With 2025 now behind us, let’s take a look at our status and statistics. A new Rowland DNA Group P has been identified, with origins in Stafford and Durham, England. FamilyTreeDNA has improved and refined many of its haplogroups, including more than a dozen within the Rowland Project. The WikiTree surname database grew to more than 23,000 Rowland ancestors and relatives. Our most-viewed article in 2025 was “Origin of the Rowland Surname,” and we saw a significant increase in newsletter subscribers.
Untested Rowland Lines
The largest hole in our research is the lack of sufficient testers. We have identified and documented more than 50 Rowland descendant trees in the WikiTree database that do not have any Y-DNA confirmation. Some of these trees are quite large, with thousands of descendants unable to pinpoint their Rowland grouping. For example, the Suffolk County, New York group, with origins in La Tremblade, France, has more than 10,000 descendants. The New London County, Connecticut, group has more than 2,700 descendants. These are major holes in our understanding of the various Rowland lines around the world. Until these 50+ lines are tested, we will not know if they are unique lines or part of an existing Rowland DNA Group. See Untested Rowland Lines for the current list.
There is also a need for additional testers within each of our currently defined groups. This is especially true for groups having multiple “earliest known ancestors” and with tree conflicts. The DNA is assumed to be correct, so these conflicts need to be resolved in the WikiTree database. More test points will help us correct these conflicts and possibly find the common ancestors.
Additionally, the more Big Y testers we have, the more we learn. Big Y is the leading edge of DNA, and I encourage all of you to take or upgrade to this level. FamilyTreeDNA has extended its “Holiday Sale” to January 6, so there is still time to buy a Big Y upgrade at a substantial discount. Please note that most upgrades do not require an additional sample.
Branches of Research
Please remember that Rowland Genealogy consists of many moving parts, including but not limited to:
- Rowland Project at FamilyTreeDNA (FTDNA): performs Y-DNA testing, grouping, and analysis
- Rowland Name Study at WikiTree: contains the Rowland descendant trees as part of the global single-family tree (with free access for all)
- Rowland Genealogy Website: Where we tie everything together with the Xref Project and so much more
- Rowland Genealogists: That’s you! Your insights, contributions, and ideas are vital.
- Rowland Surname Study at the Guild of One-Name Studies: the worldwide center of excellence in one-name studies
Rowland Project at FamilyTreeDNA (FTDNA)
The Rowland Project at FamilyTreeDNA (FTDNA) is the starting point for many of us. It’s where we get our Y-DNA testing and genetic grouping. The site also has great tools for further analysis. Unfortunately, the FTDNA website lacks the ability to provide notifications. Until it develops a solution for this, it is each member’s responsibility to login and see what has been changed or updated.
FTDNA continues to refine the haplogroups as its tools improve and more Big Y test kits are added. When I visited the site last week, I was surprised to learn that my haplogroup had been updated from R-BY190889 to R-MF76056. The Y-DNA Haplotree has grown to 99,000 branches, 844,000 variants, and 696,000 SNP-tested users. Perhaps your haplogroup has changed, too!
Testing has revealed a new DNA grouping — Rowland DNA Group P. This group formed when a new member’s test kit matched one of the existing unmatched kits from Group Z. Surnames in this group include Rowlandson and Rolason. Both spellings are new to the Rowland Project. This line has its origins in Stafford and Durham, England. Many descendants emigrated to the southern hemisphere and settled in New Zealand and Australia.
The Rowland Project now has 281 members, with 185 being Y-DNA test-takers. There are 41 kits at the Big Y-700 level.
Rowland Name Study at WikiTree 2025 Statistics
WikiTree is our default destination for documenting the various Rowland lines and branches. Its policy of one profile per ancestor helps avoid the proliferation of duplicate and error-prone trees that are common on other websites. The Rowland surname database continues to grow and now contains 23,620 unique profiles of our ancestors with the surnames of Rowland, Roland, Rowlands, Ruland, Rolland, and other variant spellings.
The Rowland database grew by 917 ancestor profiles over the past year. ‘Rowland’ is the most popular spelling, while ‘Roland’ comes in a distant second place.
Xref Project Trees 2025 Statistics
Each Rowland Y-DNA group has one or more descendant trees. Each identified Earliest Known Ancestor is currently a genealogical brick wall — a profile where the parents have not been identified. Many groups contain multiple descendant trees. The DNA evidence tells us they are related, although the paper trail or other logical connection has not been made. Each Rowland DNA Group has a page on the website, which can be accessed by clicking on the Group Name in the table below:
Notes
- Conflict: The WikiTree profile for Robert Rowland (1716-1782) has descendants from both DNA Group F and DNA Group J. DNA Group J is assumed to be correct, and the error resides in the branch containing Richardson Rowland (1791-1872).
- Conflict: The WikiTree profile for Gasper Roland (1721-1809) has descendants from both DNA Group D and DNA Group I. It is assumed the DNA is correct and WikiTree is in error. At this time, DNA Group I is believed to be correct.
Descendant Trees of Group Z – Groups of 1
These are the trees for a defined “group of 1” which are Rowland DNA test-takers without any matches.
| Group | Description | Earliest Known Ancestor(s) | # Descendants | # Kits |
| Group Z | France (to Nebraska & Idaho) | Louis Bonaparte Rolland (1851-1924) | 12 | 1 |
| Group Z | Henrico County, Virginia | Zachariah Rowland (1739-1802) | 83 | 1 |
| Group Z | Manchester to Yonkers | John Rowland Sr (1827-1891) | 42 | 1 |
| Group Z | Macon County, Missouri | Younger W Rowland (c1770-bf1850) John Younger Rowland (1776-1839) | 144 233 | 1 |
| Group Z | McMinn County, Tennessee | Andrew Roland (c1770-a1850) | 877 | 1 |
| Group Z | McNairy County, Tennessee | William Rowland (1797-c1840) | 382 | 1 |
| Group Z | – – unknown – – | Ancestral lines not identified | ?? | 31 |
If any of the 31 kits with an “unknown” description is yours, then please contact us. Any information you have on your Rowland line would be extremely helpful to our efforts.
Rowland Genealogy
Website activity at rowlandgenealogy.com declined in 2025. The site had 6,433 visitors, 7,742 sessions, and 11,691 page views.
As mentioned earlier, the most popular article this year was one written in early 2023. Origin of the Rowland Surname explains how and why we know there was not a singular origin for our name. A key reason for this popularity is its top ranking in various search engines, including Google, Bing, and DuckDuckGo. Additionally, the AI engines appear to be using this article extensively, which improves the site’s credibility score.
Articles Published in 2025
Judge Peter M. Rowland, Rebel With A Cause (published 20 May 2025). Judge Peter Monroe Rowland was no ordinary judge — he was a Congregational Methodist Minister, an Army Captain, and a bit of a rebel. Born in Henry County, Virginia, in the year 1820, he was orphaned and separated from his only sibling at an early age. The only relatives he ever knew were his two wives, his in-laws, and his 13 children (and their offspring).
2024 Statistics for Rowland Genealogy (published 03 Jan 2025). It is time to review our year-end 2024 statistics and status. Please remember that Rowland Genealogy consists of many moving parts, including but not limited to: Rowland Project at FamilyTreeDNA, Rowland Name Study at WikiTree, Rowland Genealogy Website, and Rowland Genealogists: That’s you!
2026 Has Now Begun — Happy New Year!
What would you like to see from Rowland Genealogy in 2026? Please don’t be shy, let us know.
If you haven’t already joined us, here are the steps you can take to participate in the Rowland Xref Project.
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