The sources for L226 research are quite different from those primarily used by researchers of old and broader haplogroups - like L21 and Z253. L226 research depends on recognizing and analyzing patterns in YSTR marker values for finding YSNPs that create new L226 branches. Discovering the best candidates for Y chromosome scans (known as Next Generation Sequencing or NGS tests) requires recognizing major patterns in every growing and changing databases. This pattern recognition is a past to present analysis which is not generally done by genealogists. Once a YSNP has been has been identified as a new L226 branch, the YSTR signatures of associated with those that testing positive is first analyzed. This analysis is unlike genealogical analysis which is much more limited due to the time frame of the origin of the surname is so much older than most proven genealogies. Surnames originated around 1,000 years ago for most Irish surnames but most genealogist have brick walls only 200 or 300 years ago. L226 originated around 1,400 to 1,500 years ago before usage of surnames by most Irish people of that time frame.

GOOD RESORCES FOR L226 HAPLOTREES

Before the explosion of YSNP discovery introduced by NGS testing, the officially blessed version of the descendancy chart of mankind which is known as the YDNA haplotree. The ISOGG organization was the primary resource for the tracking of the new branches of mankind. Unfortunately, they have chosen to restrict the "official" branches to much older branches that have to proven to be genetically diverse. ISOGG is also very conservative and does not allow a myriad of "unstable" YSNPs to be included in their "official" haplotree. This organization still tracks older branches of mankind. Unfortunately, the majority of known L226 branches will not be allowed onto their haplotree and other ways of documenting these haplotrees have filled this gap. ISOGG does remain the best source for older branches of mankind and several L226 branches have been added to their haplotree:

http://www.isogg.org/tree/ISOGG_HapgrpR.html

With the deluge of YSNPs being discovered daily, a Russian company (YFULL) allows NGS testers to upload their NGS BAM files and has resulted in another haplotree that includes several L226 YSNPs as well. This tool remains useful but they create of a lot of new labels that have to be tediously mapped to other names. YFULL is still a useful site but newer and better options are now available:

https://www.yfull.com/tree/R1b/

Today's key source for the L226 haplotree research was developed by Alex Williamson who receives many more NGS L226 BAM files than YFULL and has a lot of better analysis as well. His web site (BigTree) remains one of the primary sources for L226 haplotree research and covers most of the L226 branches that are based on NGS BAM files submitted to his web site. However, many NGS test results do not get to Alex and his site does not analyze new branches being discovered by individual YSNP testing. Below is a link to the R-L21 part of Alex's haplotree that includes L226:

http://www.ytree.net/DisplayTree.php?blockID=3

FTDNA has historically always been very far behind in haplotree documentation but has probably become the best resource for haplotree research in the last few months. Unfortunately, you have to test with FTDNA in order to access this documentation. So I can only give you the step by step procedure for locating L226 branches:

1) Log onto FTDNA using your FTDNA ID and password.

2) On the top left side, click on myDNA, click on YDNA and then click on Haplotree and SNPs.

3) You may have to click on R on the top of the screen (but it saves this choice).

4) In the Search field in the top right, enter L226 and hit the Search button.

5) It should automatically scoll down to L226 but you will have to scroll down more to see all of the new L226 branches.

FTDNA's haplotree is the most comprehensive haplotree in general but is not currently the most accurate representation of the L226 haplotree. FTDNA routinely shows random private YSNPs as branches when they are not really branches. For L226 branches, FTDNA has three times as many L226 branches as shown by L226 researchers. FTDNA is not the most reliable source for L226 since most of their L226 branches are private YSNPs that are not proven to be L226 branches. However, FTDNA is really making major improvements in their haplotrees and will remain a key resource.

BEST AND MOST UPDATED L226 HAPLOTREES

However, all of these resources depend on automated analysis of certain files and different sources of information. Only the L226 researchers will have the latest branches and even the L226 researchers have different versions as well. Dennis Wright and myself maintain the latest view of the L226. My version has unstable YSNPs removed since these YSNPs can not be individually tested at YSEQ. YSEQ is only real source for testing individual YSNPs since FTDNA no longer adds most of these newly discovered private YSNPs. Dennis does most of the heavy lifting by analyzing the BAM files from NGS tests as they become available and I try to keep him informed of all the individual YSNP testing and panel/pack testing from FTDNA and YSEQ which is also tedious work as well.

For my latest L226 haplotree, click the button on the top labled - HAPLOTREE. If you plan on testing via YSEQ, this is the best resource for the L226 haplotree. Also, if you plan on testing private YSNPs associated with NGS tests, this would be the best L226 for this kind of L226 research. If you are interested is seeing all branches of L226 that have been discovered by individual YSNP testing, this is probably the best L226 haplotree. DC69, FGC5647, FGC5639, A6097 and DC19 were discovered via individual YSNP testing. This web site is dedicated to discovering many more branches by individual YSNP testing.

FTDNA allows several unstable YSNPs to be included in the L226 haplotree which has several significant branches of the L226 haplotree. After 50 NGS tests, these unstable have proven to have consistent test results. However, due to their location on the Y chromosome, there is a smally chance that these YSNPs may have to be removed some day if they are found to be truly unstable. If you are primarily interested in only NGS discovered branches, Dennis Wright's haplotree is proabably the best L226 haplotree. For the latest chart from Dennis Wright which includes several "unstable" YSNPs (that remain stable after 50 NGS L226 tests):

http://www.irishtype3dna.org/bigy.php

SOURCE FOR NGS ANALYSIS

We are very fortunate that Dennis Wright spends an enormous amount time not only analyzing NGS files for L226 but for all of Z253 NGS files. It is extremely important that anyone who takes a NGS tests, it is critical to forward the NGS BAM files to Dennis via system generated links that allow access to NGS BAM files. These links can be requested from both FTDNA and Full Genomes Corporation. Without these files, Dennis can not conduct a full analysis and your expensive NGS test and your NGS test will have minimal impact on L226 research. The files provided by the NGS testing companies are extremely conservative and omit much of the information that Dennis is able to extract. His BAM extraction methodology (used by many other haplogroup administrators) is FAR superior the FTDNA tools and FGC analysis tools.

Dennis is very good about sharing his research is a very visual EXCEL spreadsheet. It is very graphical in nature but determining new branches takes a lot skill in determining what are branches from what are possible branches. I highly recommend that you review his files as an excellent source for learning how new branches are discovered via NGS BAM files (caution - this is a pretty detailed EXCEL spreadsheet that many will find hard to understand):

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/14028750/L226%20BigY%20Analysis.xlsx

WE NEED A LOT MORE NGS TESTING

There is no doubt that the tremendous progress of discovering 26 branches under L226 is primarily driven by the rather expensive NGS tests. If you have the means to test either a Big Y NGS test or the higher coverage Full Genomes Corporation NGS test, you funds will not be wasted as we will eventually discover new L226 branches for each NGS taken. You have a very unique opportunity to discover your own "star" that will literally remain part of the haplotree for eternity. I now have five starts under my belt and feel that my original L226 FGC test for $1,450 which was worth every penny. From this test, there were three major branches under L226 and two genealogical YSNPs for my cluster.

Any male Family Tree DNA customer with a complete YSTR test may order the Big Y product through their myFTDNA account. It is highly recommended that you have tested for at least 67 markers prior to taking a NGS test. To order the Big Y test:

1. Sign in to your FTDNA account.
2. Click the blue Upgrade button in the upper-right corner of the page.
3. Look for the Father’s Line section, and click the blue price button, which will open the shopping cart for you to complete your order.

But FTDNA is not the only testing company that offers NGS tests. The Full Genomes Corporation now offers the Y Elite 2.1 test which is significant higher coverage and higher quality than FTDNA's Big Y test. The Y Elite 2.1 test covers arournd 30 % more than the Big Y test and costs around 30 % more than the Big Y test. The Y Elite 2.1 is similar to the 111 market test and Big Y is like a 67 marker test. Also, not everyone needs a 111 marker test unless your genetic cluster is big enough to warrant this higher resolution. However, L226 researchers should ordering around 90/10 mixture of FTDNA and FGC NGS tests.

There are two major factors where higher resolution are extremely important. If you are testing multiple NGS tests within a genetic surname cluster, the higher resolution test will reveal 30 % more private YSNPs that can be turned into more genealogical branches. Additional testing under DC1 would greatly benefit from the higher resolution tests. Larger and more isolated genetic clusters are the best fit as well. My South Carolina Casey genetic cluster is very isolated under L226 and second Y Elite 2.1 has been ordered to maximize the number of private YSNPs (my original Y Elite 1.0 still has 12 private YSNPs not tested by Big Y).

The second major scenario is higher resolution testing can discover more major branches that 48 Big Y tests have not discovered to date. Having 30 % more coverage means discovering 30 % more major branches. If your are stuck in the major trunk of L226 which is FGC5660 to FGC5628 to FGC5659, you are not alone. Over 30 % of the NGS private YSNPs are belong to just these three branches of the 26 known L226 branches. If your terminal YSNP is FGC5660, FGC5628 or FGC5659, higher resolution FGC NGS tests are recommended as they will discover 30 % major branches and are more likely to discover major new branches in these bottleneck branches of L226.

However, high resolutiion tests have issues of their own. Since I am the only high resolution NGS test, my untested 12 YSNPs can not be compared to the 48 Big Y tests since they do report any results in this part of the Y chromosome. It is much more costly (again) to determine which of these private YSNPs are just more L226 equivalent, another major branch or more private YSNPs for discovery of new genealogical branches in my cluster. However, thanks to Rick Manus who is L226 positive and FGC5660 negative, he has agreed to use his DNA to test my private YSNPs. If they come back positive, they are probably more L226 equivalents (or a very small chance of being a new branch above FGC5660). After those pesky "unstable" YSNPs are ruled out by YSEQ and the L226 equivalents are filtered out, I shouid have six remaining YSNPs that fall into two categories: 1) one or two major branches between FGC5660 and FGC5647; 2) five or six new private YSNPs to test for more genealogical branches under FGC5647 or slightly above FGC5647.

There is a second Y Elite 2.1 test on order in my South Carolina Casey surname cluster as well. This test now has around another 10 % more coverage than my Y Elite 1.0, so more private YSNPs and possibly new major branches may be discovered. Also, since his line is the most genetically remote line in my cluster, he will provide new YSNPs that are unique to his part of the FGC5647 haplotree. His test will also test all of my private YSNPs and he could receive different results of my private YSNPs (the seven private YSNPs that are tested by Big Y as well as the five or six private YSNPs that will soon be identified the test of Rick Manus's YDNA).

FUTURE EXPANSION OF SOURCE FILES

The above list of source files will be expanded as time allows.