The McMichael / MacMichael Surname Project has been organized for all who wish to work together to find their common heritage through Y-DNA testing and sharing of information. The project is open to all McMichaels / MacMichaels from Ireland and Scotland and their descendants, and those who have a genetic link to the McMichael / MacMichael families listed on our results page. All variant spellings are welcome. If your surname spelling is missing, please submit it for addition. 

The goals of the project can be summarised as follows:

1. To identify members (and hence their family branches) that are more closely related to each other (those that have similar genetic signatures can be grouped together into genetic families and can be considered to be related to each other genetically).

2. To help members establish to which genetic family they belong (this may allow them to "piggyback" onto the established genealogies of other members in the group, for example the member who has the family bible and can trace his line back to the 1500s).

3. To confirm paper-trail evidence & traditional genealogies (a positive match between two members who believe they are descended from the same common ancestor on the basis of traditional documentary evidence can help confirm that relationship).

4. To help to focus further documentary research (members of a genetic family are closely related and should work with each other to try to identify the common ancestor).

5. To identify the likely geographical origin(s) of each genetic family.

6. To study the evolution of the surname from its earliest origins to its present day forms.

7. To document and publish the results along the way so that others can derive the maximum benefit from the project.