So, remember a while ago I did the Ancestry DNA thing? I was fairly skeptical about it all, and besides my skepticism, I was pretty sure my results were going to bring no surprises. I know my family is from Ireland and England, but I was curious as to where we were before that. And I guess that deep, deep down I was hoping for something really exotic to show up.
Well. No real surprises were revealed, other than there was less Irish than I knew, and more Scottish and a bit of Scandinavian. I did find some cousins; a few that I met eons ago, and we've exchanged emails with family updates, and also a few "new" relations, where we have the same great-great-great grandparents. It's amazing how distant a 4th cousin is....hardly even the same family tree, more like being in the same family forest. But it's fun, nonetheless.
Anyhow, someone told me to check my DNA page on Ancestry because they do frequent updates as more and more people send in their saliva samples. So I did I, and I was surprised to see that the Scottish part of me is now 50%, the Irish is 47% and the Scandinavian is now 3% Swedish. The Scottish part actually shows that my ancestors are from The Outer Hebrides. So now know where I came from, and where I came from even before that.
OK. Now a little backstory. Years ago, maybe 30 or so, I started working on my family tree and of course since that was before home computers, I had to use the Mormon Church and their microfiche. And of course the oral stories from my grandmothers. The grandmothers had a lot of paper trail...wedding licenses, birth and death certificates, land ownership papers and so forth, so a lot of info that I accumulated was 100% genuine, but nothing further back than the 1800's.
Jump forward to The Age of Computers. Now I can really start to find things out. Well, over the years I would input every possible permutation of every family member in my past and nary a drop of info was ever found. I would get all gung-ho every year or so and try again. Occasionally a morsel would appear, but nothing earth shattering or unknown.....an obituary from a recently deceased relative and that was about it. Did my people not leave any records? Were they all illiterates? Did they just spring to life in the 1800's?
This brings us to the Outer Hebrides. Skepticism was running rampant. I dug out some old papers and saw that my mother's great grandfather was born in Scotland, his father was born in Scotland and his father was born in Scotland as well....but all of the towns were different. I googled each place, and to my surprise, they were all in the Outer Hebrides, and they were all basically the same place! It's like saying I'm from Cranbrook, or I'm from CBK in the East Kootenays, or I'm from Cran. Southern BC. Same place.
So now I'm intrigued. See, I've always been aware that when people ask where I'm from, I don't really have an answer. I just say that I was born in Cold Lake and moved every 2 years until I got married. It doesn't bother me in the least, I just always wondered where I was really from....originally. I find family history and genealogy extremely fascinating. I think that being able to go somewhere and think "My great-great-grandfather actually lived here and looked at this same sea/mountain/lake" is awesome.
Anyhow, to make this short, I found a website called Hebridean Connections, and I typed in the name of my great great grandfather, and there he was! With the correct lineage and birth & death dates. Also his father and his father. I was unexpectedly emotional. I mean, I didn't burst into tears or anything, but I was oddly choked up. There he was. After 30 years of looking. He was a blacksmith. His name was Gilleasbuig Ghobha, which is pronounced Gillespie and Gobha means blacksmith. He was Gillespie the Blacksmith, and his son was Domhnall Ghilleasbuig Ghobha which means Donald, son of Gillespie the Blacksmith. They had no last names. Patronymic names, which is a way of conveying lineage.
And their little island (population 137) has two local landmarks, now known as "Bogha an Tailleir" and "Sgeir an Tailleir" (rock formations, as far as I can figure out. I think one is a skerry which is a rock formation that isn't always visible due to the tides. I think. I'm not proficient in ancient Scottish Gaelic)
Anyhow... So now I need to go there! There are old cemeteries (and I'm a fan of cemeteries at the best of times) I think I might find a relation....maybe even a living descendant.
I knew the pagan in me had a legitimate history. And an island with 137 people? Well, that's right up my sràid. Draoidheil.
