M222 (formerly R1b1c7) Project

The R-M222 branch of the Y-DNA tree is defined by a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) called M222. This diagnostic marker is associated with many individuals whose roots lie in the counties of Northwest Ireland, Ulster and Lowland Scotland. The shaded footprint in the map at left shows the area where this profile is most often found. In no county is this pattern the dominant DNA profile, but in some counties (Donegal in NW Ireland, for example) it approaches 20 percent.

The map is intended only to show a population concentration; R-M222 individuals have roots within the oval but are not constrained by it. R-M222 individuals have been found in nearby areas outside the footprint -- in the Western Isles and in Orkney, for example, as well as in the North of England adjacent to the Scottish Border. A very few individuals have been found in Iceland, Norway and Germany.