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Eliza (Kewark) Kevork (1790)

Eliza Kevork formerly Kewark
Born in Surat, Gujarat, Indiamap
Daughter of and [mother unknown]
[sibling(s) unknown]
Wife of — married [date unknown] [location unknown]
Descendants descendants
Died [date unknown] in Surat, Gujarat, Indiamap
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Profile last modified | Created 1 Dec 2011
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The extraordinary tale of mtDNA haplogroup R30b

Contents

Biography

Eliza Kewark was born in 1790. Her date of death is unknown [1]
Father: Hakob Kevork (Kevorkian)
Princess Diana's Coat of Arms
Princess Diana Spencer's 4th great-grandmother, Eliza Kewark, is often claimed to be Armenian. However, Kewark's exact ancestry is unknown. Eliza has been described as being "a dark-skinned native woman", "an Armenian woman from Bombay", and "Mrs. Forbesian". However, she may very well be Indian. The family appears to have pretended to be from Armenian, in order to "expunge the stigma of what was then known as 'coloured blood'."[2]
Diana's son, Prince William took a mtDNA test showing that he is of a rare haplogroup, R30b[3]. Of about some 65,000 individuals tested for mtDNA around the world, "only 14 were found to belong in this haplogroup, all in India except one in Nepal."

Sources

  1. Source: Samyabrata Ray Goswami (author). On the elusive trail of Eliza Kewark. Katherine Scott Forbes or Kitty, the daughter of Theodore Forbes and Eliza Kewark. The Telegraph. Calcutta, India. Friday, June 21, 2013. Accessed 01 Aug 2015. URL: http://www.telegraphindia.com/1130621/jsp/frontpage/story_17032045.jsp#.VcLFNX1lDML
  2. Source: Prince William’s Indian ancestry – DNA test reveals secret hidden for 200 years. Posted 14 June 2013 in Ancestry - Genealogy & DNA. URL: http://www.abroadintheyard.com/prince-william-indian-ancestry-dna-test-reveals-secret/ Original story URL: http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/uk/article3790940.ece
  3. Source: Accidents of Birth: The extraordinary tale of mtDNA haplogroup R30b has lessons for us all. Accessed 05 Aug 2015. URL: http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/opinion/leaders/article3790837.ece
  4. Source: H.R.H. Diana - Princess of Wales The Queen of Hearts
  5. Source: Prince William belongs to Indian mtDNA haplogroup R30b

Footnotes

  1. Entered by Janice Hardin, Nov 30, 2011
  2. H.R.H. Diana - Princess of Wales The Queen of Hearts
  3. BritainDNA
Also see:

Acknowledgments

  • Janice Hardin, firsthand knowledge. Click the Changes tab for the details of edits by Janice and others.
  • This person was created through the import of ta5n91_614332c9o84192ddea0gp1.ged on 12 May 2011.




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Comments: 5

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Hello.

I also had my DNA analyzed by CRI Genetics this past May. I’m also in the US. They said I was mtDNA Haplogroup R and shared this with Princess Diana. Since they picked her name out I assumed they mean R30b. They said I’m predominantly English and Spanish with some other ethnicities, as well as 1.3% Gujarati Indian, 1.4 (?) % Bengali, (in my recent DNA test) and a tiny splash of Punjabi in my ancient DNA test. I was wondering the exact same thing… who to contact about this stuff and how. I had also read somewhere that they were looking for people in this haplogroup but I don’t know who to contact.

posted by A. K. Eames
Hi, my maternal haplogroup is R30b. CRI genetics recently did my DNA test. I live in the U.S. according to the DNA test I am part Punjabi Indian and British, among other ethnicities. I do not know where to begin or who to contact, but I read that geneticists were trying to find other members of that group.
posted by Penny Stamp
Hakob Kavork (Jacob Kavorkian in modern day usuage) is indeed an Armenian name. However, the mtDNA test taken by Diana's son will not reveal his MALE ancestor, Hakob Kavork, but will reveal the dna of Hakob's daughter. and her mother.

From the dna results, which point to India, it is fair to assume that the wife of Hakob was a native Indian woman, and thus the direct line of Diana's dna is Indian.

The quote listed above is: "The family appears to have pretended to be from Armenian, in order to "expunge the stigma of what was then known as 'coloured blood'." The Kavork family, head of household can still be an Armenian male, but his female partner was Indian. The quote seems to cast a doubt on the Armenian ancestry, but there does not have to be any doubt of Hakob, as his ancestry was not examined in the dna test. The dna test performed is strictly female to female, beginning with Diana and ending with Eliza. Best regards, Lilly Martin

posted by Lilly Martin
There was an Armenian presence in India. I am part Armenian and once a year we have a genealogy conference and there is a lady in the group who researches Armenians from India and when possible finds records for other Armenians that also have ancestors who settled there. There are several Armenian churches in India too.
Kevork-1 and Kewark-1 appear to represent the same person because: Hello! I believe these two profiles represent the same person. Please review, and you agree, please complete the merge. Thank you,

Lynden Rodriguez

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Categories: Surat, Gujarat