Explore the Family Name Gaskins

Possible origins of the surname Gaskins

Your DNA provides clues about where your recent ancestors may have lived. Having many distant relatives in the same location suggests that you may all share common ancestry there. Locations with many distant relatives can also be places where people have migrated recently, such as large cities. If a large number of individuals who share your surname have distant relatives in a specific area, it could indicate a connection between your surname and that location, stemming from either recent ancestral ties or migration.

Based on 23andMe data, people with last name Gaskins have recent ancestry locations all within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

What Gaskins haplogroups can tell you

Haplogroups are genetic population groups that share a common ancestor on either your paternal or maternal line. These paternal and maternal haplogroups shed light on your genetic ancestry and help tell the story of your family.

The top paternal haplogroup of people with the surname Gaskins is I-P109, which is predominantly found among people with European ancestry. Haplogroup I-P109 is descended from haplogroup I-M170. Other common haplogroups include R-P311 and R-CTS241, which are predominantly found among people with European and European ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: Gipson, Thornton, Rice, Rush, Norwood, Greenwood, Jewell, Preston, Roy, Meade.

The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Gaskins surname are: H1, T2b, H. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European ancestry.

Your paternal lineage may be linked to many northern European men

If you have haplogroup I1a1b, your paternal line stems from a young branch of I-M253 called I-L22, which likely arose in the last 3,000 years. I-L22 is most common in Northern Europe, but a recent study found that this haplogroup was present in a significant portion of the Partecipanza population living in San Giovanni in Persiceto, Italy. The area of San Giovanni in Persiceto was involved in a migration period in 728 AD, when it became part of the Lombard kingdom, under King Aistulf. San Giovanni in Persiceto was only under Lombard rule for 48 years, after which the Lombards were defeated by King Charlemagne in 776 AD. There are several characteristics of San Giovanni in Persiceto that link it to other Lombard settlements. For instance, some research suggests San Giovanni in Persiceto was the seat of a Lombard Duke between 750 and 800 AD. It is possible that the Lombards who ruled over San Giovanni in Persiceto played an important role in the introduction and growth of haplogroup I-L22 in the region.

Your maternal lineage may be linked to a medieval female Viking warrior

In the late 1880s, Swedish archaeologists excavated a well-furnished 10th century Viking burial site where they discovered the skeletal remains of a warrior. Cradled against a sword, the mysterious Viking was entombed with all the equipment required for battle, including a spear, an axe, armor-piercing arrows, shields, two horses, and gaming pieces, which suggested to the archaeologists that the Viking was a high-ranking military strategist.For decades, experts assumed this grave contained the remains of a man. It wasn't until multiple independent investigations reported the skeleton was female that modern scholars attempted a DNA analysis to know for sure. Researchers analyzed DNA samples from the Viking's teeth and arm bone, but could not detect any trace of a Y chromosome: this warrior was a woman. Their work also revealed the northern European ancestry of the Viking and uncovered her mitochondrial haplogroup, T2b.Both you and this viking warrior are descendants of a woman who lived in Europe around 10,000 years ago at the end of the ice age and the beginning of the Neolithic Revolution.