Juans

[%age]

There's no evidence that any vessel of the Armada was wrecked here, and even more unlikely that a handful of survivors arriving apparently unnoticed by the authorities & deciding to stay in a hostile country . . . .

 

There's no evidence that the Isle of Man was particularly hostile to anyone.

 

Survivors from the Spanish Armada coming ashore and inbreeding with the local population, sounds like the immigration scare story of its day.

 

It has got it all really: boat people, dark skinned foreigners, can't speak English,or Manx. I bet if there were council houses in those days they'd be accused of getting one before the locals. Not to mention getting preferential treatment at ye olde Nobles and nicking all the good jobs.

 

As with today's incomers, if a person shows his worth then he/she is welcomed.

 

Back in days gone by, to have a few foreigners washed up ashore would do well for the gene pool, especially in the days when you hear stories of lads walking to Peel and Laxey to do their courting. Only the short sighted bastards mixed it with the girl down the lane, who was probably a close relative anyway.

 

If I saved a big strong swarthy chap from drowning and he was that grateful he worked for 16 hours a day on the harvest and the fishing for the rest of his life he would be made more than welcome. I'd make sure he kept away from my daughters though. Until eventually one of them begged and begged me to let her help him with the crops and all that.

 

Hmmm, I suppose better him than that lazy idle bastard of a nephew of mine.

 

The rest - as they say - is history.

[Max Power]

I recall being taught at school about a Spanish ship being wrecked off the south of the Island which accounted for the dark skinned southerners at the inter school sports day etc! Also the name Juan was supposed to be a name passed on to them by these people?

 

Oh well, more research required I think.

[The Bastard]

I recall being taught at school about a Spanish ship being wrecked off the south of the Island which accounted for the dark skinned southerners at the inter school sports day etc! Also the name Juan was supposed to be a name passed on to them by these people?

 

Oh well, more research required I think.

 

Does reading the earlier part of this thread,where it's already been discussed,count as "more research" ?

[Joe Public]

The Armada episode occurs quite late in Manx history, and the route of the Armada vessels took them around the west of Ireland, rather than through the Irish Sea [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_Armada].

 

It's quite likely that there are many manxies whose ancestors arrived here from Northern Spain thousands of years before Sir Francis Drake cast a bowl.

 

I think the blood condition being referred to here it haemochromatosis, in which case it's not true that the only pockets of incidence occur in the Isle of Man and parts of Spain. In actuality the disorder is one that's particularly associated with the celts, who migrated to France, Spain, and the British Isles millenia ago (and is relatively common in regions of these areas). Hence the connection between the populations of the Isle of Man and Spain expressed by this disorder is more likely to be a common set of ancestors than one group interacting directly with the other.

 

The blood condition is thalassaemia and there are a few families on the Island with it......Manx names too

 

It is sometimes (incorrectly) said to be a haemoglobinopathy. Where the confusion above seems to come from.

 

However, although beta thalassaemia is indeed seen in Mediterranean locations, at least 2 local families have alpha thalassaemia which is more Asian in origin.

 

Was there a Thai armada I wonder?

[homarus]

Just been reading up on the Spanish Armada (On tinternet)

 

Apparantly Animal legend has it ,that an Armada ship was wrecked on spanish head and that the tailless manx cats

 

arrived on the Isle of man from the wrecked ship ??

[Declan]

Does it mention if any of them were named Juan.

[Max Power]

I recall being taught at school about a Spanish ship being wrecked off the south of the Island which accounted for the dark skinned southerners at the inter school sports day etc! Also the name Juan was supposed to be a name passed on to them by these people?

 

Oh well, more research required I think.

 

Does reading the earlier part of this thread,where it's already been discussed,count as "more research" ?

 

No, not at all, I am only confirming that it is held in popular belief that this is the case. I actually know little more than you do obviously.

[The Bastard]

...not about this thread. Nor about not believing what some man in the pub tells you, either.

 

Presumably the Manx cats were just an offshoot from the huge population of tailless, swimming cats in Spain that have mysteriously never, ever been noted anywhere in history. Apparently there's a genetic inability to read the content of earlier entries in threads that came over with the Armada, too.

[Max Power]

...not about this thread. Nor about not believing what some man in the pub tells you, either.

 

Presumably the Manx cats were just an offshoot from the huge population of tailless, swimming cats in Spain that have mysteriously never, ever been noted anywhere in history. Apparently there's a genetic inability to read the content of earlier entries in threads that came over with the Armada, too.

 

Have you got a problem? I have no idea what you are on about! I haven't mentioned men in pubs, manx cats, Armada's or anything. Just that I was taught something in school which I have taken as fact up to now. I suggested it needs more research. That is all!

 

Do you get off on being so smart?

[The Bastard]

I haven't mentioned men in pubs, manx cats, Armada's or anything

 

Oops, I forgot that this thread was entirely about responding to your posts to the exclusion of everyone else's