When the paper trail in Scotland runs cold, today there is another powerful tool to use for  your Scottish genealogy search - your DNA.

For people with Scottish ancestral links, EthnoAncestry have developed a unique DNA test not available elsewhere. In particular they can determine whether your Scottish ancestry is  linked to the early Pict settlers of Scotland, the colonising Norse Vikings, or to early medieval Ireland.

And this can be simply achieved from a Y-STR27 test on a sample of male saliva, either yours, or from a close male relation (eg brother or father). The YSTR27 test is the only product on the market which gives customers detailed inference on the history of your lineage by a population geneticist. By looking at 27 different markers on your Y chromosome - a section of DNA inherited from father to son down the generations - we generate  your Y chromosome signature.

EthnoAncestry is an innovative DNA testing company formed in 2004 with the aim of bringing the cutting edge of genetic genealogy research to people through the development of new  genetic signatures and markers, and by providing authoritative interpretation of deep ancestry.

The Picts are believed to be the descendants of the first people to colonise Scotland after the glaciers retreated at the end of the last ice age. Until recently the degree to which present day Scots (and their diaspora) are descended from these mysterious people was unknown. However, recent genetic analysis has revealed the existence of two Pictish Y chromosome signatures which are most common in Scotland, but rarely seen in England or continental Europe. The YSTR27 test will determine your relationship to the Pictish signatures.

The Norse Vikings spread out from their native Scandinavia in their seaworthy longships in the Viking age, starting around AD 793. Although famous for looting and pillaging, genetic evidence attests their colonisation of Iceland, the Faeroes, the Northern Isles of Scotland and to a lesser degree other parts of Scotland and England, and the Isle of Man. The YSTR27 test will determine whether your relationship is to one of a number of Viking signatures.

Somerled - Lord of the Isles
Somerled  (c1100-1164) , King of Argyll and the Isles, is known for driving the Vikings out of the Hebrides. His dynasty, the Lordship of the Isles, ruled the Hebrides till 1493. Genetic analysis of several Chiefs of Clan Donald with documented descent from Somerled, showed that all share the same Y chromosome type, confirming their genealogies. This type is carried by tens of thousands of men today with names like MacDonald and MacDougall. The YSTR27 test will determine your relationship to the Somerled haplotype.

Medieval Ireland - Niall of the Nine Hostages
Recent genetic studies at Trinity College Dublin have discovered the genetic signature of the most important dynasty of early medieval Ireland, the Ui Niell, literally the descendants of Niall, a fifth century warlord whose descendants claimed the high kingship of Ireland. The YSTR27 test will look for these genetic markers. Possession of the Medieval Irish type in a Scot with a typical Scottish surname is a good indicator of Dalriadic Scots origins.

Information:
After submitting your saliva sample EthnoAncestry will extract your DNA in its laboratory and test 27 markers on your Y chromosome.  Your results will then be compared to the extensive EthnoAncestry database to understand which of a number of historical lineages you are closest to, for instance Viking, Pictish, Neolithic farmer , Cohen signatures, etc allowing classification into a number of  Y chromosome types, each with a distinctive history. You will receive a certificate in pdf format summarising your personal results, a map of where your lineage is found today and a description of the historical lineage to which you belong. The signature can also be compared to others to estimate relationships and find matches.

YSTR27 test:     Cost  UK£135

or US$269

Dr. James Wilson, founder of EthnoAncestry  is based at University of Edinburgh and heads ORCADES, a large genome scanning project focusing on cardiovascular disease. Jim is a population geneticist whose list of publications and credits are familiar to all those interested in genetic genealogy and population genetics.

 Jim is a native of Orkney with Shetland roots, and took his  DPhil at University of Oxford where his initial studies with Prof David Goldstein led to the identification of the first genetic signatures of Norse Viking ancestry in the British Isles. He also discovered the "Atlantic Modal Haplotype", which links the ancient peoples of Britain to the Basque people of northern Spain. This work led on to the BBC "Blood of the Vikings" Project.

Jim is developing new markers to tease apart European origins and is collecting an unrivalled resource of ten thousand samples with which to understand Scottish and British history, and recently he identified a new marker of indigenous Irish ancestry.

Dr Wilson is thus uniquely placed to interpret your genetic results.

"So you reckon you're Scots ?"  Read what the Press said about Dr Wilson's new gene test for Pictish ancestry