Editing Godolphin Arabian (section)

==Breed controversy==
[[Image:Godolphin Arabian grave.jpg|right|thumb|The Godolphin Arabian was buried within the stable block at [[Wandlebury]] in 1753 at the age of 29.]]
Controversy exists over the ancestry of this horse; some writers referred to him as a [[Barb (horse)|Barb]], but [[Judith Blunt-Lytton, 16th Baroness Wentworth]] of the [[Crabbet Arabian Stud]] concludes that it is most widely believed that he was [[Arabian horse|an Arabian]] or had primarily Arabian lineage.<ref>Wentworth, Judith Anne Dorothea Blunt-Lytton. ''The Authentic Arabian Horse,'' 3rd ed. George Allen & Unwin Ltd., 1979.</ref>

"Barb" is a reference to his believed country of origin, [[Tunisia]], on the [[Barbary Coast]].  Whyte in the 1840 ''History of the British Turf'', refers to the horse as "The Godolphin Barb, or ''as he has been improperly called'', the Godolphin Arabian" (emphasis added){{sfn|Whyte|1840|p=64}} before further clarifying, "he was long considered an Arabian, although his points resembled more those of the highest breed of Barbs."{{sfn|Whyte|1840|p=84}} However, portraits showing a horse with a high-carried tail and dished profile, features that differentiate the two types, lead modern experts to believe he was more likely an Arabian.<ref name="Godolphin Portraits"/> The confusion is understandable, but while the breeds have some characteristics in common and are distantly related, their [[phenotype]]s are quite distinct. There was also an argument raised that he was actually a [[Turkoman horse|Turkomen]], merely called an Arabian in order to raise the [[stud fee]].

The Earl of Godolphin referred to the horse as an Arabian, and he was described as such by the painter [[George Stubbs]]. Lord Godolphin later bought a second stallion in 1750. This one he clearly called a "barb". Both were of a similar bay colour, but the Barb had a [[star (horse)|star]]. Godolphin later bought a grey Barb, which has also caused some confusion over the years.

Recent DNA studies disprove the theory that he was a Barb, as his descendants' [[Y-DNA]] traces to the same general [[haplotype]] as the [[Darley Arabian]], though to different sub-groups and there are relatively few male-line descendants of the Godolphin Arabian today.<ref name="Wallner 2017">{{cite journal|last1=Wallner|first1=Barbara|last2=Palmieri|first2=Nicola|last3=Vogl|first3=Claus|last4=Rigler|first4=Doris|last5=Bozlak|first5=Elif|last6=Druml|first6=Thomas|last7=Jagannathan|first7=Vidhya|last8=Leeb|first8=Tosso|last9=Fries|first9=Ruedi|last10=Tetens|first10=Jens|last11=Thaller|first11=Georg|last12=Metzger|first12=Julia|last13=Distl|first13=Ottmar|last14=Lindgren|first14=Gabriella|last15=Rubin|first15=Carl-Johan|last16=Andersson|first16=Leif|last17=Schaefer|first17=Robert|last18=McCue|first18=Molly|last19=Neuditschko|first19=Markus|last20=Rieder|first20=Stefan|last21=Schlötterer|first21=Christian|last22=Brem|first22=Gottfried|title=Y Chromosome Uncovers the Recent Oriental Origin of Modern Stallions|journal=Current Biology|date=July 2017|volume=27|issue=13|pages=2029–2035.e5|doi=10.1016/j.cub.2017.05.086|pmid=28669755|doi-access=free|bibcode=2017CBio...27E2029W }}</ref>   This group may have been of [[Turkoman horse]] or Arabian origins, as modern horses of both breeds have been linked to this haplotype.<ref name="Wallner 2013">{{cite journal|last1=Wallner|first1=Barbara|last2=Vogl|first2=Claus|last3=Shukla|first3=Priyank|last4=Burgstaller|first4=Joerg P.|last5=Druml|first5=Thomas|last6=Brem|first6=Gottfried|last7=Ellegren|first7=Hans|title=Identification of Genetic Variation on the Horse Y Chromosome and the Tracing of Male Founder Lineages in Modern Breeds|journal=PLOS ONE|date=3 April 2013|volume=8|issue=4|pages=e60015|doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0060015|pmc=3616054|pmid=23573227|bibcode=2013PLoSO...860015W|doi-access=free}}</ref>