In addition to being members of a family with a particular surname or one of its variants, we are all part of much larger population groups called haplogroups by population geneticists.  The origins of these haplogroups, which stem from genetic mutations that occur over time in different peoples, can be traced back to the dawn of “modern humans” some 60,000 to 50,000 years ago.

The same Y-DNA test that our participants take to clarify their family heritage can be used to project the larger paternal haplogroup to which they might belong , with a very high level of probability.  In addition, further DNA tests can be taken to pinpoint these deeper paternal ancestral roots with even greater specificity and certainty.

Deep maternal ancestral roots can also be uncovered through DNA testing, and both male and female members of our group may participate in this project.  To date, just one person has chosen to do so, though we expect others to follow.  Instead of using our Y-DNA for these tests, our mtDNA, the DNA that we inherit from our mothers, is used.  

Haplogroup Results

The ancient ancestors of haplogroups R and I most likely were part of a band of humans that apparently left Africa between about 50,000 and 45,000 years ago.  This was a small group, estimated variously at only about 150 people.  Over time, this band of people multiplied, and through successive generations they tended to move in two different directions. Some of the individuals gradually made their way along the coast of what today would be the Arabian Peninsula, Iran, Pakistan and India, finally reaching South East Asia and beyond.  Others gradually expanded through successive generations to the north toward the Middle East and beyond.  Those expanding to the east gave rise to haplogroup C and perhaps D, while those expanding northward included the ancestors of haplogroups R and I, as well as others.

Perhaps some 45,000 years ago the people migrating in a northerly direction toward the Middle East apparently again split into two major groups.  One of these which came to be known as the Eurasian Clan included the ancestors of the R haplogroup, while the other included ancestors of the I haplogroup. 

The R Haplogroup

The ancestors of the R haplogroup gradually expanded eastward from what today would be called the Middle East toward the Hindu Kush, the Tian Shan and the Himalayas.  Upon reaching the virtually impassable mountain ranges of Eastern Asia, these people broke into a few different groups with one, to include again the ancestors of the R1 haplogroup, expanding northward. 

As they moved north, these people again broke into two major population groups.  One would again resume its eastward expansion eventually reaching the northeastern edge of Asia and crossing into North America, while the other would expand back toward the west.  It is this latter group expanding westward that would come to dominate the first major human migration into Europe.  Members of what we today call the R1b haplogroup are direct descendants of this European Clan.

As time passed and the European continent cooled with the expansion of the ice sheets during the last Glacial Maximum some 20,000 to 15,000 years ago, the people of the R1b haplogroup most likely took refuge on the Iberian Peninsula.  With the subsequent warming trend, the R1b’s moved back up into Western Europe and on into the British Isles some 15,000 to 12,000 years ago.  From there, most of the ancestors of our Group’s participants eventually came to this country.

The I Haplogroup

The ancestors of the I haplogroup apparently remained in the Middle East for thousands of years after the Eurasian Clan split away. Perhaps between 30,000 and 20,000 years ago, these I haplogroup ancestors began to expand toward the north and west into the Balkans, and many of them eventually continued on into Central and Southern Europe.

During the last Glacial Maximum, parts of this group apparently took refuge in the Balkans, while others likely found refuge in Italy and southern France, and on the Iberian Peninsula.  As the earth warmed and the ice sheets receded between about 15,000 and 12,000 years ago, these ancestors began to re-populate many parts of northern and western Europe as well as the Scandinavian countries, and from there many may well have emigrated into the British Isles.

Concluding Comments

With the sequencing of the human genome in the year 2000, geneticists and genealogists can now join as full partners with anthropologists, linguists, sociologists and other scientists in the search for our human origins. With every passing day, it seems that more and more information about these deep ancestral roots comes to light.

By far the largest and broadest effort to discover the deep ancestral roots of today’s human population and to track the expansion of haplogroups around the world over the past 50,000 years is being conducted by The National Geographic Society, IBM and the Waitt Family Foundation.  Information about their progress may be seen at Genographic Project.  If you join the Doty Y-DNA Project, we can help you to see that your test results are included in the database of the Genographic Project as well as our own.

To participate in our Doty-Doten Y-DNA Project:

• Go to the Doty project on the Family Tree DNA Website.
• Scroll down the page to the order form, fill it out and click on “Submit”.
That’s all there is to it. You will receive a test kit in the mail within a few days.

 Home Page