identified several lines that show relationship between two or more testers plus many others who do not yet have a match within the clan.
Haplogroups are DNA signatures that are used to look at migrations of man. A resource on this topic is Spencer Wells, Deep Ancestry. To see research and graphics of the Y-DNA tree, go to ISOGG YSNP Tree.
The Haplogroups in Clan MacRae as of 21 April 2009 are:
E = 1.4%
I = 5.6%
J = 1.4%
R1a = 1.4%
R1b = 90.1%
Haplogroups are DNA signatures that are used to look at migrations of man. A resource on this topic is Spencer Wells, Deep Ancestry. To see research and graphics of the Y-DNA tree, go to http://www.isogg.org/tree/index.html
• Y-DNA Haplogroup E would appear to have arisen in Northeast Africa based on the concentration and variety of E subclades in that area today. But the fact that Haplogroup E is closely linked with Haplogroup D, which is not found in Africa, leaves open the possibility that E first arose in the Near or Middle East and was subsequently carried into Africa by a back migration. E1b1b1 probably evolved either in Northeast Africa or the Near East and then expanded to the west--both north and south of the Mediterranean Sea.
• Y-DNA Haplogroup I overwintered in the Balkans during the last Ice Age and some members of this group also overwintered in Iberia. The subgroup I1 today is found mainly in northwestern Europe; some I1’s are Anglo-Saxons, and others are Norse Vikings. One of the oldest inhabitants of great Britain is the I2b1a group called Isles . Another I2a grouping comes from Eastern Europe.
• Y-DNA Haplogroup R1b is the most prolific haplogroup in Europe and its frequency changes in a cline from west (where it reaches a saturation point of almost 100% in areas of Western Ireland) to east (where it becomes uncommon in parts of Eastern Europe and virtually disappears beyond the Middle East.
R1b MacRae Dalriada is the largest single group of testers comprising 21.1% of all testers. The Dalriada DNA signature was first identified by Mark MacDonald of Clan Donald. A number of clans have a variant of this DNA signature. This group is descended from the genetic family of Erc, the king of the Irish Dal Riata in Antrim (Ulster) until 474. His sons Fergus Mor, Angus, and Loarn established the Scottish kingdom of Dalriada in 470. The 3 mutational differences between the Dalriada Modal and the MacRae Modal is easily accommodated within a time frame of 470 to today.
We hypothesize that this Dalriada DNA signature found in Clan MacRae is also the signature of the MacRaes of Kintail, but we do not have enough testers with pedigrees who trace back to The Rev. Alexander MacRae’s The History of the MacRaes to confirm this hypothesis. The MacRaes of Kintail lived on the mainland across from the Isle of Skye which was a stronghold of the MacDonalds who show the key Dalriada DNA signature and 3 variants. The MacRaes of Kintail are said to have come from Clunes (near Inverness) to Kintail. Kit 48952 has a paper trail back to the History of the Clan MacRae. This tester traces back to Farquhar MacRae (Torlysich branch "Black MacRaes"), 3rd son of Christopher MacRae who was Chief of the clan and appointed Constable of Eilean Donan Castle about 1511.
R1b- Irish SW (also known as Irish Type III) is the second largest group of testers comprising 15.5% of all testers. This group originated in the South West part of Ireland. The tradition of the McCraws is that the family came from the Isle of Skye. The immigrant William had eight sons and we already have proven a relationship through DNA testing which had a gap in the paper trail.
R1b-Irish NW Niall is identified as the Ui Neill clan which produced the Irish King Niall of the 9 Hostages. Testers in this group comprise 4.2% of the testers.
There are many other small groups of men whose test results show they are related. Most of these pedigrees show an Irish bent, some are Scottish and some are undetermined. There are also quite a few men who are still waiting for matches.
mtDNA Results:
Seventeen members with MacRae ancestry have tested. As expected, they are not related to each other on the straight female line which changes surnames with each generation. It is extremely unusual to find mtDNA matches even if the person has tested both HVR1 and HVR2 since with both tested the match can range back 700 years. All of the mtDNA haplogroups reported in these tests are found in the British Isles and are discussed in Bryan Sykes, The Seven Daughters of Eve. All of these haplogroups are also discussed in Spencer Wells, Deep Ancestry.
The mtDNA Haplogroups in Clan MacRae as of 6 September 2009 are:
H = 50.0%
J = 12.5%
K = 12.5%
T = 6.3%
U = 18.8%
mtDNA Haplogroup H (also known as Helena)- This haplogroup comprises 40 to 60 % of the mtDNA gene pool in Western Europe and as such is considered the most successful of the mtDNA haplogroups in reproducing itself. It also comprises about 20 % of southwest Asian lineages, 15 % of central Asian lineages and 5 % of northern Asian lineages.
mtDNA Haplogroup J* (also known as Jasmine) – This haplogroup has a very wide distribution, being common in eastern and northern Europe, and is present as far east as the Indus Valley bordering Indian and Pakistan and as far south as the Arabian peninsula. mtDNA haplogroup J is largely considered one of the main genetic signatures of the Neolithic expansion and is associated with the spread of agriculture.
mtDNA Haplogroup K (also known as Katrine) – This haplogroup has a wide distribution including areas of Europe, northern Africa, India, Arabia, the northern Caucasus Mountains and throughout the near East. Today, mtDNA haplogroup K has three of the four most common mtDNA signatures in Askenazi Jews.
mtDNA Haplogroup T (also known as Tara) – This haplogroup is common in eastern and northern Europe and found as far east as the Indus Valley and the Arabian Peninsula. It is considered one of the main genetic signatures of the Neolithic expansion.
mtDNA Haplogroup U (also known as Ursula) – This haplogroup has a wide distribution. Most in mtDNA haplogroup U come from a group that moved northwest out of the Near East. Today they are found in Europe and the eastern Mediterranean at frequencies of almost 7% of the population. U5 is found in Scandinavia, particularly in Finland with the Saami (reindeer herders). It is found in lesser amounts in North African Berber populations in Morocco, Senegal, and Algeria plus some parts of North African and at 2% in the Near East.