Marilyn Monroe ‘has roots in Ireland’, according to DNA samples

Marilyn Monroe's roots can be traced back to Ireland more than 1,000 years ago, according to a new DNA study.

The star of Some Like It Hot and The Seven Year Itch, who died in 1962, aged 36, is known to be descended from the Munro clan in the Scottish Highlands. New research gathered through the Munro DNA Project has identified a member of the clan from 1,750 years ago with living descendants, and all of his ancestral lines can be traced back to southwest Ireland.

Hector Munro, the clan chief, told the BBC that the "origins of name Munro has puzzled historians for generations". It was originally thought to have been taken from a group of mercenary soldiers who lived near the River Roe in Limavady, Co Derry, although "it had proved impossible to verify".

Further branches of the Munros were also traced to Ireland, including the chiefs of the clan. The DNA project has an extensive database of samples provided by Munros around the world.