 What's the genetic history of England? A 2006 Oxford study found that most people in England are descendants of ancient Spanish tribes who sailed from the Bay of Biska around six to seven thousand years ago and settled in Ancient England. In England, according to the study, around 64 per cent of people are descended from these tribes, outnumbering the number of Anglesacks and descendants by three to one. In Scotland, around 73% of people are descended from these tribes, with Wales being the highest at 83%. Professor Brian Sykes, the late professor of human genetics at Oxford University, said that about 6,000 years ago, Iberians developed ocean-going boats that enabled them to push up the channel. Before they arrived, there were some human inhabitants of Britain, but only a few thousand in number. These people were largely subsumed into a larger Celtic tribe. The majority of people in the British Isles are actually descended from the Spanish. Thus, according to the study, the majority of people in England are descendants of these ancient Iberian tribes. They can be called these people Celts. Well, on first thought, the short answer is no, as a Celt is defined as someone who speaks a Celtic language. And Celtic languages didn't develop for thousands of years after this point. However, on second thought, these ancient settlers of Britain could have potentially began speaking the proto-Celtic language relatively early on after they settled. And could be considered a proto-Celtic people. Barry Conlith, the Emirates Professor of European Archaeology at the University of Oxford, has argued that the proto-Celtic language could have arisen in the British Isles as a lingua franca or trading language to link the traders of the Atlantic zone. And it could have emerged thousands of years before we initially thought between 5500 and 2800 BC. Even if this isn't true, we know that the Britons of ancient England spoke the common Celtic brithonic language. Prior to the Roman invasion around 2000 years ago, what do other studies say on the genetic history of England, however? The people of the British Isles study found at large parts of eastern, central and southern England, formed a single genetic group with between 10 and 40% Anglo-Saxon ancestry. However, these people also retained DNA from earlier settlers of Britain. This study also found that the Vikings, the Romans and the Normans had little overall impact on the genetics of England. Another study published in Nature estimated that, on average, the contemporary East English population derives 38% of his ancestry from Anglo-Saxon migrations. The genetic data from the people of the British Isles study also suggests a large movement of people from Northern France into England and Scotland between 6000 and 3000 years ago. At about the same time, the agriculture began to be widespread. Another recent study published in Nature also found that there was a notable migration and incorporation of early European farmers of probable ancient French origin into ancient England and Wales between 1000 and 875 BC and in the years before. Despite the various groups that have invaded and migrated into England over the centuries and millennia, the genetics of its people still remain similar to some of the earliest settlers of Britain following the last Ice Age. Thanks for watching. If you would like to support this work through Patreon, buymeacoffee.com or make a donation through PayPal, please do so via the links in the description below. Please remember to subscribe and hit the bell and I'll speak to you soon.