Genetic genealogy goes global

Like millions of Americans, Thomas Robinson wanted to investigate the roots of his family tree before the point at which his ancestors emigrated to the USA. “I did paper‐based genealogy research on my family and could not get very far, especially on my father's side since I had never met my paternal grandfather and knew little about him,” said Robinson, a professor of accounting at the University of Miami, FL, USA. “I also read quite a bit on the origins of man and how DNA testing was used to trace migration patterns.” Robinson, who also studied biology at university, thus sent a cheque with a cheek scraping to Oxford Ancestors (UK), one of many companies that use molecular genetics to unravel family histories. In early 2003, he received his results: a signature from his Y chromosome and detailed information on his mitochondrial DNA. The latter indicated that his family might have originated on what is now the Spanish/French coast, whereas the Y‐line information was not specific.![][1] But the story did not end there. In March 2006, a representative from Oxford Ancestors called Robinson to tell him that he was apparently descended from Genghis Khan, the thirteenth‐century Mongol emperor. Robinson's Y‐signature matched seven out of nine markers in Khan's signature, which are found in unusually high numbers—about 8%—of men living in a wide swathe of Asia from the Pacific Ocean to the Caspian Sea (Zerjal et al , 2003). “It was exciting to hear and nice to put a ‘name’ to an ancestor,” said Robinson, a rather unlikely‐looking member of the Mongol horde. The story was picked up in newspapers around the world, and the Mongolian ambassador to the USA promised to hold a reception in Washington, DC, to toast the new‐found descendant of the Great Khan.However, at the suggestion of … [1]: /embed/graphic-1.gif