All Over the Map

DNA mapping is interesting as far as considering how people spread out over the world - as in the Map-of-human-migrations.


(This map is from the point of view of the north pole).

Humanity has been divided up into haplogroup groups as seen on this map - whose DNA has been tracked. The DNA shows that it has been 500,000 years since modern humans shared a common ancestor with Neandertals - but that they lived in the same areas as people up until 30,000 years ago.

This paper (esp. Figure 3) has some interesting maps showing where various H groups thrived in Europe. The study title is Y-Chromosonal Diversity in Europe is Clinal and Influenced Primarily by Geography, Rather than language. The authors are saying that people did not move around as much as historians have normally taught - but that culture and language spread through populations.

These explorations led me to: Atlas of the Human Journey "A Genographic Project" at National Geographic. It is quite a nice graphic/Flash with the DNA/genetics info combined with other known history (though it disagrees with itself at times).

It shows R going up to Europe around 50,000 years ago - then splitting off into K, U, & U5. Also some time around 30,000+ m/l years ago - A, B, C & D go off (maybe some chasing mammoths)- some stopping in Asia or going down to Australia (some of the B's along with some M's by a different route) - others going on into the Americas - as far down as the tip of South America (esp. B's). Also some M's (followed by X's) went to the Americas as well as going throughout Europe, Africa and Asia.

The Sahara becoming more dry would have cut some people off from returning. There was ice covering Northern Europe and much of North America - reaching down into Indiana. The oceans were about 300 feet lower leaving a land mass they are calling "Beringia" exposed.

Aurignation Period - Art from Slovakia to Spain - 35,000-30,000 years ago. Venus figures - cave paintings with shading. And 20,000 years ago - Magdelanian Culture (area now France) "advanced skills" Lascaux cave paintings (It looks like both of these are associated with the Gravettian group and some later became the Vikings - Rb1 (M343) ).

Catal Huyuk (now Turkey) 6300 - 5500 years ago. Pottery, obsidean blades and mirrors - goddess-like figurines. (Also seem to be associated with J groups - from the map.)

(One problem with the emphasis on groups - and with the emphasis on the idea the people are associated with just one group is the possiblility of "my group is better than your group" mentality. It may be that some groups engaged in more art making (that survived) than other groups - and this is read as their society being more "advanced". It may be that certain groups had the priority of creating a lasting record of their group - some people might have had other priorities - not necessarily less "advanced". Like if the people made paper - and drew on that - as opposed to caves.)

_____

But then the Genographic people want to sell you something that will trace one line of your DNA - through just the women or just the men - for $100. (As if that would mean something).

oxfordancestors.com (associated with Prof Sykes’) will give you the same thing for $180. They say: Our MatriLine™ service gives you the opportunity to establish the personal link between you and your ancestral clan mother. If you are of European descent, then there is a 95% chance that you will be related to one of the clan mothers described in Prof Sykes’ book “The Seven Daughters of Eve”. If you are not of European descent, then we will be able to tell you from which of the other 29 clan mothers you are descended. There are currently 36 identified clan mothers who cover the whole of humanity.

I probably have as ancestors Ursula, Helena, Velda, Tara and maybe Ulrike and Katrine. And probably Jasmine, too. See The European Clans – The Seven Daughters of Eve

It seems like this oxfordancestors (like the National Geographic site) is trying to suggest that it is more significant to trace back your DNA to one person. But that is nonsense - because everyone has thousands of lines besides mother to mother to mother to mother, etc. As this entry put it "At 10 generations back, an individual has 1024 ancestors and a Y-DNA or mtDNA test is only studying one of those 1024 ancestors."

This group is correlating surnames to DNA lines.

This all strikes me as a patriarchal way of looking at things that has no relevance to real life.