The following excerpt is from an article posted in the October 6, 2014 edition of bionews.org.uk:
A project to investigate the genetic history of the Welsh, which will also give participants information about their own DNA make-up, is now underway.
‘CymruDNAWales’ is expected to last two to three years. It is described as a ‘multi-media collaboration’ between S4C, the Western Mail, the Daily Post, Green Bay Media and the research company ScotlandsDNA.
People who live in Wales, consider themselves Welsh, or have Welsh ancestry, are invited to take part. They will provide a spit sample which will be submitted to DNA analysis and receive results about the markers and mutations found in their DNA which are prevalent in certain ethnic groups.
CymruDNAWales’ company website advertises ‘brochures featuring separate ancestral narratives for the motherline and fatherline, as well as certificates and printed [test] results’. Each ‘Spit Kit’ costs between £170 and £200.
The organisers say that the results will also be used as part of a genetic survey tracing the history of the Welsh people ‘from the prehistoric pioneers who first saw the valleys and mountains emerge from the last ice age 11,000 years ago to more modern arrivals’.
