This group consists of men who have done Y-DNA testing, almost all of whom are in a subclade of the J2a branch of the Y-DNA Tree. Most match others significantly on 37, 67 or 111 markers or a BIGY test and this project focuses on the subclades below J2a-L26. We've discovered that finding out your exact branch mutations (SNPs or "single nucleotide polymorphisms") are key to using your YDNA results to illuminate your ancestry...so the BigY test has become more and more important. NOTE: BE SURE TO CHECK OUT ALL THE TABS AT THE LEFT! ESPECIALLY THE FAQ... We organized to answer the question of when, where, why and how we all connect. And our common ancestral migration story is shaping up to be nothing short of complex and fascinating! Established as a formal project in 2005, many of us started doing the Y-DNA analysis as early as 2001. As the years have passed we've been exchanging family histories, comparing genetic notes etc. and especially thanks to so many "BIGY" results in recent times, we have been making stellar progress. The group has grown to over 1000 members and things are getting more interesting by the minute. We've added a lot of SNP testing to the mix to refine even further the fascinating ancestral stories of each major branch within J2a-L26. There several subsets of this group that are of Jewish heritage, many with a strong cohanim tradition. There are special studies going on now focusing on the J2-FGC4992 (FGC4975 on the YFull DNA Tree) branch and on the two main Jewish clades of J-L70. We also are seeing some fascinating linkage within L70 between Italian and Turkish lineages and ancient Jewish lineages. Then there is the curious case under branch J-M317 where a group of British and Scandinavian folks are working on figuring out how their lineages connect and then saunter back to the Levant...a story of at least 1,000 years. These few examples are among the possible outcomes when one mixes genetics and genealogy. We have scores of members with different ethnic backgrounds. This diverse mix is significant and very valuable as we work towards our goal of identifying our clan's migrations and divergences over the last 500-2500 years. Our current members range from all over the globe, including people with paternal origins in Italy, Spain, France, India, Turkey, Arabia, Tunisia, Libya, Iran, Iraq, Greece, Germany, Netherlands, England...to name just some of the places. Religious backgrounds (we are not focusing on practicing religions but on the religious-ethnic identity of oldest known ancestors) include Jewish, as mentioned above, as well as Christian (Catholic, Lutheran, Protestant, Syrian, you name it!), Muslim, Hindu, etc. So if you are up for a wild ride into a diverse past via a genetic time machine...and your ydna haplogroup is J2aM172 or one of its subclades, please join us! Deb Katz Volunteer Administrator dnadeb@gmail.com PS: NOTE RE SURNAME LIST---This is just a small sampling of the names of members of this project...our connection is via our genetic and genealogical pasts, and for most of us, the surname doesn't go back past the 18th century....so for the big picture we are piecing together, modern-day surnames aren't really that important.