Genealogy Dna Report for Joseph Philip Rhein

GENEALOGY DNA REPORT FOR JOSEPH PHILIP RHEIN

In the study of the ancient ancestry of humans, scientists focus on "haplogroups", the classification of all humans into ancient family clans based on the unique pattern of genetic markers called "SNPs" (single-nucleotide polymorphism)found in their DNA. SNPs are small changes in the DNA which occur naturally over time. Once a SNP occurs, it becomes a unique lineage marker that is passed down to all future generations. Humans who have descended from the same ancient family clan will share the same pattern of SNPs. Using SNPs, scientists have been able to plot the haplogroups of all humans living today into a single phylogenetic tree of mankind which shows how all humans are connected to each other in a complex worldwide tree that stems from Africa over 150,000 years ago. Dozens of haplogroups have been discovered to date, each haplogroup representing a major branch in the phylogenetic tree of mankind.

Each haplogroup can be further refined into "subclades" (finer sub-branches of the tree). As new SNPs are discovered, the phylogenetic tree becomes increasingly detailed with finer branches and enhanced resolution. By testing individuals from around the world and analyzing their precise placement in the phylogenetic tree of mankind, scientists are attempting to piece together the intricate puzzle of ancient human connections and migrations.

My Results

The results of my three DNA tests by Family Tree DNA ordered on December 28, 2013 follow.They are listed in order of their relevance for those who follow this website.

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA)

This tests a man or woman along their direct maternalline.Known individuals in the past five generations of my mother’s maternal (and mine) were born in the Province of Pennsylvania in Colonial America or later in the United States. Their forebears emigrated almost exclusively from Scotland, the north of Ireland, and Germany. The seven are my mother, Mabel Florence McKinney (1901-1996), her mother Rosa Linda Stewart (1868-1943), her mother Christena Hilliard (1840-1911), her mother Anna Maria Schick ( (1811-1869), her mother Anna Margaret Mueller (1786-1817), her mother Susanna Lauback (1757-1837), and her mother Margaretha Elizabeth Jansen (born 1730), my 5th great-grandmother.

My mtDNAHaplogroup is H5a1. There are three levels of matching along with the number of matches that I have at each level.

Level Matches

HVR1 - 52 generations about 1,300 years.2,077

HVR2 – 28 generations about 700 years. 383

HVR1and2 and Coding Region – 5 generations about 125 years. 230

For the above match in each of the levels, I have the name of the individual and his or her maternal forebear.Unfortunately the majority of these individualsdo not include any detailed information on the forebear nor do they post a GEDCOM so I am unable generally to determine any specific relationship line.

In addition to the above I have listed these maternal forebears on several project sites on Family Tree DNA with the following results.

German, listed in the name of my 5th great maternal grandmother, Margaretha Elizabeth Jansen, born May 15, 1730 Danville, Province of Pennsylvania in Colonial America. I have a direct match with Susannah Wheeler, born 1677 in Long Compton, Warwick, Wickshire.

Ireland, I have direct matches with Almira Porter; Ellen Carol, born 1810; Mary Manning, born 1873, County Cork, Ireland; and Keziah Campbell, born about 1755, North Carolina.

Stewart Clan Society of America listed in the name of my maternal grandmother, Rosa Linda Stewart. There are no matches.

Autosomal (atMDA)

This tests a couple for all ancestry.It covers both the maternal and paternal sides of the family tree, so it covers all lineages.It is the combined DNA ancestry of my father, Joseph Peter Rhein and my mother Mabel Florence McKinney and their forebears.

It has a feature called Family Finder that includes a component called Population Finder.It applies principal component analysisto the same autosomal data to conductbiogeographical analysis(BGA) of the autosomal DNA. The results of this test provide percentages of a DNA associated with general regions or specific ethnic groups (ex. Western Europe, Asia, Jewish, Native American, etc.). Unlike some other testing companies, Family Tree DNA chose to strip out markers for mendelian medical issues, mtDNA results, and Y-DNA SNP results. X-Chromosome results are available for download, but are not used by Family Tree DNA's matching program.

I have 340 matches, generally 2nd to 5th cousins. None of these appear to be on my paternal side.

My mix is as follows:

British Isles 40%, Scandinavia 28%, Southern Europe 19%, Eastern Europe 6%, and
Middle eastern Asia Minor 4%.

Again, the majority of these individuals do not include any detailed information on the forebear nor do they post a GEDCOM so I am unable to determine any specific relationship line. My guess is that they have not done a significant amount of research on their genealogy lines and are looking direct match.

Y- Chromosome (Y-DNA)Genealogy

This tests a male along his direct paternal line. It requires a male sample provider.

My Y-DNA Haplogroup is E-M96. This line originated in Africa or Asia over 60,000 years ago and the successor groups were later in what are now the Balkans, Middle East and Southern France 22,000 to 18,000 years before current time. I have indentified three individuals in Haplogroup E whose early forebear has the same first twelve markers as my forebear but that relationship dates back at most a few thousand years and there is no other information. The predecessor or ancestor Haplogroups are DE the D then E1 – M96.

The chart on the St.Clair/Sinclair web site following illustrates the movement of Haplogroups DE, then successor D, then successor E, E1-M96, E1a, E1a1 my line. . Note the migration of the R groups principally to Europe, Scandanavia and Britain.

I have listed my DNA results on the following projects at Family Tree Maker DNA.

Project / Website
Alsace /
Approximately 18 individuals. I am in E with one other individual
E-V13. Other groups are G with 1, I with 4, J with 1, Q with 1, R 1b1a2 with 8,
One individual ungrouped. R1b1a2 that include three individuals who
married a Herman, Frey, and Gross surnames married to Rheins in
Herrlisheim.. / Leave Project
E1a1 /
This is my preferred group. Doug Phelps. / Leave Project
French_Heritage_DNA /
Approximately 2,500 individuals. Primary group is R. Also shown
are E-M78, EL117,E-M34, E-M183, E-V13, and E-CTS6143. I am ungrouped at
E-M96 along with E-M2 and E-M35. / Leave Project
Germany-YDNA /
Approximately 3,000 individuals, principally R, G and I. E-M34,
E-M35, E-M78, E-M81, E-V13, and E-V22 are also represented.
I am ungroped at E-M96 along with-L117. / Leave Project
E1a-(M33, M132) /
Approximately 96 individuals. I am in E1a1 with Moses Yoemans
and others from our group. / Leave Project
Rinehart and Rhein /
Approximately 30 individuals. Majority in R1b. I am in E along with
With E-M78 – E1b1b1a. / Leave Project
Switzerland /
Approximately 200 individuals, principally R. There are some
E-M34, E-M35, E-M84, and E-V13. I am ungrouped along with a
E-L117. / Leave Project

I am also registered on Clan Stewart Society. Over 750 individuals listed. I am in Group E1b – Haplogroup E1b1b1 Unassigned.

I am not registered on the site for Greece. They show eight individuals with E; L117 (3), M78 (2), L542 (2), and DE-M145.

Recently in Ergolding, Bavaria, Germany, not too far Southeast of Alsace, an archaeological dig by the Bavarian State Department of Monuments and Sights revealed more than 440 graves.So far, DNA analysis of six of the men of early adult age was performed.

“These six men were buried together in a wooden chamber, a grave identified as #244. The individuals were marked as 244A to 244F.Individuals found in the western part of the chamber (244A, 244B, and 244C) lied straight on the back, body-by-body, and all 3 men were buried with swords, spears, shields, and spurs, like heavily armored mounted warriors. Historic value of the artifacts found in the grave 244 makes this place one of the richest Bavarian burial sites from the late-Merowig period.Grave 244 dates to the period around 670 AD. The eastern part of the burial chamber with the individuals 244D, 244E, and 244F was robbed and therefore no valuable artifacts were found.Of the six skeletons tested, four were of the R1b Haplogroup. Two were of the G2a Haplogroup. It’s unusual to find this later group in this part ofEurope, but it may match up with the Sarmatians, of Persian nomadic tribes, which moved gradually from the Caspian plains to Eastern Europe. They lived on the plains between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, north of theCaucasus.These people of the Steppes, with their horsemanship, armor, and female warriors, were early precursors of the knights of the middle ages. This seems to fit with the fact that three of these skeletons were found with swords, spears, shields, and spurs. The archaeologists said they appeared to be heavily armored warriors.”

Twenty four Y-chromosome haplotypes were obtained for most of the men. The estimated haplogroup for four of the men is R1b and for the other two is G2a. I matched seven of the markers for the Rb1 men and six for the G2a men, not enough for anything conclusive. I mention this as an example of the sort of investigative work that needs to be done in pursuing ones Y-DNA.

The R1b Haplogroup is the dominant paternal lineage marker of Western Europe.

It is the dominate marker for the Y-DNA German Project that contains approximately 3,000 individuals. G2a is also frequently listed. There are a number of males with the E haplogroup ( including mine) also listed but no matches.

It is the dominate marker for the Y-DNA Alsace Project that contains 28 individuals. I am listed with one other individual in the E haplogroup but no matches.

A number of the forebears of Germans and French that have been Y-DNA tested appear to have left Africa going farther North to Persia, then later to what is now present day Kazakhstan and later to Europe; the Visigoths, the Alemanni, the Huns, the Anglo(Angles)-Saxon Invaders, etc. A number later went to Scandinavia, the Vikings, following the end of the Ice Age some 18,000 to 8,000 years before current time. And, there are those who came to Gaul and to Britain with the Roman Legions, some remaining there.

Some Limited Background On My Paternal Forebears

I am the 8th great-grandson of Johann Gaspard Rhein, born 1595 in low Alsace in the jurisdiction of Hannau-Lichtenberg, the House of Hesse-Darmstadt, the Holy Roman Empire, later Bas-Rhin, France, later Alsace-Lorraine, Germany, and again later Bas-Rhin, France. My grandfather, Joseph Rhein, born 1866 in Herrlisheim, Alsace-Lorraine, immigrated to the United States in 1890 following his military service in the German Army. On the basis of the research I have done over the past 45 years (none of it resulting from DNA testing) my grandfather appears to be the only male descendant of Johann Gaspard Rhein that immigrated to the United States. I have been unable to locate aliving male descendant of Johann GaspardRhein in Europe.

I have a paternal web site at

that contains 1,178 individuals –there are no living persons listed on the site.

Some of the early settlers in Herrlisheim in low Alace may have been there in the year 743 AD when it was conveyed to the Abbey of Wissembourg under the name of Hariolfesvilla, the farm of Hariolf (Harold). In 1251, the village is the property of the Counts of Oetigen, landowners of low Alsace who ceded it to the lords of Lichtenberg in 1332. In 1480 with the death of Jacques de Lichtenberg the heritage is divided between Phillipe de Hanau and Simon Wecker the Count of Two-Bridge-Biche. The village is incorporated in 1570 with the property of Hanau-Lichtenberg with the extinction of Two-Bridge-Biche. On September 17, 1570, Phillipe IV of Hanau-Lichtenberg, one of the largest jurisdictions in low Alsace, orders the prohibition of Mass and imposes Protestant religion in the area. This was known as "cujusregio, ejusreligio" ("whose religion, his religion"); that is the religion of the prince is the religion of the land. The former Roman Catholic church buildings and benefices were taken over by Protestant Churches. Subsequent to 1570, Hanau-Lichtenberg became a part of the house of Hesse-Darmstadt. In December 1621 and January 1622during the Thirty Years War, Mansfeld's mercenaries raze the area and the inhabitants of Herrlisheim and Drusenheim take refuge in tents on the islands of the Rhein River. In the year 1681, Herrlisheim was converted by force from Protestantism to Catholicism. Herrlisheim lies on a fertile plain between the Vosges and the Rhine River.

I have 11 great (plus) grandfathersin Alsace whose male descendant married a female descendant of Johann Gaspard Rhein so my y-DNA or mtDNA testing is not applicable for these lines.

Some background on the area now known as the Balkans.

Archaeological evidence indicates that the area in what is now the Balkans was populated well before theNeolithic Period(New Stone Age; about 10,000 years ago). At the dawn of recorded history, two Indo-European peoples dominated the area: theIllyriansto the west and theThraciansto the east of the great historical divide defined by the Morava and Vardar river valleys. The Thracians were advanced in metalworking and in horsemanship. They intermingled with theGreeksand gave them the Dionysian and Orphean cults, which later became so important in classical Greek literature. The Illyrians were more exclusive, their mountainous terrain keeping them separate from the Greeks and Thracians.

Thracian society was tribal in structure, with little inclination toward political cohesion. In what was to become a persistent phenomenon in Balkan history, unity was brought about mostly by external pressure. The Persian invasions of the 6th and 5th centuriesbcebrought the Thracian tribes together in theOdrysian kingdom, which fell under Macedonian influence in the 4th centurybce. The Illyrians, ethnically akin to the Thracians, originally inhabited a large area from the Istrian peninsula to northern Greece and as far inland as the Morava River. During the 4th centurybcethey were pushed southward byCelticinvasions, and thereafter their territory did not extend much farther north than the Drin River. Illyrian society, like that of the Thracians, was organized around tribal groups who often fought wars with one another and with outsiders. Under the Celtic threat they established a coherent political entity, but this too was destroyed by Macedonia. Thereafter the Illyrians were known mainly aspirateswho disturbed the trade of many Greek settlements on the Adriatic coast. The Romans were also affected and took police action, annexing much of Illyrian territory in the early 3rd centurybce. An Illyrian kingdom based in modern-dayShkodër, Albania, remained an important factor until its liquidation by Roman armies in 168bce.

The Romans were different from other major conquerors of the Balkans in that they first arrived in the west. Later attacks were launched from the southeast as well, so that by the 1st centurycethe entire peninsula was under Roman control. At the height of Roman power, the Balkan peoples were the most united of any time in their history, with a common legal system, a single ultimate arbiter of political power, and absolute military security. In addition, a vibrant commerce was conducted along theVia Egnatia, a great east-west land route that led from Dyrrhachium (modernDurrës, Albania) through Macedonia to Thessalonica (modernThessaloníki, Greece) and on toThrace. The northwestern part of the peninsula, includingDalmatiaalong the Adriatic coast as well asPannoniaaround the Danube and Sava rivers, became the province ofIllyricum. What is now eastern Serbia was incorporated intoMoesia, which reached farther eastward between theBalkan Mountainsand the Danube all the way to theBlack Sea. The southeastern part of the peninsula was ruled asThrace, and the southern part was brought into Macedonia.

The Romans largely regarded theDanube Riveras their northern frontier, but in the 2nd and 3rd centuries their authority was extended northward intoDacia, in what is now western Romania. Dacia had been the home of a people closely related to the Thracians. TheDacianshad suffered invasion by a number of peoples, including theScythians, a mysterious people probably of Iranian origin who were absorbed into the resident population. In the 3rd centurybcethey managed to contain Macedonian pressure from the south, but in later years they were much less able to fend off Celtic invaders from the northwest. By the 1st centurycea substantial Dacian state extended as far west as Moravia and threatened Roman command of the Danube in the Balkans. The extension of the Dacian state and Dacian raids across the river into Moesia prompted the emperorTrajanin the first decade of the 2nd century to march into Dacia, obliterate the Dacian state and Dacian society, and establish a Roman colony that lasted until barbarian incursions forced a withdrawal back across the Danube beginning in 271.

Christendom

The abandonment of Dacia in the second half of the 3rd century was a symptom of Rome’s decline, leading to major changes in the 4th century. In 330 the imperial capital was moved toByzantium, so that any tribe intent on attacking the seat of Roman power and opulence would thenceforth move through the Balkans rather than into Italy. In 391Christianitybecame the official religion, and in 395 the empire was divided in two. The dividing line ran through the Balkans: Illyricum went to the western sector under Rome; the remainder went to the eastern half and was ruled from Byzantium (by this time named Constantinople). This deep and long-lasting division did little to alleviate the barbarian incursions of the times. The 5th century saw devastation by, among others, theAlani, theGoths, and theHuns. Most of these invaders soon left or were assimilated, but such was not to be the case with theSlavs, who first arrived in the 6th century.