This discussion concerns Merrills and Merrells in North America, including some in Canada, and some who arrived in North America prior to the formation of the United States in 1789.

Merrills in the United States

There are about 40,000 living Merrills in the United States today, excluding variant spellings (Merrell, Merrills, etc.). Since 1850 the prevalance of the surname has been fairly constant at about 0.013 percent. The current estimate is based on 1990 Census data, inflated for population growth. See http://dwmerrill.com/family/merrill/p1850-1990.html.

Merrill/Merrell Families

Y-chromosome DNA analysis has so far distinguished seven Merrill/Merrell families, which are unrelated to each other. The families are described under seven second level tabs labeled "Newbury MA", "Staten Island NY", etc.

In addition, there are other Merrill/Merrell DNA testees who are unassociated with any other tested Merrill/Merrell except for immediate family members.

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