NEW YORK: People in Britain are still living in the same ‘clans’ as in the 6th century, a study has revealed.
Caucasian Britons can be separated into 17 distinct genetic groups, according to research looking at those whose grandparents had all been born near each other and were white European in origin.
The Oxford University findings suggest little has changed in Britain for almost 1,500 years, with the people of Orkney the most distinct – a result of 600 years of Norwegian rule.
The Welsh are the next most distinct – having so much DNA from the first modern settlers that they could claim to be the truest of Britons.
But even within Wales there are two distinct tribes, with those in the north and south of the principality less similar genetically than the Scots are to the inhabitants of Kent.
Clear differences can be seen between the inhabitants of Cornwall and Devon, while West Yorkshire and Cumbria also have their own genetic heritage.
Britain today is much more genetically diverse than 125 years ago, when the grandparents of those who took part in the study were around, but the same technique could be used to read someone’s DNA and work out which parts of the UK their ancestors came from.
Researchers analysed the genetic code of 2,000 white Britons and compared the results to data on more than 6,000 people from ten European countries.
They found that many of us have DNA that is 45 per cent French in origin while many white Britons are a quarter German.
Surprisingly, given that they invaded and occupied large parts of the British Isles for four centuries, there is little genetic trace of the Romans.
Similarly, the Vikings may have a reputation for rape and pillage but the genetic evidence shows they did not have enough children with the locals for their Danish DNA to be present today.
The Anglo-Saxons, in contrast, did leave a genetic legacy, with about 20 per cent of the DNA of many English people coming from the invaders who arrived 1,600 years ago.
Further DNA comes from earlier migrants from what is now Germany.
The French contribution to our genes did not come from the conquering Normans but from much earlier.
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