I’m seeking men called HIBBITT / HIBBETT / HIBBIT / HIBBET or any of the variants listed here, to see whether you would be willing to test your Y DNA. If your name isn’t Hibbitt but you suspect you are descended from a direct paternal ancestor with the name, then come on board.
Sorry ladies, we don’t possess a Y chromosome but it would still be great to compare if you have taken an autosomal test such as the AncestryDNA, 23andMe, Family Finder or MyHeritage test. If so, please get in touch.
Since my dad took the Big Y DNA test at FamilyTreeDNA we’ve discovered that an ancestor of ours may have lived in or around the Stirling area of Scotland in Roman times.
Y DNA traces the patrilineal line (eg. father’s father’s father, etc.) which, in our case, is our Hibbitt line. However, this particular ancestor would have lived in a time before the adoption of surnames.
I’ve put together a comprehensive account of the history of my patrilineal line dating from 60,000 years ago to the present day.
Through traditional research, I’ve traced my Hibbitts back to the beginning of the 18th century. I found my 6 x great-grandfather, John Hybit, living in a village called Exton located in the county of Rutland, the smallest county in England. [Important note: see the updated information below.]
Dad’s DNA matches quite a number of men who have all tested positive for a SNP (single nucleotide polymorphism) called R-S424, otherwise known as the Little Scottish Cluster. Many men, but not all, in the S424 project at FTDNA trace their ancestry to southern Scotland where their common ancestor is believed to have lived centuries ago.
Just how and when our relatives found their way from Scotland to Rutland remains a mystery but I’m hoping that, as additional data comes in from more Y-DNA testers, we may learn more about the Z36747 subclade which is dad’s current terminal SNP. Dad has some novel variants in his Big Y test which may tell us more in the future if another Big Y tester has the same variant(s).
If you are a male called HIBBITT (or a variation of the name) please would you consider taking a Y-DNA test. It doesn’t necessarily have to be the Big Y as there may be cheaper options depending on your goals. It may also be possible to obtain some Y DNA data from an autosomal test too. Please contact me if you’d like more information or if you do decide to test.
John Hybit seems to have been the progenitor of so many who carry variations of his name and it would be good to learn whether we are all related and where he might have originated from.
[Update June 2025: After ascertaining DNA results from other men with similar surnames, it turns out that we are not Hibbitts further back than a few generations – you can read about my discovery here. Dad’s haplogroup has been further refined and is now R-Y85420. He still does not have any close Y-DNA matches to help us solve the mystery of what our surname might be.]
