Vikings in Liverpool

[Treffie]

Lancashire's history in the ninth and tenth centuries is very murky, and it is generally assumed that the region around Liverpool was part of the Scandinavian kingdom of York.

Now a genetic study of men living in the area may be able to back up that assumption, claiming that the Liverpool area was once a major Viking settlement.

The research was carried out by Professor Stephen Harding of the University of Nottingham and a team from the University of Leicester led by Professor Mark Jobling.

They picked up on Viking ancestry in Liverpool's present inhabitants by focusing on people whose surnames were recorded in the area before the city's population underwent a huge expansion during the industrial revolution.

Among men with local, pre-industrial surnames, half were found to have Norse ancestry. The find backs up historical evidence from place name studies, and archaeological finds of Viking treasure, which suggests significant numbers of Norwegian Vikings settled in the north-west in the tenth century, while the Scandinavian kingdom of York (presumably) ruled the region.

"[The genetics] is very exciting because it ties in with the other evidence from the area," said Professor Stephen Harding.

The team used historical documents, including a tax register from Henry VIII's court in the sixteenth century, to identify surnames which are common in the region. They then recruited 77 male volunteers with local surnames, and looked for a genetic signature of Viking ancestry on the Y chromosome. They report in Molecular Biology and Evolution that a Y chromosome type, R1a, which is common in Norway, is also very common among men with these local surnames.

In around AD 900 longboats from Norway sailed down the River Mersey. The 'Vikings' who arrived founded or occupied many settlements in the area, which can be seen in local place names, such as Aigburth, Thingwall, Formby, Crosby, Toxteth, and Croxteth. The biggest of the Viking settlements was probably in West Derby - the name roughly meaning Wild Deer Park.

The city of Liverpool itself began as a tidal pool next to the Mersey which was probably called the 'lifer pol', meaning muddy pool.

Although there may have been a hamlet in the area (and on the above evidence, a hamlet which probably consisted of a large number of Viking descendants), the town of Liverpool was not founded until King John needed a port from which to easily reach his newly conquered lands in Ireland in 1207.

http://www.historyfiles.co.uk/Featur...iverpool01.htm

[Beorn]

I find it all very interesting to have these revelations brought to light and explained in the layman's terms.
All this history, and what a mark it has left upon the dotted major settlements within England.

Just goes to show there is three cultural "kingdoms" in England. The North, the East and the West. The differences can be felt as you travel from corner to corner.

[Albion]

The Britons are supposed to have held out for longer in Wirral. Before the industrial revolution it was very rural and described as a wilderness on account of the large areas of marshes that were found there. Some place names there such as Wallasey hint at the latter presence of Britons.

The name of Wallasey originates from the Germanic word Walha, meaning stranger or foreigner, which is also the origin of the name Wales. The suffix “-ey” denotes an island or area of dry land. Originally the higher ground now occupied by Wallasey was separated from the rest of Wirral by the creek known as Wallasey Pool (which later became the docks), the marshy areas of Bidston Moss and Leasowe, and sand dunes along the coast.

So it basically means 'Welsh Island'.

[Smaug]

Good job Treffie my banned Welsh brawd.

[Jackson]

My Grandmother's mother's family comes from areas just south of Liverpool, around Frodsham & Daresbury, and her 'North Sea' on the K=12 is unusually high, considering that 'North Central Euro' is at normal levels (and the same exactly as my grandfather's) on the EUtest/Jtest. Apparently the only difference between the two is that the former has more Finnic-type genes, so maybe that is an echo of the Norse ancestry in the area. Although overall she is the most Celtic person in my family, which fits well as i would still think that Celtic ancestry makes up the largest group in this area. The rest of her ancestry is from London & the south as far as i know.

I've been up round there a couple of times, generally it's pretty nice although Runcorn isn't that nice, and Liverpool isn't that nice either.

[Smaug]

Norse settlement in the West was not not as big as in other parts of the Isles, but had some influence. You can find some names of Norse origin in Cumbria. In Wales they settled more in The Gower, south of Swansea.

[Prisoner Of Ice]

Could the surname brown be related to nordics? I ran it in that map thing and york and northumbria seem to be where the epicenters are (if it's not scottish anyway). Anyone know from what ethnic group it's probably from?

My grandfather did have some piercing blue eyes, but black hair not blonde.

[Jackson]

Norse settlement in the West was not not as big as in other parts of the Isles, but had some influence. You can find some names of Norse origin in Cumbria. In Wales they settled more in The Gower, south of Swansea.

Indeed it seems to be smaller and more local. But then when you actually look at Danish settlement in the same period, the only places where it is heavy is from Yorkshire through Lincolnshire into a little bit of the East Midlands, and in a little bit of East Anglia, much smaller than the extent of the Danelaw.

[Smaug]

Indeed it seems to be smaller and more local. But then when you actually look at Danish settlement in the same period, the only places where it is heavy is from Yorkshire through Lincolnshire into a little bit of the East Midlands, and in a little bit of East Anglia, much smaller than the extent of the Danelaw.

There was also some Norwegian presence in the western part of Britain reaching as south as the Isle of Man. I'm not sure now if they settled in western Great Britain like NW England, nor if the Norse presence in the Gower was Norwegian or Danish. I remember reading about Danish presence in Dumnonia and Wales.

[Jackson]

There was also some Norwegian presence in the western part of Britain reaching as south as the Isle of Man. I'm not sure now if they settled in western Great Britain like NW England, nor if the Norse presence in the Gower was Norwegian or Danish. I remember reading about Danish presence in Dumnonia and Wales.

Well the Norwegians definitley settled around the Wirral, and coastal parts of Lancashire and nearby areas. Is well evidenced by place names and genetics. R1a is pretty high around there, similar to levels in other areas where there has been a lot of Norwegian settlement. As the Danes have less than half the R1a of the Norwegians, this doesn't show up as clearly in Danish settled areas.