Results of DNA Tests for Lynn Edwin Garn

Migrations of Paternal Ancestors Based on Y-DNA

The following information about the migrations of my paternal ancestors is a condensation of the information provided by the DNA testing company. When I refer to my paternal ancestors, I mean my father, his father, and the fathers-only before him. My pateral line of ancestors belong to the R-L21 haplogroup of DNA, which traces its roots back along the path discussed below.

Discussion

Each of us carries DNA that is a combination of genes passed from both our mother and father, giving us traits that range from eye color and height to athleticism and disease susceptibility. As part of this process, the Y-chromosome is passed directly from father to son, unchanged, from generation to generation down a purely male line unless a mutation, a random, naturally occurring, usually harmless change, occurs. The mutation, known as a "marker," acts as a beacon that can be mapped through generations because it will be passed down without change for thousands of years. Each of us has many of these markers that can be used to determine relationships among different ethnic groups and races of peoples as well as the approximate dates when the markers first appeared in the genetic tree.

When geneticists identify such a marker, they use an established analytical process to determine when it first occurred, and in which geographic region of the world. Each marker is essentially the beginning of a new lineage or "Branch" on the family tree of the human race. Tracking the lineages provides a picture of how small tribes of modern humans in Africa tens of thousands of years ago diversified and spread to populate the world.

The analysis of my DNA markers reveals the path my ancestors took as they moved out of Africa and the places they went on their journey to eventually settle in Europe. It starts with the earliest ancestors and moves forward in time to the most recent ancestors.

DNA tests on a huge number of people from all corners of the earth suggests that the common direct paternal ancestor of all men alive today is believed to have been born in Africa around 140,000 years ago. He was not the first human male nor the only male alive in his time. But he was the only male whose direct lineage is present in men living today.

My branch of the earliest man's lineage migrated out of Africa and traveled to West Asia where they lived by hunting wildlife and gathering wild fruits and berries. Over time, groups containing this branch spread west toward Europe and east to Central Asia, then south into the eastern Mediterreanian region.

The ancestors are grouped by DNA types that have branched off from the orginal type as time passed. Along the way, different branches of my tree will be discussed with the best estimates of when they first appeared and where their population was centered. The different branches have been given different names. The time when the different branches appeared does not seem to have any relationship to the alphabetical order of the names of the different branches.

Branch: M42

The age of Branch M42 is believed to be around 75,000 years. The center of the population is believed to have been in Africa near the Rawanda-Burundi area. The GPS coordinates of this location are approximately 1.230374S, 30.659178E.This branch formed from descendants of the original male ancestor, cited above, who was believed to have lived around 140,000 years ago and has been called by many the "Y-chromosome Adam" because he was the only male whose Y-chromosome lineage is still around today. All men living today trace their ancestry to one of this man's descendants. The oldest Y-chromosome lineages in existence belong to a different branch of the tree than mine and are known as the A branch. These oldest lineages are still found in populations in Africa, the only place where they are now found.

Around 75,000 years ago, the BT branch of the Y-chromosome tree was born, defined by many genetic markers, including M42, which is present in the DNA of most men living today. Some of the M42 descendants began the journey out of Africa, to India and the Middle East. Some of the M42 line eventually reached the Americas with the American Indians who arrived thousands of years ago. Others would settled in Europe, and some from this line remained near their ancestral homeland in Africa.

The M42 branch is shared by almost all men living today, both in Africa and around the world. People on this branch carry one of Africa's, and the world's, oldest paternal lineages. Many of its members still live near its South African point of origin. Individuals from this line in Africa today often practice cultural traditions that resemble those of their distant ancestors. For example, they often live in traditional hunter-gatherer societies. These include the Mbuti and Biaka Pygmies of central Africa, as well as Tanzania's Hadza.

Branch: M168

The age of Branch M168 is believed to be around 70,000 years. It was located in Africa/Asia. The population center on the map provided by the testing agency appears to be in northern Uganda in Africa. The GPS coordinates of this location are approximately 3.864255N, 30.659178E. Other places where they may have started are in present-day Ethiopia, Kenya, or Tanzania. The Y-DNA markers for the M168 branch indicate that it was one of the first to leave the African homeland. Members of M168 were some of the earliest settlers in Asia, Southeast Asia, and Australia. Some from this line even traveled years ago over the land bridge between Russia and Alaska to reach the Americas bring with them the M42 marker discussed above. Undoubtedly other branches besides M168 left Africa for Asia and other regions. However, every non-African man living today descends from this branch because it is the only lineage to survive outside of Africa.

The first migrants from M168 likely crossed into the Arabian Peninsula soon after M168 originated, perhaps 65,000 years ago. They followed the coastline making their way eastward to India and Southeast Asia. By 50,000 years ago, they had reached Australia. These were the ancestors of today's Australian Aborigines.

The reason the M168 branch left Africa will never be known. However, it is believe that climate change associated with one of the ice ages may have encouraged the move. During the ice age, the climate in Africa became quite dry, probably prompting these hunter‑gatherers to search for better places to find food.

Branch: M89

Branch M89 is believed to have appeared around 50,000 years ago. The first man with the M89 marker was born either in northern Africa or the Middle East. The map shown by the DNA testing company placed the origin of this branch near Mecca in Saudi Arabia. The GPS coordinates of this location are approximately 21.739091N, 40.158691E. These people were part of a second wave of people who left Africa around 40,000 years ago during another climate shift when the African grasslands dried up. At this time the M89 branch had two choices, remain in the Middle East or move on.

Many of the descendants of M89 remained in the Middle East, others continued to follow the great herds of wild game through what is now modern-day Iran to the vast steppes of Central Asia, which were semi-arid grass-covered plains that formed an ancient "superhighway" stretching from eastern France to Korea. The M89 branch, began to spread out both east and west across this superhighway. A smaller group moved from the Middle East to Anatolia and the Balkans, trading familiar grasslands for forests and high country.

Today, geneticists have found the M89 lineage in 1 to 2 percent of Pakistani and Indian populations. However, it is about 4 percent of some Austro-Asiatic-language-family-speaking groups in India. It is about 9 percent of some Dravidian-language-family-speaking groups in India, and it is 9 to 10 percent of male lineages in Sri Lanka. In Borneo, it is about 5 percent of the population. In Malaysia, it is about 6 percent of the population.

Branch: P128

The next branch of the family, marker P128, is believed to have appeared around 45,000 years ago near South Central Iraq. The GPS coordinates of this location are approximately 28.960089N, 41.520995E. Marker P128 is found in more than half of all non-Africans that are alive today.

The descendants of the P128 branch migrated to the east and north, picking up additional markers on their Y-chromosomes. This lineage is the parent of several major branches on the Y-chromosome tree, which are designated: haplogroup O, the most common lineage in East Asia; haplogroup R, the major European Y-chromosome lineage (note that mine is R-L21); and haplogroup Q, the major Y-chromosome lineage of people native to the Americas. These descendant branches went on to settle the rest of Asia, the Americas, and Europe; many others traveled to Southeast Asia. Today, people with the P128 marker who do not have the O, R, or Q markers are rare. These exceptions are seen in Oceanian (islands of the tropical Pacific near Australia) and Australian Aboriginal populations.

Branch: M45

Branch M45 is believed to have originated around 35,000 years ago near Northeast Afghanistan. Members of this branch were big game hunters who traveled the open savannas between Central and South Asia during the Paleolithic period. The GPS coordinates of this location are approximately 37.857507N, 71.000975E. They were the parents to two of the most widespread male lineages in modern populations. The first is responsible for the majority of pre-Columbian lineages in the Americas (haplogroup Q) and many others from Asia and Europe. The second one that spread farther into Asia produced the highest frequency lineages in European populations (haplogroup R).

Today India has the highest population of the M45 lineage, whose later offshoots are found in most Native Americans (haplogroup Q) and Europeans (haplogroup R). Most people who trace their ancestry back to the M45 branch also belong to a descendant branch, such as haplogroup Q or R. Some who are only M45 and do not belong to a descendant branch may be found today in and near India. These exceptions include such diverse groups in India as the Saora (23 percent), the Bhumij (13 percent), and Muslims from Manipur (33 percent).

Branch: M207

The M207 Branch is believed to have first appeared around 30,000 years ago in Central Asia, near western modern-day China. The GPS coordinates of this location are approximately 37.439974N, 77.490231E. Descendants of this branch settled in Europe, South Asia and the Middle East over the following 20,000 years.

Today, most western European men belong to one branch, R-M342, that descended from this lineage. While it appears to have been one of the earliest lineages to settle in Europe more than 25,000 years ago, more recent population expansions associated with the post-glacial repopulation of northern Europe after the end of the last ice age, as well as the spread of agriculture during the Neolithic, also contributed to its high frequency in Ireland, the United Kingdom, France and Spain.

One descendant lineage, R-L62, is common in Eastern Europe and India, and was likely spread in part through the migration of Indo-European steppe nomads over the past 5,000 years.

Branch: P231

Branch P231 is believed to have first appeared around 25,000 to 30,000 years ago in Central Asia. The map provided by the DNA testing company placed the origin about 800 miles east of Moscow, Russia. The GPS coordinates of this location are approximately 52.696361N, 62.299803E. This branch had a nomadic lifestyle. Descendants of this branch account for most European men and many others from Central Asia, West Asia, and South Asia. This was one of several branches that around 30,000 years ago made the first major migration into Europe by following game-rich steppes as far west as Germany.

Branch: M343

Branch M343 is believed to have originated between 17,000 and 22,000 years ago in South Asia or West Asia. The map provided by the testing company placed the origin midway between Moscow and St. Petersburg, Russia. The GPS coordinates of this location are approximately 57.751076N, 34.965819E. They were hunter‑gatherers on the open savannas that stretched from Korea to Central Europe. They took part in the advances in hunting technology that allowed for population growth and expansions.

When the Earth entered a cooling phase, most from this line sheltered in the southeast of Europe and in West Asia. It was from these regions that their populations rapidly expanded when the ice once more receded. Some traveled west across Europe. Others moved back toward their distant ancestors' homelands in Africa, passing through the Levant (eastern Mediterranean) region. Through these movements and the population boom triggered by the Neolithic Revolution, this lineage and its descendant lineages came to dominate Europe.

Today, this branch has a wide distribution. In Africa, geneticists have found this lineage in Northern Africa (6 percent) and central Sahel (23 percent), a semi-arid band just south of the Sahara Desert in Africa. Its frequency in Europe is at times high and at other times moderate. It represents about 7 percent of Russian male lineages, about 13 percent of male lineages in the Balkans, about 21 percent of Eastern European male lineages, 55 to 58 percent of Western European lineages, and about 43 percent of Central European male lineages. In Asia, most men of this lineage are found in West Asia (6 percent) and South Asia (5 percent). However, trace frequencies of around half a percent from this lineage are present in East Asia. Russian Emperor Nicholas II belonged to Branch M343.

Branch: L278

The date when Branch L278 first appeared has not been determined and is still being studied. It is believed to have originated near where Branch M343, above, originated, midway between Moscow and St. Petersburg, Russia. The GPS coordinates of this location are approximately 57.751076N, 34.965819E.

This branch is not accompanied by a major movement. However, a small population from this group traveled west into Central Asia while others traveled to the eastern Mediterranean. Today, they are present in trace frequencies of less than 1 percent in Italy, the Ukraine, and the region of the Pannonian Basin. Research on this branch is ongoing. Also, most people who belong to this branch also belong to a descendant branch.

Branch: P310

The date when Branch P310 first appeared has not been determined and is still being studied. It is believed to have originated near where Branch M343, above, originated, midway between Moscow and St. Petersburg, Russia. The GPS coordinates of this location are approximately 57.751076N, 34.965819E.

Although this branch is not accompanied by a major movement, one descendant of this branch has the highest frequency of any male line in Western Europe, which is believed to be the result of many simultaneous and successive waves of migration. Today, descendants of this branch account for 48 to 52 percent of male lineages in Ireland. It is 45 percent of those in France. It is about 38 percent of the male population in Spain. It is about 8 percent of male lineages in Italy. It is about 5 percent of male lineages in Oman. It is 1 to 2 percent of the male population in Iraq and Lebanon. It is also 1 to 2 percent of the male population in Kazakhstan.

Branch: L21

Branch L21 is believed to have originated between 5,500 and 12,000 years ago, near where Branch M343, above, originated, midway between Moscow and St. Petersburg, Russia. The GPS coordinates of this location are approximately 57.751076N, 34.965819E.

Today, members of this lineage are widely distributed across Europe and West Asia. They reach their highest frequency in Ireland where they and descendant branches contribute to between 35 and 38 percent of the male population. This line is 6 to 7 percent of male lineages in France. It is between 1 and 2 percent of male lineages in Germany. It is 2 to 4 percent of male lineages in Portugal and Spain. It is about 2 percent of the male population in Croatia. It is also present in some paternal lineages from the Ashkenazi Jewish population.

Since I belong to the L21 (or R-L21) branch, I am among the 1 to 2 percent of male lineages attributed to Germany, where my Garn ancestors lived before the first Garn or Gern came to America in 1785 from Kürnbach, Germany.