You may contact the coordinator for this Northeastern Smiths project at cgaziano[at]prodigy.net for further information or to be enrolled in the study. Or you may use this link: www.familytreedna.com/surname_join.asp?code=J83140.

The DNA test involves a simple cheek swab that is analyzed by a research lab at a discounted price for surname groups. The kit containing the cheek swab materials will be mailed to you, and you will be assigned a kit number and password for accessing your results after they have been analyzed. The process usually takes about 6 to 7 weeks. If your DNA sample matches with another person's, you will be put in touch with that person (if both you and he have signed release forms giving permission), so that you can share information. The results are meaningful when compared with those of others in the study. Results are identified by the names of the earliest known Smith ancestor, not by the names of participants. All group participants' identities and contact information are completely private.

The goal of the DNA project is to identify Smith family branches who are related. This may help some of us who have Smith "brick walls," for example, by identifying others who are related, determining geographic locations for further research, and confirming or disconfirming suspected relationships. When matches are made, additional work with primary records -- paper documents -- often is needed to help determine who the common ancestor is.

Four kinds of tests for paternal lineage can be selected: "12-marker," "25-marker," "37-marker, and "67 marker." The more markers, the greater the precision, especially with a common name like Smith. These markers (allele positions) can be thought of as "genetic fingerprints." If a participant's results match other participants' results on 12 out of 12 markers, we can say the probability is 50% that their Most Recent Common Ancestor (MRCA) was no longer ago than 14.5 generations, and the probability is 90% that the MRCA was no longer ago than 48 generations. Two individuals are considered to be related for the 12-marker test if they match on 12/12 or 11/12 markers - sometimes with 10/12. With such a match, upgrading to the 37-marker test is recommended. No additional cheek swab is needed; further analysis is done on the sample already obtained. The lab stores the samples for 25 years, so additional kinds of tests can be ordered at a later date.

With a match on 25 out of 25 markers, there is a 50% probability that the MRCA was no longer ago than 7 generations, and there is a 90% probability that the MRCA was no longer ago than 19.8 generations.

With a match on 37 out of 37 markers, there is a 50% probability that the MRCA was no longer ago than 5 generations, and there is a 90% probability that the MRCA was no longer ago than 16 generations.

With a match on 67 out of 67 markers, there is a 50% probability that the MRCA was no longer ago than 2-3 generations, and there is a 90% probability that the MRCA was no longer ago than 5 generations.

So, the question arises: How many markers to start with? With a common name like Smith, our recommendation is to start with 25 or 37 markers. But you may choose to start with 12 and upgrade later. Or you may opt for the most precision available, 67 markers.

Questions? Concerns? Email the administrator at cgaziano[at]prodigy.net.

If you are the sponsor of a kit, and someone else is contributing the sample, you can be the main contact. The kit can go to one address and the invoice to another.

Do you have to submit any documentation of your line to us? No. We are not like a genealogical society such as the DAR or SAR. Our research is often a process of trial and error as we try to make progress on our family lines. We would like a little information about your earliest known Smith ancestor to put on this page. You can change or update your information by contacting the administrator.

Sometimes people are concerned that they can be identified from their Y-DNA results. However, only a very small portion of DNA is of interest, only 12 to 67 markers on the Y chromosome. No individual can be identified, just family groups. The haplogroup and numbers for alleles, or markers, on the Y-DNA chromosome identify only a branch of a family, and they are the same or similar for generations of direct-line males going back, which is the appeal of a Y-DNA surname project to participants.

For detailed descriptions of the testing by the testing company, see their web page at www.familytreedna.com.

For a similar Smith/Smyth/Smythe DNA project for Smiths who lived in Southern states, see: www.southernsmiths.org/dna/dnaresults.htm

There is a Smith Worldwide DNA project, also. See: www.smithfamilies.net

To see a results chart that shows up to 67 markers (as we cannot yet handle more than 37 on this page), go to: https://www.familytreedna.com/public/Smiths_of_New_England_and_New_York/. Click on "Y Results" to see the groups. Please be patient as it takes quite a few seconds for that page to load.

Alleles are genes in the same relative position on related chromosomes. Participants' results are given below in terms of numbers assigned to these alleles in the order in which they occur. DYS means DNA segment; unique numbers are assigned to each.

Exact matches are assigned a color group. If a record is a potential match for more than one color group it is assigned to the gray group.

HAPLOGROUPS are classifications by ethnic and geographic origin. Individuals are divided here by haplogroup. Note that the haplogroup designations have changed a little recently, in line with the most current scientific thinking. The following information is from the web pages of Family Tree DNA. © 2001-2007 Genealogy by Genetics, LTD.

• E1b1a "Haplogroup E1b1a is an African lineage. ...is also the most common lineage among African Americans [and]...also found at a very low frequency in North Africa and the Middle East."
• E1b1b1 "...currently distributed around the Mediterranean, southern Europe, and in north and east Africa.."
• E1b1b1a "...today...can be found in Europe, the Middle East, and north and east Africa."
• E1b1b1a1 "...found primarily in northern and eastern Africa, but its presence in Mediterranean Europe suggests some lineages may have migrated directly from Africa across the Mediterranean Sea."
• E1b1b1a2 "This lineage is found in high frequencies in Europe, and can also be found in northeastern Africa. It is most frequent in the Balkans, but is rare in the Near East outside of Turkey."
• G "...may have originated in India or Pakistan, and has dispersed into central Asia, Europe, and the Middle East."
• G2a "...found most often in the Europe and the Middle East."
• I1 "...found most frequently within Viking / Scandinavian populations in northwest Europe and [somewhat in] Central and Eastern Europe."
• I2a "...found distributed in the Balkans and Eastern Europe, and extends further east with Slavic-speaking populations."
• I2b "...found most frequently within Viking / Scandinavian populations in Northwest Europe and extends at low frequencies into Central and Eastern Europe."
• J1 "...found at highest frequencies in Middle Eastern and north African populations where it most likely evolved. This marker has been carried by Middle Eastern traders into Europe, central Asia, India, and Pakistan."
• J2 "...originated in the northern portion of the Fertile Crescent where it later spread throughout central Asia, the Mediterranean, and south into India. [Like] other populations with Mediterranean ancestry this lineage is found within Jewish populations."
• N Found in Northern Eurasian populations.
• Q "...found in North and Central Asian populations as well as native Americans. Among European populations, haplogroup Q is found most frequently in Eastern Europe and Scandinavia."
• Q1 "...probably arose in Central Asia."
• R1a & R1a1 "...found in central & western Asia, India, and in Slavic populations of Europe."
• R1b, R1b1, & R1b1b2 "...the most common haplogroup in European populations."

VERY IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT THE SCORING SYSTEM: It is "conservative," in that it does not take into account the fact that the markers shown in red mutate at a faster rate than the other markers.** For example, if two individuals shown here differ by 5 markers out of 25, but 4 of those different markers are the red (faster mutating) ones, the true difference might be only 1 (the true score might be 24/25).

** "Explained another way, if you match exactly on all of the markers except for one or a few of the markers we have determined mutate more quickly, then despite the mutation this mismatch only slightly decreases the probability of two people in your surname group who match 11/12 or even 23/25 of not sharing a recent common ancestor."

The following information is from www.familytreedna.com: "DYS 19 is also known as DYS 394."