1. Develop our understanding of our genetic heritage

Advances in DNA technology present a real opportunity to understand our shared past. Researchers like Tibor Fehér have begun to genetically map Ireland by combining Y-DNA and the genealogies of the regional surnames. This shines new light on the genetic make-up of the region.

A recent paper by Maurice Gleeson, Kyle DePew and Bart Jaski entitled “Tracing the Sons of Brión” used Y-DNA to demonstrate the accuracy of many aspects of the Uí Briúin genealogies (O’Conors, McDermotts, O’Rourkes, etc.). The research shows the impact that Y-DNA can have on our understanding of our surname/clan histories and the medieval past.

The Uí Briuin held the territory to the north and west of Uí Maine and were the greatest rivals to the Uí Maine for much of the medieval period, occupying parts of the territory.

Inevitably, this has had an impact on the DNA of some surnames incorporated into the genealogies of Uí Maine, as documented in the paper from Gleeson et al. and in Tibor Fehér's genetic maps. The Tribes of Uí Maine Project will seek to complement and develop this research in relation to the surnames which emerged from the Tribes of Uí Maine, test the genealogies and give members a better understanding of their genetic and genealogical heritage.

2. Develop our understanding of the origins and history of the surnames of the region

The existing DNA and surname research shows that the attachment of Irish surname groups to their ancestral lands, down through the centuries, cannot be overstated. Many surnames remain concentrated within the vicinity of ancestral lands recorded in medieval sources.

There are other surnames that, through the upheavals of history or through incremental micro-migrations, have moved from their native lands. However, for the most part, surname distribution in Griffth’s Valuation in the 1850s shows obvious correlations with the territories of the Tribes at the dawn of surname era in the 11^th – 12^th Century.

It is principally in recent centuries that surnames, and their genetic footprint have become more dispersed across Ireland, and the world through the diaspora.

As well as exploring the origins of the surnames and the genetic networks that made up the kingdom of Uí Maine, the Project will examine the impact of key historic events on the surname groups, such as the Norman invasion and the Cromwellian Transplantation. Using lessons learned from previous Projects, we will examine if DNA branch dates can be used in conjunction with land records to track the micro-migrations of the surname groups during these key periods in Irish history, as has been done for the Glennons of Roscommon and Galway.

3. Re-connect the Tribes

By assembling testers from the diaspora who trace their roots to Uí Maine with testers who still inhabit the land of their ancestors, we can re-unite the disparate Tribes and re-connect the Tribes to their shared heritage.  In so doing, we can recover, through DNA, an understanding of aspects of the past that have long been forgotten.