Robson tribe comes to gape at DNA technology

Nov 27 2006 By The Journal

The mouths of 100 Mr Robsons were swabbed this weekend to find out if they were related to the lawless tribes that ruled the Scottish border hundreds of years ago.

Male volunteers with the surname Robson came from across the North-East to have a sample of DNA taken at the Centre for Life in Newcastle.

They lined up behind the head of the clan, 90-year-old Lance Robson, as Dr Alix Groom took the genetic information that could link dozens of families together.

If the tests come back positive, it would prove scientists' predictions that about 95% of Robsons are related to the Border Reiver clan that once held power over the Anglo-Scottish border.

Lance Robson, a Northumberland piper, of Hartburn, Morpeth, said: "I think we are all linked genetically but it will be interesting to see if the tests prove it. It is an honour to be here with so many other Robsons.

"In the First World War, 10,000 Robsons of Kielder all gathered in Morpeth Market Square in their military uniforms and I suppose it is just the way we evolve that there are only 100 of us here today.

"Years ago, cousins used to marry each other but now we find our wives from further away. My wife is Irish and my son's wife comes from Thailand."

The Border Reiver tribes were known for fighting for both the Scottish and the English during Norman ages but they also battled against each other. The results of the project will be shown in a short film in the new Robson Encyclopaedia exhibit at the Centre for Life in April 2007.

The Y chromosones will be compared at 12 different markers across the strand of DNA and if there are similarities scientists will then confirm the link to the 17th Century tribe.

The examination of the genetic coding is a reliable way of identifying if people share a common ancestry. If one person shares the same variation in DNA then they have inherited it from the same ancestor. If the project is successful, the team of scientists may consider doing the same exercise with people who have the Fenwick, Armstrong or Elliot surname.

Paul Bradley