--- In
cybalist@yahoogroups.com, Rick McCallister <gabaroo6958@...> wrote:
>
> I didn't say it works for all. They do however work for many of the
West Highland Clans such as Macdonald, mac Alasdair, Mac Leod, etc.
and for Lowland families of Norman descent such as Bruce and Stewart.
Many of the Icelandic genealogies go back to the Orkneys and
Shetlands, which is where most split from the families that went to
Normandy and the Isle of Man. Thanks to those Icelandic genealogies,
Scots and Norman families who can trace their ancestry to the Orkneys
and Shetlands or Isle of Man can then trace their ancestry farther back.
> So if you can trace your ancestry back to say King Orry of Man or
William the Conqueror, both of whom had known ancestors in the
Shetlands/Orkney Islands, the Icelandic genealogies take them back, in
most cases, to Western Norway and from there to myth-history --e.g. to
Ingjald Illrada, Harald Blotanda, etc. all the back to Odin, making
you Torsten distant cousin.
So if your ancestry goes back to the Orkneys, Shetlands, or Isle of
Man, you will (probably?) have some Icelandic stock? My mother's side
goes back to Scotland in the 1700's, when two brothers emigrated, one
going to the West Indies and the other going to Canada. My mother
descends (partly) from the one that went to the West Indies, and her
maiden name is McMillan (and her mother's maiden name was Campbell,
apparently also of Scottish origin). The Scottish part of her ancestry
is fairly obvious from her appearance (red/gold/brown straight hair,
freckles, light skin). Our family doesn't know much else about our
genealogy, since we only found out our Scottish ancestry from a family
who descended from the brother that went to Canada, and who contacted
us and informed us of our common ancestry (they have a full genealogy,
but I am no longer in contact with tmem). But do you know if McMillan
or Campbell might be one of the West Highland or Lowland clans that
have some Icelandic stock? Or of the Orkney/Shetland/Isle of Man
clans? Of course, I could go to one of those genealogy websites, but
maybe you could provide a little foreknowledge on this point before I
shell out the dough for it.
Thanks,
Andrew