Author Topic: What does 'Great Britain' mean?  (Read 1422 times)

Offline dublin1850

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Re: What does 'Great Britain' mean?
« Reply #9 on: Tuesday 11 December 18 10:52 GMT (UK) »
As a matter of interest, the Irish name for Wales is 'An Bhreatain Bheag', Little (or smaller) Britain.
Coffey, Cummins [Rathfalla, Tipperary], Cummins [Skirke, Laois], Curran, Dillon [Clare], Fogarty [Garran, Laois/Tipp], Hughes, Keshan (Keeshan), Loughman [Harristown and Killadooley, Laois], Mallon [Armagh], Malone, Markham [Caherkine, Clare], McKeon(e) [Sligo/Kilkenny/Waterford], McNamara, Meagher, Prescott [Kilkenny/Waterford/Wexford?], Rafferty, Ryan, Sullivan, Tobin
GEDMatch: T665306 tested with Family Tree DNA and also with ancestry
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Offline Carl42

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Re: What does 'Great Britain' mean?
« Reply #10 on: Tuesday 11 December 18 11:02 GMT (UK) »
Sorry, I have just realised that my logic is flawed.  Since 'Great Britain' includes much of Europe then the cul-de-sac argument is not applicable. :-X

Offline Maiden Stone

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Re: What does 'Great Britain' mean?
« Reply #11 on: Tuesday 11 December 18 20:59 GMT (UK) »
Another said 'I'm a Scot'. The Scots call the English Sassernachs, ie Saxons, doh! He also said he would like to push Wales into the middle of the Atlantic!

That keeps happening to Anglesey. Is your man the culprit?  Was he a cartographer?  ;D
Cowban

Offline Maiden Stone

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Re: What does 'Great Britain' mean?
« Reply #12 on: Tuesday 11 December 18 21:27 GMT (UK) »
Hi All.  My DNA analysis says 99% Great Britain and 1% Irish. …  how can I account for the other 99% which would seem to say that for around 2000 years my ancestors avoided mixing with other races?

Because the other races came here, since Britain was a nice place to visit and settle.
Some liked it so much they stayed for centuries.
A Danish prince was King of England in 1016. Parts of what is now the British Isles belonged to Kings of Norway. (See Battle of Largs 1263.)
Some of my English ancestors were probably Norse. Many came from one region in Lancashire. I've been using Old Norse dialect words all my life. (I found that out by watching Neil Oliver's TV series "Vikings", currently repeated on BBC4, Wednesday.) Norse placenames abound.

Recent light-hearted BBC Radio Four programme "Rutherford and Fry Investigate: Am I a Viking?" was discussed on RootsChat a few weeks ago.

Re your fair-haired grandson: There's the old Angles (as in Anglo-Saxons) = angels quip because they were fair as angels were believed to be.


Cowban


Offline Maiden Stone

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Re: What does 'Great Britain' mean?
« Reply #13 on: Tuesday 11 December 18 21:32 GMT (UK) »
I didn't mention the Normans, former Vikings who learned French, cut their hair, settled down and built churches instead of destroying them.
Cowban

Offline Maiden Stone

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Re: What does 'Great Britain' mean?
« Reply #14 on: Tuesday 11 December 18 21:42 GMT (UK) »
I have just uploaded an update from 'Ancestry', and they now estimate 96% Great Britain and 4% Ireland, Scotland and Wales.  They define Great Britain as most of England (including Devon and Cornwall but excluding Lancashire (ish), plus the northern half of France, Belgium, Netherlands and west half of Germany (Saxony).

That means it's correct for me to put Lancashire as my race/ethnic origin on a census return.  :)
How does Anc. define Lancashire?
The rest of "GB"  on your list encompasses many invaders or immigrants pre 1700  - Normans, Flemings, Saxons.
Cowban