Clan Ross Surname Study

Ross Surname

Study Update

January 2, 2021

Andrew M. Ross

Introduction

The world is ours to discover and genealogy is a good example of that. Historically, genealogy involved the location of paper records; source material. That is records of births, marriages and deaths. Sometimes a will could be located, a legal document where ones surviving members could be identified. On paper, this makes perfect sense for the generation of genealogical records and family trees. The purpose of genealogy though wasn’t always curiosity and respect for our ancestors. A person’s inheritance and position in society could be decided based on these records.

While written records are valuable, there are also problems with written records. Births are not necessarily recorded. Children can be orphaned or adopted or names can be changed for convenience or other reason. Documents can easily be lost to the ravages’ of time or in some cases out right forged. Wars, conflicts and disease can disrupt society and the families that form it to such an extent that record keeping is not a priority.

DNA on the other hand is carried by each of us and cannot be lost during our lives. We are born with equal amounts from each of our parents. The amount of information contained within DNA is remarkable. The primary purpose of it is to allow our bodies to function. However, it can also be used to trace our ancestors. It’s has been only fairly recently that precise measurement of DNA has become widely available.

The structure of DNA was first established in the 1950’s. By the 1980s, it was understood sufficiently that profiling was possible and the uniqueness of people could be scientifically measured at the molecular level. It wasn’t until 1999 though that Family Tree DNA was founded and began to offer public testing services. 2000 to 2006 were formative years during which only 11 single tandem repeats (STR) were measured in male YDNA. Eventually, it was called a 12 STR marker test because one of the STR’s (DYS385) almost always had two copies.

Since that time, the technology has continued to improve with cost becoming more reasonable. The current standard of measurement is 111 STRs with 37 being the minimum entry level. STRs; Single Tandem Repeats are oscillators within the structure of DNA. They are the number of times a particular sequence of markers is repeated. The number of repeats can mutate over time and either increase or decrease. Some STRs mutate quickly, while others are slow. As such, STRs are useful for measuring time when analyzed in sufficient quantity.

However, because STRs can mutate in either direction, there is a problem. Two individuals can appear closer or further apart than what they really are. The more STR’s available, the better one can calculate the time to the most recent common ancestor. Still, there are limits to the accuracy with STRs.

SNPs, Single Nuclide Polymorphisms, on the other hand do not oscillate. They are generally handed down perfectly from one generation to the next. At random intervals, mutations still occur, but those mutations in turn are handed down to the next generation. So, with SNPs, it’s possible to separate individuals into unique groups. There are currently millions of SNPs and more are being discovered and created.

SNP’s are more expensive to measure. However, they additional information they provide allows a more accurate measurement of how people are related. With men, SNP’s on the male chromosome are most useful for patrilineal ancestry. With men and women, SNP’s in the mitochondria are most useful for matrilineal ancestry. SNP’s of course, exist throughout the DNA structure.

For the majority of people, quality genealogical records are available going back a few hundred years. With YDNA, it’s possible to measure our history going back over hundreds of thousands of years. Combining the two is a great undertaking, but by doing it is possible to draw a crude picture of one’s history which can be shared. This report is a work in progress and represents what is understood at this point in time among men with the Ross surname. Feedback is encouraged and the goal is to continuously improve accuracy.

As of November 1, 2020, there were 456 men participating on the Ross surname project at Family Tree DNA. 341 have the Ross surname or can be matched within the genealogical time frame to another person with the Ross surname. The genealogical time frame is generally considered to be the last 15 generations, which works out to the 1600. However, within the population of Ross men, there are several families of Ross men who can be linked to a common ancestor hundreds of years earlier; approximately to the year 1100.

There are 108 genetically distinct Ross families that have been identified by the project. Although the majority of Ross families can trace their ancestry to Scotland and Ireland, several can be traced to other European countries.

Historical Overview

During the Iron Age, the British Isles were inhabited by various tribal confederacies. Romans referred to the area north of the River Forth as Caledonia. After the Romans invaded Britain, the Caledonians were occasionally defeated in battle, but were never conquered as a people. It is also likely they were also reinforced over time by Brittonic speaking resistance fighters fleeing northward from Britain. Eventually, the people of Scotland were referred to as Picts.

After the Roman military occupation ended, Anglo-Saxons began to invade southern Britain, while Gaels from Ireland established the kingdom of Dál Riata in Northern Ireland and Western Scotland. By the late 7th century, the Picts had formed multiple kingdoms within Scotland. Eventually, around the year 900, the Pictish kingdoms merged with Dál Riata to form the Kingdom of Alba. Alba being the Scottish Gaelic name for Scotland.

Beginning in 789, Viking raiders from Hordaland (in modern Norway) began to attack coastal communities of the British Isles. By 853, they established the Kingdom of Dublin based in Ireland. Eventually, they also established the Kingdom of Mann and the Isles, which included the Hebrides. The last king of Dublin was killed by Normans in 1166, but it was not until 1266 that the Norwegian crown yielded the southern Isle kingdoms to Scotland.

During this period of consolidation, the Highlands were converted by Christian missionaries. A church devoted to Saint Andrew was established near Tain. Because of this, the people living in the area may have become known as Clan Andrias, or the “Children of Andrew”.

Notables

Máel Coluim (circa 1150). There is some uncertainty concerning the exact identity of the original leadership and formation of Clan Ross. The first leader, Máel Coluim could be the son of Beth (or Áed or Eth), a local Mormaer (Gaelic provincial ruler) of Ross. However, Máel Coluim may instead have been the son of King Alexander I.

When King Alexander I died in 1124, his brother David I came to the throne with the help of King Henry I of England and Norman forces. It has been reported that Máel Coluim mac Alaxandair attempted to capture the kingdom from David, and fought against him in fierce battles. But David was able to conquer Máel Coluim and his followers.

By about 1168, Máel Coluim no matter his paternity, had passed. After his time, groups from Ross shire formed that were generally rebellious to the King of the Scots. The formal title Earl of Ross was granted by King William the Lion to Floris III of Holland as early as 1161. However, Floris held the title only in a nominal sense and probably did not reside in Ross-shire for any substantial length of time.

It was during this period of extended rebellions that Ferquhard, of the Ó Beólláin (O'Beolain, Boland, Bolan) family, sided with the crown and captured the rebel leaders before beheading several and presenting their heads to King Alexander II. For this he was knighted in the 1220’s.

Ferquahard, (1170-1251) or Fearcher Mac an t-Sagirt, "Son of the priest" in English was associated with the abbey of Applecross. In 1234 he became the first Earl of Ross, as recognized by King Alexander II of Scotland. He is buried at Fearn Abbey near Tain, Scotland

Hugh 1st of Balnagown (1309-1372). Chief of Clan Ross was gifted the lands of Balnagown and Easter Allan in a Charter from King David II.

George Ross (1730-1779) was among the signers of the Declaration of Independence. His father, the Rev. George Aeneas Ross (1679-1755) had a large family. His genealogical record back to Ferquhard is relatively convincing. There is an individual within the project claiming to be descended from George Aeneas Ross. However, this claim is not well documented, nor is anybody available to defend it.

Robert Ross (1766-1814). Born in Rostrevor, County Down, Ireland. British Army officer; Major-General. Junior officer during Napoleonic Wars. Lead an attack on Washington D.C. during the war of 1812, burning the White House and the Capitol in retaliation for American raids into Canada, most notably the burning of Toronto.

Sir John Ross (1777-1856). Rear Admiral. Scottish Royal Navy office and polar explorer. Born in Balsarroch, West Galloway, Scotland, on June 24, 1777. The son of the Reverend Andrew Ross of Balsarroch, Minister of Inch in Wigtownshire, and Elizabeth Corsane, daughter of Robert Corsane, the Provost of Dumfried. Family home was on the shore of Loch Ryan, at Stranraer. Commanded Arctic expedition searching for Northwest passage and later a search for the lost Franklin expedition.

Sir James Clark Ross (1800-1862). British Royal Navy office and polar explorer. Nephew of Sir John Ross. Discovered the Ross Sea and the Ross Ice Shelf in Antarctica.

Sir Ronald Ross (1857-1932). Born in India to Campbell Claya Grant Ross and his wife Elizabeth Charlotte. Awarded Nobel Prize in Medicine 1902 for his work on malaria.

A. Core Clan Ross There is a common misperception that Scottish Clans are comprised of a single extended family. However, this is not strictly true. While extended families can be found in many clans, the majority of people in most clans tend to be from varying backgrounds. Over time, they became united by a shared culture, history and surname.

The core of Clan Ross is the largest extended family with the Ross surname project at Family Tree DNA. The common ancestor for this group lived about 1,100 AD. He can be identified by the SNP R-BY4029.

His distant ancestors can be identified by the SNPs R-L21, who is associated with the Bell Beaker culture and the Celts. After crossing the English Channel about 4,300 years ago, they lived in the southern part of the British Isles. This was during the later part of the stone age. From this location, the population rapidly expanded with numerous clads being formed. The SNP R-L513 can be dated to about 4,100 years ago near Wales.

By 3,000 years ago, during the Bronze age, ancestors had migrated to the north nearer to the Irish Sea. Eventually, by the time of the Romans, 2,000 years ago, they had migrated further to the area of Modern day Scotland.

The core of Clan Ross is descended from a common ancestor who can be identified by the SNP R-BY4029. 8 distinct terminal SNPs have been identified so far among his extended family of descendants:

Because R-BY4029 appears to have immigrated to Scotland before the formation of the Ross surname and yet most of the diverse clads adopted it, it is plausible that this family was originally associated with one of the earliest rulers, such as Máel Coluim or his extended dynasty.

Of the 80 descendants of R-BY4029 that have joined the Ross surname project, there are 10 men with Rose as a surname. Several, but not all of these individuals are concentrated within a single clad as indicated above. However, genetically there are several other extended families with the Rose surname as well. Some of these families are Anglo Saxons and others Britannic. The descendants of R-BY4029, are a distinct minority within the broader Rose Clan. Physically, Clan Rose has a seat in the Highlands a relatively short distance from Ross-Shire. It is possible that some descendants of the earlier family migrated to Clan Rose territory and adopted their surname. This appears to have happened near the year 1,300. The commonality in spelling of the 2 names, especially in Gaelic may have been a factor as well.

There are 2 Irish and 6 Scottish SNPs within the core of Clan Ross. The following maps are typical migration paths of the Irish and Scottish Ross clads.

Typical ancestral migration path of Clan Ross Core: SNP R-BY11526

Typical Migration Path of Irish Clad of Clan Ross Core: SNP R-BY11527

The following diagram represents the relationships and common ancestors within the core of Clan Ross. Men with Ross surnames are shown in Pink, Rose is show in Red and all other surnames are shown with Purple:

73% of the men have Ross as a surname.

13% of the men have Rose as a surname.

15% of the men have another surname, with no single surname predominating.

The distribution of "other" surnames appears to be random without recent adoptions beyond that which is already known. That is the other surnames could have been held for hundreds of years similar to the Rose surname.

B Norse Gaels

Another significant extended family with the Ross surname, have a Norse origin and can be genetically identified by the SNP R-FT40329. The Ross men in this group can generally trace their genealogy to an area called Ross-Shire in Scotland, which is near Tain. However, by YDNA, all men in this group are descended from ancestors that lived in Norway beginning in the Iron Age and before then in Denmark during the Neolithic stone age period. In particular, the ancestors in Denmark appear to have lived on the Danish island called Zealand, which is where an ancient tribe called the Danes lived. They arrived from further east near the Pontic-Caspian steppe region, where Indo-Europeans developed.

One feature of this group, which is remarkable, is that they are relatively closely related to another group of men which can be described as the Loch Alsh Matheson's. Loch Alsh is located on the Western edge of Scotland, near the Applecross peninsula.

In addition, another particularly large group of related men have been located on the Isle of Man. The relationship to the Matheson's is significantly closer than those to the Isle of Man. The Loch Alsh branch of the Matheson clan is the Chiefly line, where as the men from the Isle of Man have a variety of surnames associated with farms from the 1400's.

Public YDNA data has been collected from the Matheson, Isle of Man, Bruce and Mackenzie Family Tree YDNA projects as these other projects contained related individuals. YDNA 111 STR data was then used in a specific computer analysis to calculate the date and inter-relationship between common ancestors. The following chart illustrate the relationship between these surname groups:

Ten men with the Ross surname are illustrated in Pink in the above diagram and were found to share a common ancestor living 1300 AD (1100-1450 AD). Four men with the Matheson surname, illustrated in Purple share a common ancestor living circa 1550 AD (1450-1650).

The green box is representative of men from the Isle of Man who share who a common ancestor that lived circa 800 AD (550-1050AD).

The 2 gold boxes represent a man with the surname Bruce and another with the surname Parker. The Bruce man is a descendant of George Bruce. He appears to have been a Scottish Prisoner of War who arrived in Massachusetts circa 1651. The man in the project with the Parker surname was adopted and is a likely descendant of George Bruce.

Together, these two men share a common ancestor, with the only MacKenzie in the analysis, circa 1550 AD (1500-1600 AD). A man with the surname MacKenzie is represented by the Yellow box. Very little is known of the only MacKenzie in the analysis. His ancestry is not remarkable. The MacKenzie Surname YDNA project was carefully reviewed. Although, there is a large number of of MacKenzie men that have YDNA tests, this individual is unique and matches only 1 other MacKenzie man. The other MacKenzie man though did not have 111 STR data available, so he was not included in the above chart.

The common ancestor for all the men with Scottish heritage (Ross, Matheson, MacKenzie & Bruce) share a common ancestor, who lived circa 1150 AD (950-1351 AD).

As previously mentioned, Loch Alsh is on the western coast of Scotland. It is a short distance from the Applecross peninsula, an area long associated with Ferquhard, the 1^st Earl of Ross. The relatively close relationship between the Loch Alsh Matheson men and the Ross men is considered very significant. Neither group appears to be descended from the other. Instead, both groups share a common ancestor who lived sometime between 1100 AD to 1450 AD.

The age of the most recent common ancestor for the Isle of Man men is 800 AD (550-1050AD). This is also significant as it coincides with the arrival of the Uí Ímair. The Uí Ímar, were a royal Norse-Gael Dynasty that ruled much of the Irish Sea region, the Kingdom of Dublin and the western coast of Scotland. The founder of the dynasty, Ímar is believed to have reigned as King of Dublin between 857-873. By 1170, the dynasty had disintegrated, with a remnant remaining on the Isle of Man for a time there after. There is only 1 group of men with Norse heritage on the Isle of Man and they are share the same common ancestor from that time.

Farquhar’s daughter Christina (1200-1237) is known to have been the third wife of Olas, fifth King of Man and the Isles. As the Isle of Man was ruled by a Norse dynasty at the time, this marriage illustrates that Ferquhard was familiar with them and on good terms.

The common ancestor for all 37 men with 111 STR data within the project lived circa 50 BC (350BC – 200 AD) in Norway. Their patrilineal ancestor migrated from the Danish Island of Zealand to Norway during the beginning of the Iron Age circa 550 BC. During the latter part of the Stone Age, approximately 3,000 BC, earlier ancestors migrated from areas in Poland and the Ukraine to Denmark. They can be identified as part of the much larger group called Indo-Europeans.

Norse within the Hebrides

Both Norse and Icelandic Saga’s describe the activities of a King Bjolan among the Hebrides during the time of Vikings. If Gallicized, Bjolan would likely appear as O’Beolan, a surname that has long been associated with Ferquhard an early Earl of Ross.

Ketill Bjorn Grimsson was a King living in medieval Norway. He was born around the year 765 in Aurland, Sogn og Fjordane. Ketill Bjorn was a Skjoldung; that is he was of high birth and considered to be among the descendants of a long line of Danish Kings. The Skjoldung are described in many ancient writings. In the epic poem Beowulf, the Skjoldung are identified as Scyld’s.

Ketill Bjorn had three sons; Helgi, Ketill and Hrappur. During this time period, the High King of Norway, Harald Fairhair was consolidating many smaller kingdoms. As indicated in the sagas, a deal of some sort was apparently struck between Bjorn’s family and Harald. Bjorn’s son Ketill, whose nickname was Flatnose, was to take possession of the Hebrides off the coast of Scotland and pay tribute to Harald. However, a dispute arose and Harald confiscated the family’s lands in Norway.

In response, the extended family fled to the Hebrides. Some lived peacefully, while others continued to raid lands. It is likely that King Harald still expected tribute, which discouraged the family from permanently settling in the Hebrides. Eventually, more family member chose to continue onto Iceland and settle there instead.

Ketill’s son Helgi is clearly described as being one of the first Christians in Iceland. This is significant, because it was during a time that most Norse were primarily pagans. Helgi’s also had 5 sons; Viga-Hrapp, Eyvind Hjalte, Kolsvein, Arngrímur and Þorgrímur and many cousins.

In the Norse Icelandic sagas, Helgi is referred to with the surname Beolan. This appears to be a variation of Bjorn. This is also significant because normally, one would expect him to be referred to by his father’s name, Ketill. Helgi’s conversion to Christianity could have occurred in the Hebrides as the area is the location of numerous monasteries. It is believed that a member of Bjorn's extended family married an Applecross Princess of the House of Tara.

C The Kings Men

This group of 16 Ross men within the FTDNA Ross project are extremely interesting. These men hold 3 related, but distinct terminal SNPs: R-BY112558, R-A5911 and R-FT101416. The common ancestor for these clads is R-S744, who appeared in the Scottish lowlands circa 550 AD (250-850AD). This is remarkable because it is such a long time before surnames in general, let alone the name Ross came into common usage.

Immediately downstream of R-S744 there is an astounding 12 major clads that are nearly as old. The other major clads have yet to be associated with specific surnames. Downstream of R-S744 are over 300 individual terminal SNP. There are doubtless hundreds of surnames that can be traced to this single ancestor. So, R-S744 appears to be the patriarch of a large medieval dynasty. He was likely King of what is currently referred to as Scotland. However he lived during the time Pictish Kingdoms.

While tracking other descendants, it was discovered that the Clyne Sutherlands are members of one of the Clads. The Clyne Sutherlands are from Sutherland, which is immediately adjacent to Ross-Shire. The common ancestor of the Clyne Sutherlands lived around the year 1250 AD (1150-1350 AD).

With further research, it was possible to identify men in the Rogers Surname project who are also descendants of R-S744. However, their common ancestor is R-PF5721 who has been calculated to have lived 1700 AD (1550-1800 AD). Genealogically, their oldest reported ancestor was a John Rogers, who was born circa 1617 in England or Wales and migrated to Virginia in colonial America.

The surname Rogers was originally a Germanic personal name derived from the elements hrod, or "renown" combined with geri, or "spear;" thus the name suggested "prowess with a spear, which was in common usage during medieval warfare.

This group of Roger men share a common ancestor (R-A2120) with Ross haplogroup R-A5911 men. R-A2120 is calculated to have lived 1500 AD (1400-1650 AD). So, it is apparent, that at around that time a man left Clan Ross and possibly pursued a career as a spear man.

Another related group of men are from Clan MacGregor. The MacGregors are among seven Scottish clans that claim descent from Alpin, the father of Cináed mac Ailpín (810-858), a king of the Picts. Extensive YDNA information is available from a number of men with the MacGregor surname. Their common ancestor, who is downstream of R-S744 has been calculated to have lived nearer the year 1200 AD (900-1500AD).

D Ancestral Europeans

There are 7 men with Ross surnames in this group. Some of the men can trace their ancestry to men with Ross surnames in Colonial America. There is a wide variety of other surnames that can be matched to this group, which include Stuart, Beaton (Bethune), Hagen, McCratic, McLennan, McKinney & Seaton. This group can be identified by the SNP I-S27697 and appear to have settled in Scotland during the Iron Age prior to the arrival of Romans. Ancient ancestors of this group lived in the vicinity of Belgium and Holland shortly after the end of the Ice age and migrated to the British Isles by age 2,500 BC during the Bronze Age. It is likely they were part of a Pictish tribe, but not as extensive as the R-S744.

Only 2 men in the group have 111 STR data (Ross & Stuart). Their common ancestor lived between 1,400 to 1,500 AD.

E Haplogroup R-S6000

There are 7 men with the Ross surname in this group and 1 with Blair as a surname. The R-S6000 mutation formed 2,400 years ago (450 BC) during the Iron Age in Scotland. More detailed testing will be necessary to identify a migration path to the modern era.

3 men in this group (2 Ross & Blair) have 111 STR information. Their most recent common ancestor was calculated to have lived 650 AD (500-750AD). As such, they their common ancestor predated the Ross surname. Further research into the group may help identify a possible identify of their common ancestor.

F Niall of the Nine Hostages

There are 6 men with Ross surnames and 1 with Hall, who belong to either haplogroup R-FGC42440 or a closely related group R-A16160. Both of these groups are descended from R-M222; a common marker for Ireland (about 9% of the population) as well as some men in Scotland.

Niall Noígíallach, or in English, Niall of the Nine Hostage, was an Irish King, the ancestor of the Uí Néill dynasties that dominated the northern half of Ireland from the 6^th to the 10^th century. While it has been suggested that the R-M222 mutation personally represents the Niall dynasty, this mutation was formed several thousand years before the Irish King was known to have lived. As illustrated above, R-M222 more likely lived in Whales around 2,000 BC, with his descendants migrating to Ireland circa 660 BC during the Iron Age. Nevertheless, approximately 90% of the men with the R-M222 marker, share the R-DF105 SNP marker which can be dated to the time of the Uí Néill dynasty.

G Haplogroup R-Z258

There are 6 related men with the Ross surname in this group. They share the R-Z258 SNP mutation, which formed in the European mainland about 2,500 BC during the latter part of the Stone Age. The men in this group can trace their patrilineal ancestry to early America and in one case Scotland. More detailed testing though is necessary to identify a more complete migration path to the modern era.

The 2 men within this group that have 111 STR data available were calculated to share a most recent common ancestor from circa 1800 AD (1750-1800 AD).

H Haplogroup R-Z9

There are 6 related men with the Ross surname in this group. They share the R-Z9 mutation, which formed in the European mainland about 2,700 BC during the latter part of the Stone Age. The men in this group can trace their patrilineal ancestry to early American and in one case Ireland circa 1715. More detailed testing will be necessary to identify a migration path to the modern era. Only 1 man in this group has 111 STR data. Therefore, time to most recent common ancestor cannot be calculated.

I Ancient Britons

There are 4 men with the Ross surname in this group and a related Hillen man from Northern Ireland. These men share the I-Y31616 mutation, which was formed circa 680 AD. This group descended from I-M284, who migrated to Briton 10,000 years ago during the early Stone-Age, shortly after retreat of glaciers. As such, this is the oldest “British” group within the Ross surname project.

Two of the men can trace their ancestry to Archibald Ross, born 1740 in Antrim , Northern Ireland. Only 1 man in this group has 111 STR data. Therefore, time to most recent common ancestor cannot be calculated.

J Haplogroup E

E-M35 is approximately 34,000 years old and lived along the Nile River delta. This was a time during which Europe was in an Ice Age. Descendants are known to have migrated into Europe as shown on the next picture:

One Ross man in this group has a SNP E-BY6559 which can be dated to the Bronze Age, approximately 3,300 years ago in Germany. However, he does not match any of the other Ross men within the project.

The Ross men that do match others can be placed into 2 groups. The Ross/Rossini group have 37 STRs tested. Their common ancestor is calculated to have lived approximately 1,000 years ago.

Notice that although these men have differences within their 37 STR markers, their 12 marker STRs are identical. One of the men in the Ross/Rosen Derivatives group has only 12 markers measured. So, even though their 12 markers are identical, they could be separated by dozens of generations.

K Haplogroup G

The men in this group appear to be predominately from Germany. The George (c1820) & Jacob (c1819) Ross group were calculated to have a common ancestor living around 1650 AD using 37 STR data. The other men in this group have limited matches to other men with Ross surnames.

L Haplogroup I

The largest group of Ross men within Haplogroup I, the William Monroe Ross b. c1750 group has already been reviewed. However, there are 6 smaller groups plus 10 men with Ross surnames that have no Ross matches. These groups can be broadly divided into 2 groups I-M233 and I-M253.

The I-M233 group can be represented by I-Y7273, who migrated to areas near Germany and the Netherlands during the iron age. Although this groups traces their ancestry to the United Kingdom and Scotland, they have not tested to a modern era SNP. It is likely that they were part of the Anglo-Saxon migration to England after the Roman Era.

There are several groups of men that have tested to the I-M253 SNP. This SNP is approximately 28,000 years old and can be roughly located to Northern Germany during the ice age.

M Haplogroup J

There are 2 groups of men within this haplogroup with Ross surnames that are related. However, the measured SNP J-M172 is 36,000 years old.

The men in the George Ross, b. c1793 County Cork Ireland have nearly identical 67 STRs. As such, their common ancestor was calculated to have lived around 1900.

The other men within the haplogroup do not currently have Ross matches.

The presence of men in Scotland & Ireland with Haplogroup J could possibly be the descendants of contingent of Roman legionnaires. Some legionnaires were known to be either Syrian or Punic. One group of archers was known to have been stationed near Hadrian’s wall in the year 134.

N References:

https://www.familytreedna.com/groups/ross-dna-project/about

http://scaledinnovation.com/gg/snpTracker.html

http://www.jdvtools.com/SAPP/

https://archive.org/details/scotspeeragefoun07paul/page/230/mode/2up

Rossiana; papers and documents relating to the history and genealogy of the ancient and noble house of Ross, of Ross-shire, Scotland, and its descent form the ancient earls of Ross, together with the descent of the ancient and historic family of Read, from Rede of Trough-end, Reade of Barton Court, Berks, and Read of Delaware. Also some account of the related families

by Read, Harmon Pumpelly, 1860- [from old catalog]; Reid, Francis Nevile, 1826-1892

https://archive.org/details/rossianapapersdo01read/page/n8/mode/2up

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ross_(name)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clan_Ross

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earl_of_Ross

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%93engus_of_Moray

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MacHeths

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_I_of_Scotland

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_II_of_Scotland

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ralph_Gore,_1st_Earl_of_Ross

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fearchar,_Earl_of_Ross

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Ross_(American_politician)