Surnames, DNA, and Family History
Published on 8. October 2015
Book
Paperback/Softback
262 pages
978-0-19-873648-6 (ISBN)
Description
This book combines linguistic and historical approaches with the latest techniques of DNA analysis and shows the insights these offer for every kind of genealogical research. It focuses on British names, tracing their origins to different parts of the British Isles and Europe and revealing how names often remain concentrated in the districts where they first became established centuries ago. In the process the book casts fresh light on the ancient peopling of the British Isles. The authors consider why some names die out while others spread across the globe. They use recent advances in DNA testing to investigate whether particular surnames have single, dual, or multiple origins, and to find out if the various forms of a single name have a common origin. They show how information from DNA can be combined with historical evidence and techniques to distinguish between individuals with the same name and different names with similar spellings, and to identifty the name of the same individual or family spelt in various ways in different times and places.
The final chapter of this paperback edition, looking at the use of genetics in historical research, has been updated to include new work on the DNA of Richard III.
The final chapter of this paperback edition, looking at the use of genetics in historical research, has been updated to include new work on the DNA of Richard III.
Reviews / Votes
An excellent book, for its clarity, up-to-dateness, and coverage of all the important aspects of genetic genealogy, with many interesting and useful details not given in other books. * Genetic Genealogy * [T]hey enjoyably demonstrate how ancestral links may be explored. * Family History Monthly 01/12/2011 * [I]t provides exciting clues about how recent developments in DNA analysis are shaping genealogical research * Who Do You Think You Are? 01/12/2011 * Enthralling and compulsively readable, this book combines linguistics with genetics, genealogy, and local history to provide a fresh and eye-opening vision of the British past - and indeed of family histories across a wider world. Focusing on the history of British surnames it casts a totally new light on what makes us who we are - and how we can find out. Indispensable reading for anyone interested in their roots, this book offers nothing less than a new perspective on British history. * Michael Wood, historian and broadcaster * An excellent book, for its clarity, up-to-dateness, and coverage of all the important aspects of genetic genealogy, with many interesting and useful details not given in other books. * Genetic Genealogy * This book will come to be seen as an important progenitor of a new historical subdiscipline, a ground-breaking interdisciplinary liaison, between history and genetics, one that may eclipse the boldness of any such humanities scientific collaboration hitherto. * Professor Keith Snell, Annual Bulletin of Historical Literature * This book is ground-breaking for two reasons: firstly, it is the only book I have encountered that takes a truly multi-disciplinary approach to surname study, integrating linguistic, historical, genealogical, geographical, and scientific (genetic) evidence, and secondly, it is the first book I have read that reviews and identifies the strengths and (more particularly) the deficiencies of surname study to date and clearly sets out the various sources and methods one can and should use to investigate surnames successfully. For these two reasons alone the book deserves to be read by anyone with an interest in surnames or names and naming more generally. * Simon Draper, Nomina *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Oxford
United Kingdom
Dimensions
Height: 235 mm
Width: 150 mm
Thickness: 14 mm
Weight
418 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-19-873648-6 (9780198736486)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
George Redmonds | Turi King | David Hey
Surnames, DNA, and Family History
Book
08/2011
Oxford University Press
€48.00
Shipment within 15-20 days
Persons
George Redmonds is a freelance historian, specialising in Names Studies and Local History. He has lectured widely in Europe, North America, Australia and New Zealand and in 2001 presented the BBC Radio 4 series 'Surnames, Genes and Genealogy'. His numerous books include Surnames and Genealogy (1997) and Names and History (2004).
Turi King read Archaeology and Anthropology at the University of Cambridge before undertaking her MSc and PhD in genetics at the University of Leicester. For the past ten years her research has focused on the link between surnames and genetics and its applications in the fields of forensics, epidemiology, genealogy and population history.
David Hey is Emeritus Professor of Local and Family History at the University of Sheffield. He is President of the British Association for Local History and the Chairman of the British Record Society. His numerous books include The Oxford Companion to Family and Local History ( third edition, 2008).
Turi King read Archaeology and Anthropology at the University of Cambridge before undertaking her MSc and PhD in genetics at the University of Leicester. For the past ten years her research has focused on the link between surnames and genetics and its applications in the fields of forensics, epidemiology, genealogy and population history.
David Hey is Emeritus Professor of Local and Family History at the University of Sheffield. He is President of the British Association for Local History and the Chairman of the British Record Society. His numerous books include The Oxford Companion to Family and Local History ( third edition, 2008).
Content
Introduction ; 1. By-names ; 2. Hereditary Surnames ; 3. Expansion and Decline ; 4. Distribution and Migration ; 5. Linguistic and Social Factors ; 6. Meaning and Method ; 7. DNA and Surnames ; 8. The Link Between Surname and Y Chromosome Type ; 9. The Wider Picture ; Conclusion ; Bibliography ; Index of Names ; General Index