This is me with my menfolk, husband of nearly 38 years and 2 sons and grandson. I absolutely love them to bits. They are all very good to me.
My Wizzography- An Anglo- Irish Viking teacher with a gi-normous family
I was recommended to do a Wizzography, so here goes. My initial response was that there is nothing to write about. I lead a quiet life and am happy with it that way.
I was born in Withington South Manchester to parents from 2 Manchester Irish Catholic families. As a child and to this day, I always felt I was Irish. I never felt any attachment whatsoever to Britain and I never shall. Imagine my surprise recently when I had my Ethnicity DNA done. But more of that later.
Life never turns out as we expect does it . The one constant is my wonderful, wonderful family and extended family whom I absolutely love. My immediate extended family ( brothers' families ) on my side has 27 people and my husband's immediate extended family has 34 people then we start on first cousins. My husband has 54 first cousins , just first cousins. We can't start counting any further. My father in law was the youngest of 15 and my mother in law the 2nd of 9. My dad was the 7th of 11 children. So, maybe not the largest family on the planet but fairly large.
My men
New arrival
Since that photo of course we have a granddaughter and a new daughter in law.
The 8 of us are below .
Schooling
I was fortunate enough to have a very good education at a leading Manchester Convent School. The nuns were all Irish and I just felt that I was too. The friends I made there are still very important to me 47 years on and last month I attended the wedding of one of them. How lovely to have a group photo of 7 girls who had been at school together all those years ago and are still in contact.
I am the third left.
I was an infants' teacher for 30 years but was never comfortable doing it although I was deemed to be good at it.
At college 48 years ago next month, I met the love of my entire life and we will have been married 38 years in October.
In 2008 I left teaching and started my own education drama company in 2010. It is called Yellow Brick Road Workshops and is history/drama-based. We go into schools and do workshops with the children. My business partner and I laugh EVERY DAY.
Church and music
My husband and I love classical music and often go to Manchester's Bridgwater Hall to concerts.
Religion plays a large part in my life and we have an active church community. It gives us an active social life as well as prayer life.
My DNA
I have been told by many medics that I have Viking hands and must have Viking/Scandinavian ancestry because of this hand condition I have.
Consequently, when I got the opportunity to have my ethnicity DNA done I jumped at the opportunity. I sent off my saliva sample in the equipment provided and waited expectantly. I anticipated, 55% English, 44% Irish and 1 % Scandinavian. Well there had to be some Scandinavian somewhere. How wrong was I ?
The results came back and we have 7 ethnicities not 3. There are two main regions and 5 sub-regions. Although a British passport holder, British is one of my sub regions genetically.
57% Irish
15% Scandinavian
13% English
7% Spanish
4% Eastern European
3% Western European
1% Finnish/ Russian Border
So I AM mainly Irish afterall. It doesn't change anything but at least I know that I am really a Viking and I know whom to blame for my bad hands. The Vikings of course plundered and raped in Ireland so that is possibly where it is from.
Therefore, Wife, Mother , Teacher, Business Woman, Historian. Which leaves my favourite role until last, GRANDMOTHER. I expected to love my grandchild but never expected how MUCH I would love him. As grandparents we want to protect them and guard them from harm even more than as parents. As grandparents we know what life's problems lie ahead and we want to stop them happening. I love it though and he makes me laugh.
My big brother
I have added a photo of my big brother Frank Beswick at a family Baptism last weekend. There is a family resemblance between us although of course I am far prettier!
Comments
VeronicaJan 24, 2018
I have started to write down 3 things each evening that I am glad about. It is difficult some days but I do this every day. It cheers me up no end to see what I am thankful for Also looking back over the weeks
I have always thanked God in my prayers but writing 3 things down is just marvellous.
dustytoesJan 24, 2018
frankbeswickJan 13, 2018
I am beginning to think that it is more apt to ask with which community one identifies, as this would be a better guide to who you are than tight racial divisions are.
GuestJan 12, 2018
frankbeswickSep 2, 2017
VeronicaSep 2, 2017
frankbeswickSep 2, 2017
Slight correction. The book that I cited in an earlier comment is The Origins of the British.
VeronicaSep 2, 2017
Some people of Scandinavian descent have a thick tendon running horizontally across the palm of the hand under the fingers. As we age this tendon in some people of Scandinavian origin starts to thicken even more and nodes develop at the base of each finger. The fingers bend over them and can't be released back without difficulty or else they stick in a bent position. They often need surgery, which I have had on four of my fingers.
DerdriuMarrinerSep 2, 2017
frankbeswickAug 31, 2017
While I am convinced by the science of these investigations, I am not convinced by the historical interpretations placed upon the data, which sometimes fail to take into account historical complexities of the population story.
VeronicaAug 31, 2017
frankbeswickAug 30, 2017
You mention that the Vikings plundered and raped in Ireland. They also settled in two main places: Dublin and Limerick. As our grandmother's father came from Limerick [in South West Ireland] you can trace your Scandinavian ancestry to there. The Limerick Norse were Norwegian rather than Danish, so you can probably link the one per cent Russian-Finnish border DNA to Limerick as well
The four per cent Eastern European is probably Eastern English. DNA studies indicate that the earliest Britons after the Ice Age included an element whose ancestors had migrated from the Ukraine, so it is probably more apt just to include this element simply as English. The "English"element in your DNA is likely to be a mixture of Celtic British and Anglo-Saxon, in your case Angle, as the Saxons did not settle in Lancashire, whereas some Angles did.I think it correct to say that the Eastern English component of our mutual genetic heritage is quite small. We are very much Western, Irish, whom the Norse called Westmen, and North West English.
VeronicaAug 29, 2017
My "nuclear family", ( my husband, sons and their families )
my "immediate family" ( My brothers and their families ) and my
"extended family " (aunts cousins in-laws etc. ) are absolutely everything to me.
GuestAug 29, 2017
VeronicaAug 3, 2017
blackspanielgalleryAug 3, 2017
VeronicaAug 3, 2017
Frank is indeed my most favourite brother. He is good, clever, kind, supportive and caring. But I would never tell him so .... :)
The business is small but fulfilling. TY
blackspanielgalleryAug 3, 2017
Your small business is interesting, and different.
VeronicaAug 25, 2016
She's a beaut.
And also one of me, Frank and another of our brothers at a family wedding last weekend.
VeronicaMay 14, 2016
MiraMay 14, 2016
https://wizzley.com/traditional-transylvanian-and-romanian-easter-foods/
VeronicaMay 14, 2016
VeronicaMay 7, 2016
Yesterday, we were doing Ancient Egypt workshops in a deprived area of Manchester. On Monday, we are doing a literacy workshop for 7 year olds based on Pirates. The following week it is WW1 to 11 year olds.
We love it because we believe in it.
MBCMay 7, 2016
VeronicaMar 29, 2016
MiraMar 29, 2016
VeronicaMar 28, 2016
frankbeswickMar 28, 2016
VeronicaMar 28, 2016
Frank probably knows.
MiraMar 28, 2016
VeronicaMar 28, 2016
Happy Easter March 2016 to you all.
MiraSep 23, 2015
Fun Wizzography, by the way! Good to meet you :)
VeronicaSep 23, 2015
MBCSep 23, 2015
VeronicaSep 22, 2015
VeronicaSep 1, 2015
Oh that is fantastic. I am glad I had my DNA done on ancestry. I had a surprise too with mine .
Huge families are good aren't they. We moan and complain about them , but we love them deep down.
Every Christmas Eve I do lunch for several of the family. I never know how many are coming. I do a hot buffet and they all sit round with plates of steaming food. They sit on the floors, the stairs, . lean against walls, chatting and laughing MY nieces and nephews bring their partners, spouses, babies, everyone swaps presents and cards and we laugh . I am dashing round like a mad thing in a large apron and my husband is doing drinks for everyone. The little ones are running round all excited. I can have up to 30 of my side for hot buffet lunch on Christmas Eve. Christmas starts there for me, Christmas Eve with my wonderful family of happy eaters. I wouldn't have it any other way.
katiem2Aug 31, 2015
frankbeswickAug 21, 2015
Seriously though, the Lancashire population has been interacting with Ireland for centuries. The first interaction was in the nine hundreds when Dublin Vikings brought Irish slaves, and then the Irish were pouring in for labouring work from the eighteenth century onwards, and this was accelerated in the time of the famine. You cannot pull Lancashire and Ireland apart. This is especially so of South Lancashire, where we both come from.
The genetic test that you did can only distinguish where there are identifiable differences. When nations share genes it becomes impossible to distinguish clearly, which is not the case with Anglo-Saxons, Danes and Friesians.
VeronicaAug 21, 2015
I am not Lancashire Catholic. My Lancashire England ancestors weren't Catholic after the Reformation. They quite happily changed sides in the 1500's. My granddad was born to an Irish Catholic Mother and an English Anglican Father over 350 years after the Reformation.
The ethnicity DNA test is so refined it can distinguish between countries of origin. It is really accurate.
frankbeswickAug 21, 2015
The recipe for a Lancashire Catholic is "Take equal volumes of English and Irish, stir well for several generations. " As you clearly have some English blood, your Lancashire ancestors will contain many Norwegians, and this explains some of your Scandinavian blood, though you could get some if you have ancestors from Limerick in Ireland. Your Lancashire ancestors contain few Anglo-Saxons and Danes, but many native Britons. Your Russian will come via the Norse.
Your Spanish will come from Armada sailors, though they may have been Portuguese, as many of them were in the galleons shipwrecked off the South Western Irish coast. If you add your 57% Irish to 7% Spanish you get to 64 %. Then work out that your Scandinavian plus Russian adds up to 16% which could be divided between Lancashire and Limerick you get to about 72 % from or via Ireland, roughly three quarters. Your Spanish/Portuguese ancestors are likely to have settled in County Clare, near Limerick, as the O' Brien gave them refuge in that county. Clare, Limerick and Galway seem to be roots,
The problem with genetic elements like this is that English and Irish share genetic heritage. Oppenheimer argued that the original settlers from Iberia [Basqueland] contributed 88% of Irish genes, 85 percent of Welsh genes, 78% of Scottish and 68% of English. To make matters more complex you cannot genetically distinguish between Anglo-Saxon, Dane and Friesian.
You are what you feel yourself to be.
frankbeswickAug 21, 2015