Gottfried Ferdinand Rittmeier

Gottfried Ferdinand Rittmeier
03.11.1846 (Weklitz ) - 05.05.1922 (Weklitz )

Family Rittmeyer

- Regions of DNA-Project -

Wappen Familie Rittmeyer / Rittmeier

Wappen Vers. 1
Rittmeyer / Rittmeier
Ausgabe in deutscher Sprache Edition in English

 

The question of the origin of the ancestors with the family name RITTMEYER or RITTMEIER has already occupied many family researchers of the family. It was also not infrequently asked whether all RITTMEYERs or RITTMEIERs are related to each other and descend from a common early ancestor.

This question is easy to answer, all RITTMEYERs or RITTMEIERs have no common ancestor and are, if at all, only regionally related. Surnames were formed for the first time at all in the 13th and 14th centuries and their recording in registers did not begin until the 15th and 16th centuries (see History of Surname). The family name RITTMEYER or RITTMEIER was formed according to the local location of the villikation (special form of landlordship in the Middle Ages) or the lathufe or the soil conditions. Ried or also Riet stands for Ried (small reed) of moor areas and swamps, accordingly our ancestors will have lived in regions with moor areas and swamps at the time of the name formation.

The family name RITTMEYER and its variants is therefore a typical example that the family name had not only a regional origin, but had formed to a large extent at the same time in many regions. From the DNA research it is in the meantime securely known that there are at least 4 of each other completely independent descents, which carry variants of the family name RITTMEYER. In the meantime there are findings about at least 4 haplogroups of probands, which originate mainly from Eichsfeld (I-M170), Lower Saxony (not Eichsfeld) and North Rhine-Westphalia (R-M269), Bavaria (I-M253) as well as East Prussia and Lithuania (R-M198). Relationships between probands of different haplogroups can basically be excluded.

Regionale Verteilung der Haplogruppen

Regional distribution of the haplogroup of families with the surname RITTMEYER / RITTMEIER


Haplogroups are used to define genetically related groups of people within populations. All members of the same haplogroup can be traced back to a common ancestor. Haplogroups can be thought of as large branches of the Homo Sapiens family tree. Each haplogroup groups together people whose genetic profile is similar and who share a common ancestor. In this case, males belong to a haplogroup of the Y chromosome who have a common ancestor in a purely paternal line. The Y chromosome is always passed from father to son.

These haplogroup branches show how population groups have moved across the earth. So haplogroups also define a geographic area. Older haplogroups are larger and more widespread, and numerous younger subgroups (subclades) descend from them.

With the help of a tool from Rob Spencer (SNP-Tracker) graphics were generated for the 4 relevant haplogroups. The following graphs show impressively that probands with different haplogroups cannot be related to each other a priori, although they all have the same surname (exception for illegitimate births, where ancestors have continued the surname of the mother):

- Common haplogroups until HIJK-PF3494 (57,000 years ago), then regional separation.

- Migration of haplogroups R-M198 (14,000 years ago) and R-M269 (13,000 years ago) to the east and from haplogroup P-P226 (35,000 years ago) to the west, further mutations after haplogroup R-M173 (23,000 years ago) in two directions

- Migration peoples groups haplogroup I-M170 (43,000 years ago) immediately to the west and further development in haplogroup I-M253 (28,000 years ago) in the direction of north-west.


Haplogruppe R-M269
Haplogruppe R-M198
Haplogroup R-M269 Haplogroup R-M198
Haplogruppe I-M170 Haplogruppe I-M253
Haplogroup I-M170 Haplogroup I-M253
Source: SNP Tracker

The following project members signed up for a DNA test at the genealogy portal FamilyTreeDNA and also performed a Y test to determine their respective haplogroup.

Haplo DNA-Test FTDNA Id GEDMatch Id Alias Name Last Name, First Name Country Origin Region Origin Location
I-M170 Y-37 763741 T794547 WIN_Pete40 Rittmeyer, Peter DEU Thüringen Wingerode
R-M198 Y-37 757756 T550253 LIT_Olaf69 Rittmeier, Olaf DEU Litauen
R-M198 Y-37 754518 T179407 LIT_Manf49 Rittmeyer, Manfried DEU Litauen
R-M269 Y-37 745969 T106463 MÜN_Wern65 Rittmeier, Werner DEU Nordrhein-Westfalen Ahlen
R-M269 Y-37 IN16382 T964875 MÜN_Uwe56 Rittmeier, Uwe DEU Nordrhein-Westfalen Hamm
I-M170 Y-37 IN15278 T385240 NES_Stef60 Rittmeier, Stefan DEU Niedersachsen Nesselröden
R-M269 Y-37 762383 T883147 SCH_Uwe61 Rittmeier, Uwe DEU Niedersachsen Schlewecke
I-M253 Y-37 IN10927 T560231 STR_Rein60 Rittmeier, Reinhold DEU Bayern Bamberg
R-M198 Y-37 747897 T286036 KUS_Wern44 Rittmeyer, Werner DEU Ostpreussen Kussen
R-M269 Y-111 721392 T590927 WEK_Guen37 Rittmeier, Günter DEU Westpreussen Weklitz
R-M269 Y-37 725279 T784441 WEK_Klau56 Rittmeyer, Klaus DEU Westpreussen Weklitz
R-M269 Y-37 755638 T925401 WEK_Bern64 Rittmeyer, Bernd DEU Westpreussen Weklitz
R-BY72309 Y-111 700161 HM690708C1 *WEK_Lutz51 Rittmeier, Lutz DEU Westpreussen Weklitz
R-M269 Y-37 IN15290 T193421 MEC_Theo53 Rittmeier, Theo DEU Nordrhein-Westfalen Mechernich
I-M253 Y-37 IN19807 T035456 NAB_Herb53 Rittmeier, Herbert DEU Bayern Bamberg
R-M269 Y-37 IN52330 GF8913004 MÜN_Diet53 Rittmeier, Dieter DEU Nordrhein-Westfalen Ahlen
R-M269 Y-37 IN79799 NN7298318 MÜN_Hugo62 Rittmeier, Hugo DEU Nordrhein-Westfalen Ahlen
R-M198 Y-37 IN79805 ZM2273096 LÜC_Holg56 Rittmeyer, Holger DEU Niedersachsen Lüchow
R-M269 Y-37 IN79810 ZH8426099 BRA_Lutz40 Rittmeyer, Lutzpeter DEU Niedersachsen Braunschweig

 

In order to be able to determine a relationship on the paternal line, it is additionally necessary to determine the genetic density of the individual probands with the same haplogroup.The evaluation below at FamilyTreeDNA shows, for example, a sorting according to haplogroups and thus also allows an evaluation of the relationship based on the genetic density. In the test persons tested so far, a relationship between 2 test persons in the haplogroup "I-M170" and 4 test persons in the haplogroup "R-M269" can therefore be confirmed beyond doubt on the basis of the genetic density.

These evaluations were carried out for probands who registered with FamilyTreeDNA for the surname project RITTMEIER / RITTMEYER and performed a Y-test (min. Y-37).
 



Testergebnisse FamilyTreeDNA RITTMEIER / RITTMEYER


The test persons of rows 15, 16, 17 and 18 are direct relatives of the 3rd degree (the great-grandfathers were brothers), whose ancestors were first recognized in 1775 in Prussian Holland (East Prussia) (kinship confirmed by paper research and autosomal DNA). The genetic density between the subjects confirms the kinship on the purely paternal side, since the values are very dense with "0" or maximum "1" and therefore leave no doubt. 




Zweige der Probanden
WEK_Guen37 WEK_Bern64 WEK_Lutz51 WEK_Klau56


Consequently, all 4 test persons must also have the same Y-matches at FamilyTreeDNA. The following graphs were generated for each individual proband at FamilyTreeDNA using the "Matches Maps" function and the "Y-DNA 12 Marker" setting. Most of the matches at the "Y-DNA 12 marker" level are indeed very old, since the common, genetic features date for the most part to the Copper and Bronze Ages (5,500-800 BC). However, in the present case, the graphs show the close relationship between the 4 test persons by their absolute match of Y-matches.

Furthermore, the graphs illustrate from where the first, known ancestors of the probands (Y-matches) originated regionally. The graphs here impressively show the regional focus on Great Britain and Ireland as well as the Netherlands and West/Southwest Germany. This regional emphasis is to be regarded as a homogeneous region for the ancestors of the 4 probands, since the optical predominance of Great Britain and Ireland is only due to the higher DNA test readiness of British probands.


WEK_Lutz51
WEK_Lutz51
WEK_Guen37 WEK_Bern64 WEK_Klau56
WEK_Guen37 WEK_Bern64 WEK_Klau56



While with the Y-tests "Y-37" and "Y-111" from FamilyTreeDNA one only gets the above mentioned results up to the Middle Stone Age, evaluations like BIG-Y700 from FamilyTreeDNA offer information up to modern times. Within the scope of this project, only 2 subjects have been evaluated so far because of the high costs. In the following, the results are presented based on the probands in line 16 with haplogroup "R-BY72309" and line 2 with haplogroup "I-PH2591".

Graph 1 shows that the ancestors of proband "R-BY72309" were first recognized on the present territory of Germany and the Netherlands during the Bronze Age about 4,700 years ago. During the following ice age 2,800 years ago until the Roman period 2,000 years ago, the further mutations developed exclusively in the present-day regions of the east coast of England and the west coast of the Netherlands / western Germany (see graph 1). Finally, the mutation of the proband with haplogroup "R-BY72309" dates to about 500 AD or 1,400 years ago (see graph 2). 

Verbreitungskarte  Haplogruppe „R-BY72309“

 


Entwicklungsphasen Haplogruppe „R-BY72309“


The mutation of the haplogroup "R-BY72309" falls exactly in the time, in which the Romans withdrew from 410 AD from Britain and the land seizure in the east of Britain by the Anglo-Saxons began. Thus the habitat of the mutant "R-BY72309" is also to be defined with emphasis with the today's regions east coast of England and west coast Netherlands / West Germany.

In comparison, the haplogroup "I-PH2591" had with Central Germany a completely different target area and justifies the high number of descendants with the surname RITTMEIER / RITTMEYER with emphasis on Eichsfeld both in the south of Lower Saxony, as well as in the north of Thuringia. The haplogroup "I-PH2591" originated already 3,700 years ago, thus 2,300 years earlier than the haplogroup "R-BY72309". The probands in row 1 and 2 are each a descendant of RITTMEYERS from Wingerode (Thuringia) and of RITTMEIERs from Nesselröden (Lower Saxony). The genetic density of the two probands is very dense with "2". Accordingly, a common ancestry can be assumed.
Verbreitungskarte  Haplogruppe „I-PH2591“ “


Entwicklungsphasen Haplogruppe „I-PH2591“


The following graphs were generated for the remaining test persons with Y-test in FamilyTreeDNA with the function "Matches Maps" and the setting "Y-DNA 12 Marker". First of all, it is striking that all probands - with the exception of the proband STR_Rein60 - have significantly fewer matches with other Y-test partners than the 4 probands of the haplogroup "R-BY72309" (see above). Between single probands the same haplogroups in combination with partly same Y-match partners suggest  - possibly up to the Middle Stone Age - early common ancestors (highlighted in different colors).   

Probands Haplogroup R-M269 (Region Münsterland)
Proband MÜN_Uwe56 Proband MÜN_Wern65 Proband MÜN_Diet53 Proband MÜN_Hugo62
MÜN_Uwe56 MÜN_Wern65 MÜN_Diet53 MÜN_Hugo62


Probands Haplogroup R-M269 (Lower Saxony) Probands Haplogroup I-M170 (Eichsfeld)
Proband SCH_Uwe61 Proband BRA_Lutz40 Proband NES_Stef60
Proband WIN_Pete40
SCH_Uwe61 BRA_Lutz40 NES_Stef60 WIN_Pete40

Probands Haplogroup R-M198 (East Prussia and Region Lüchow)
Proband KUS_Wern44
Proband LIT_Olaf69
Proband LIT_Manf49 Proband LÜC_Holg56
KUS_Wern44 LIT_Olaf69 LIT_Manf49 LÜC_Holg56

Probands Haplogroup Others
Proband STR_Rein60 Proband MEC_Theo53
STR_Rein60 (I-M253) MEC_Theo53 (R-M269)

The project results are available at FamilyTreeDNA under the project group RITTMEIER / RITTMEYER. And if you want to support the project, you can make a donation at FamilyTreeDNA under the link DONATION. The donations will be used to pay for further Y-DNA tests to advance the research here.  

 

 

© 2022 www.familien-nachforschung.de. All rights reserved. All statements without guarantee.
All data may be used for private purposes of family research only. 
 (As of:14.02.2022)