
Who do we think we were? Insights from ancient Irish Genomes
Professor Dan Bradley will explain how human genetics can be used to understand better the patterns and processes underlying genetic variations which exist on our island. Ancient DNA is now an archaeological tool, enabling genetic postcoding of discoveries of human remains and is helping to rewrite the history of Europeans. Our first sequencing of ancient genomes from the British Isles were of samples from the North East of Ireland at Ballynahatty Co. Down, and Rathlin Island. These showed that the great waves of people movements in Northern Europe washed all the way to our island. More recently, results from Newgrange were certainly not what we were expecting.