>From Rory Thomas,sorry to but in,but in the UK it is generally accepted that if your correct surname is Thomas ,then at some stage in the past there was a Welsh or West Country connection.During the Saxon invasion of England the native population (Celts?) retreated or were drived back into the areas now known as the Cornwall & Wales,then called WEALAS & CORNWEALAS respectiverly (spelling may be wrong) I believe.Some also migrated to France to an area which became Britany.I dont know about Britany but this explains the concentration of our surname in Wales & Cornwall. I am in the process of doing the DNA test.My line are all from East Yorkshire as far back as I have traced them so far (1700 aprox) Anybody with Yorkshire connections please feel free to contact me re exchange of info.Hope this helps.RT> From: dbodycote@earthlink.net> Date: Thu, 31 Jan 2008 11:11:09 -0800> To: thomas@rootsweb.com> Subject: Re: [THOMAS] Heritage of your Thomas family> > My Thomas y-DNA (FTDNA), James Thomas from Scotland, doesn't match > anyone else's -- yet, --but I am hoping that will change> I did eventually find the immigrant ancestor - his name had been > written Thomson not only in the Castle Garden index, but also in the > original - an unusual occupation helped.> > So, even a literate person could have a mistake in their name in the > ship's manifest, to further complicate searching for a common name. > Actually Thomson is much more common than Thomas in Scotland, so maybe > that accounts for the mistake> > Judy> > On Jan 31, 2008, at 9:42 AM, Donna Bray wrote:> > > For Germany, don't overlook the name Thomen or Thommen for Thomas. > > Also the> > name Thomas was used in Germany.> >> > My ancestor was Jacob Thommen who arrived in Pennsylvania about 1750.> >> > I have two Thomas lines on the DNA center. John Thomas, immigrant, is > > in> > Connecticut as early as 1638. I have found many decendants for him, > > but no> > immigration data.> >> > Also a John Thomas, parentage unknown in Greene Co., Pennsylvania, > > born> > about 1760. I have located some of his descendants, but no one else > > matches> > the DNA> >> > Donna Thomas Bray> >> > Donna Bray> > Braydon29@kc.rr.com> > ----- Original Message -----> > From: "Gabriel Thomas" <medic_zeb_indiana@yahoo.com>> > To: <thomas@rootsweb.com>> > Sent: Thursday, January 31, 2008 8:58 AM> > Subject: Re: [THOMAS] Heritage of your Thomas family> >> >> >>> From what I've picked up I believe my Thomas line is from Wales not > >>> 100%> >>> certain yet. What DNA service did you use? I plan on using family > >>> tree> >>> myself here in a couple of weeks. Thanks,> >> Gabe> >>> >> GNEOLOG@aol.com wrote:> >> I notice quite a few references to the Thomas lines from Wales and am> >> wondering what other countries account for this surname. My Thomas > >> line is> >> from the> >> area that is now Germany and may have been THOMA at one time. We are > >> in> >> the> >> same haplogroup with only a couple of other Thomas lines (E3b) on our > >> DNA> >> testing. Are there any more German Thomas lines represented here? Take> >> care.> >> Marilyn> >>> >>> >>> >> **************Start the year off right. Easy ways to stay in shape.> >> http://body.aol.com/fitness/winter-exercise?NCID=aolcmp00300000002489> >>> >> -------------------------------> >> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to> >> THOMAS-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > >> quotes> >> in the subject and the body of the message> >>> >>> >>> >> ---------------------------------> >> Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Yahoo! Mobile. > >> Try it> >> now.> >>> >> -------------------------------> >> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to> >> THOMAS-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > >> quotes> >> in the subject and the body of the message> >> >> > -------------------------------> > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > > THOMAS-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > > quotes in the subject and the body of the message> >> > > -------------------------------> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to THOMAS-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message _________________________________________________________________ Express yourself instantly with MSN Messenger! Download today it's FREE! http://messenger.msn.click-url.com/go/onm00200471ave/direct/01/

Not all THOMAS spellings are correct nor of English/Welch ancestry. My husband's THOMAS line was originally "TOMAS" from Portugal via Spain. The progenitor of this line came on a ship owned by Morgan the Pirate and crashed on the Carolina's shore. His name was only listed as "Red" Tomas but his name may have been Aaron Tomas (who would have been referred to as Aaron "the Red" Tomas - as future Aarons were given various designations to distinguish them from their father or grandfather. At various times during census recording the oldest known family members stated they were born in SC, NC, Florida or Georgia. Studying the history of the Americas has shown at one time the borders of these four states were in contention. Later census records indicated that the oldest American ancestors were all born in Buncombe County, North Carolina or the portion that later became known as Yancey County, N.C. The area was highly Scotch Irish (be sure to read the history of that designation) and over time even those ancestors with strong other ethnic origins were persuaded to use the Scot or English spellings of similar sounding names. One ancestor that married into this TOMAS/Thomas line changed the spelling of their Portuguese name MEDARIS to McDARIS. My own THOMAS line is from Camborne, Cornwall England and migrated in 1881-82 to Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania with Simon Thomas, the son of John & Jane Thomas (worse than trying to track down Smith). My grandmother was born in 1885 Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania as first generation American of my line. Leslie Barker Thomas 'If man cares not for his roots, then how can he care for his branches?' --Doyle M Davis