The Library

How our timing works.
We have reason to believe Niven's and Ian's line is mutating at a rate of once every 250 years. Stan and I are reasonably sure our line is mutating at a rate of once every 300  years. This means once ever 24 generations. Not once over 250-500 generations (6,250-12,500 years!!) as many DNA researchers seem to think. 

How far back is enough?
Our lineages in the project so far are clearly mutating among themselves, but only among those markers known to mutate quickly. With but one exception, they're all very tight in the markers that have mutated less over time. This is significant in that it tells us our slower markers are not that different. Even among those project members not yet in a lineage the markers are not that far off. I'm looking at a genetic distance of zero here to be extra strict. Perhaps a further examination of allowing distance here would prove useful.

250 yrs per mutation     x 1 genetic distance (GD)      250 yrs ago  1756 AD

By this point, our modern Sinclairs and St. Clairs have entered North America and anywhere colonized by Great Britain

250 yrs per mutation      x 2 GD      750 yrs ago  1556 AD

Sinclairs DNA is still in Western Europe, Scandinavia, Germany, France, Russia, the Middle East and Africa. Our trail of genetic information has grown quite long. It may even be in North America as some of Prince Henry's DNA may have remained with the Mi'kmac Indians.

250 yrs per mutation     x 3 genetic distance (GD)      750 yrs ago  1256 AD

Our DNA is now showing up in England and Scotland. Of course, it's still in all the other places we lived. Not every Sinclair family member packed up and left for England and Scotland.

250 yrs per mutation     x 4 genetic distance (GD)   1000 yrs ago 1006 AD

Sinclair DNA from Norway enters northwestern France. But it's not necessarily the first time that DNA has been here. It's very possible that our R1b DNA was here from those in Africa who came this way rather than go through Russia.

250 yrs per mutation     x 5 GD   1500 yrs ago   506 AD

Sinclair DNA from Norway enters northwestern France. But it's not necessarily the first time that DNA has been here. It's very possible that our R1b DNA was here from those in Africa who came this way rather than go through Russia.

250 yrs     x   7  GD    1750 yrs ago    256 AD

Just after the time of the birth of Jesus, our DNA was already in Europe, the middle east, the steppes of Russia and, of course, our trail of DNA is still back to Africa.

Sometime after the last ice age, our line started moving north and west. The ice had retreated, the land was fertile and we moved northward. Our signature of the Q haplogroup and R1b makes it almost certain we have Viking blood.

18,000 yrs ago     /   250  years per mutation        72 Genetic Distance

Let's jump back in time now to the last ice age, about 18,000 years ago. In fact, our genetic footprint was already in Europe, the middle east and Russia. We were staying south of the ice, but still proved incredibly adept at reproducing our line as our R1b haplogroup proves. So when I ask, how far back is far enough, the genetic distance of 72 proves that each of our project members could well have been related, if you look only at genetic distance. Is connecting to the family 18,000 years ago enough?

200,000 years ago

Mankind's origins were in Africa and, of course, our line with them.

Click here to get back to "Our Y-DNA"

© Copyright St. Clair Research 2005, All Rights Reserved










Steve's free web templates