Subdividing Y-chromosome haplogroup R1a1 reveals Norse Viking dispersal lineages in Britain

Abstract

The influence of Viking-Age migrants to the British Isles is obvious in archaeological and place-names evidence, but their demographic impact has been unclear. Autosomal genetic analyses support Norse Viking contributions to parts of Britain, but show no signal corresponding to the Danelaw, the region under Scandinavian administrative control from the ninth to eleventh centuries. Y-chromosome haplogroup R1a1 has been considered as a possible marker for Viking migrations because of its high frequency in peninsular Scandinavia (Norway and Sweden). Here we select ten Y-SNPs to discriminate informatively among hg R1a1 sub-haplogroups in Europe, analyse these in 619 hg R1a1 Y chromosomes including 163 from the British Isles, and also type 23 short-tandem repeats (Y-STRs) to assess internal diversity. We find three specifically Western-European sub-haplogroups, two of which predominate in Norway and Sweden, and are also found in Britain; star-like features in the STR networks of these lineages indicate histories of expansion. We ask whether geographical distributions of hg R1a1 overall, and of the two sub-lineages in particular, correlate with regions of Scandinavian influence within Britain. Neither shows any frequency difference between regions that have higher (≥10%) or lower autosomal contributions from Norway and Sweden, but both are significantly overrepresented in the region corresponding to the Danelaw. These differences between autosomal and Y-chromosomal histories suggest either male-specific contribution, or the influence of patrilocality. Comparison of modern DNA with recently available ancient DNA data supports the interpretation that two sub-lineages of hg R1a1 spread with the Vikings from peninsular Scandinavia.

Characterization of the Y Chromosome in Newfoundland and Labrador: Evidence of a Founder Effect

“…23 Many of these haplogroups have origins in specific European regions, for example R1a and its subclades are commonly observed in Scandinavian populations. 26,49 It is thought that much of the R1a haplogroup in England and Ireland is associated with Viking settlement. 50 As the presence of the R1a haplogroup in NL appears to reflect the frequencies seen in these data sets (Table 4), it most likely originated with the English and Irish settlers.…”

Haplotypes and textual types: Interdisciplinary approaches to Viking Age migration and mobility

“…Some work has been done on this for the north-west of England by Eleanor Rye (2016; see also Jesch, 2015b). Both linguistic and modern population genetic evidence (Bowden et al., 2008; Lall et al., 2020) suggest a strong Norwegian element in this settlement. Yet the authors did not take account of this diversity within England, generalising that ‘A Danish-like ancestry is seen in present-day England, in accordance with historical records, place names, surnames and modern genetics’.…”

“…This was taken to confirm the Viking Age settlement of the area, predominantly by people of Norwegian origin, as already suggested by place-names, archaeology, and some documentary sources, though the question of gender roles in this settlement remained underexplored (Jesch, 2015b). Teams led by Mark Jobling and Turi King continue to fine-tune the evidence that sub-lineages of Y-chromosome haplogroup R1a1 in modern populations provide for the demographic impact of Viking migrants in England (Lall et al., 2020). This most recent study is also able to compare the modern DNA with aDNA and finds that this ‘supports the interpretation that two sub-lineages of hg R1a1 spread with the Vikings from peninsular Scandinavia’.…”

Medieval migrations and the birth of modern British peoples: A craniometric approach

“…Differences in Y-chromosomes among populations within the British Isles have been detected by several researchers to date. The results suggest that different parts of the British Isles have different paternal histories (Capelli et al, 2003;Lall et al, 2021). For example, Scandinavian populations had an impact in both Scotland and the Northern Isles (Berry and Firth, 1986), and substantial migration in the Early Bronze Age and Anglo-Saxon populations occurred in England (Weale et al, 2002;Hemer et al, 2013;Schiffels et al, 2016;Patterson et al, 2022).…”