QUEBEC-RESEARCH-L Archives

From:
Subject: Re: [Q-R] Is this normal?
Date: Mon, 14 Apr 2003 14:04:06 EDT

In a message dated 4/14/03 01:16:29 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
writes:

> It has been said, that, on average, worldwide, folks marry a 3rd
> cousin...:-)
>
In theory, the number of our ancestors on every past generation expands
geometrically: 2 parents, 4 grand-parents, 8 great-grandparents, 16 2G
grandparents, 32 3G grandparents, etc. etc. On the other hand, the
population of the world expands arithmetically, with more people on every
future generation. The theoretical number of our ancestors is reduced
because we are descended from several siblings in the same family.

My niece's husband, a statistician, that there is a nearly 100% probability
that any two people on earth are related by blood within 20 generations. For
instance, his paternal line is descended from a Portuguese family named
Sousa, who settled in Goa and later in Kenya. My niece is descended, among
other ancestors, from Joaõ Rodrigues, a native of Lisbon, better known as
Jean Rodrigue after he emigrated to Québec. It is quite likely that his
Portugese ancestral lines and ours cross somewhere in the distant past.


Fr. Owen Taggart

This thread:

• [Q-R] Is this normal? by Margaret Breedlove <>
  • Re: [Q-R] Is this normal? by
  • Re: [Q-R] Is this normal? by

  • Re: [Q-R] Is this normal? by