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Y-DNA Haplogroup Atlas

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Haplogroup G1a5

G-FGC21015

Macro-haplogroup
G
Parent clade
G1a
Formed (estimate)
c. 7,000–10,000 years before present
TMRCA (estimate)
c. 4,000–6,000 years ago

Overview

G1a5 represents a young but geographically informative branch of the G1a radiation, centered around the northeastern Iranian Plateau, Turkmenistan and southern Central Asia. Its formation aligns with the period of emerging Bronze Age socio-political complexity in the region, coinciding with interaction between settled Iranian Plateau agriculturalists and steppe-influenced agro-pastoralist communities from Turan and the Kopet Dag foothills. G1a5 is numerically small, but its spatial clustering suggests a meaningful demographic role in later Bronze Age and Iron Age cultural networks, including movements associated with proto-Iranian and early Turco-Iranian heritage groups. Its structure displays classic founder-event characteristics typical of valley-bound or oasis-linked ancestral populations.

Geographic distribution

Modern presence is concentrated in northeastern Iran (Khorasan), Turkmenistan (including Ahal and Mary regions), and scattered among Uzbeks and Tajiks. It occasionally appears in Afghanistan and among certain Kazakh lineages. Its distribution outlines ancient cultural corridors along the Kopet Dag and the northeastern edge of the Iranian Plateau, historically important for connections between BMAC, Iranian highland societies and early pastoralist confederations.

Ancient DNA

  • Late Bronze Age BMAC-associated individuals display upstream variants compatible with proto-G1a5.
  • Early Iron Age steppe–oasis interface burials in Turan sometimes show G1a-linked markers aligning with the G1a5 timeframe.
  • No evidence occurs in Neolithic contexts, matching its later formation during post-Neolithic cultural expansions.

Phylogeny & subclades

G1a5 contains only a few known WGS-defined subclades, with extremely localized distributions. These microclades often segregate neatly by region (e.g., Turkmenistan, northeastern Iran, or Afghan borderlands), indicative of recurrent local founder effects. Phylogenetically, it branches off after G1a1–G1a3, forming one of the younger but regionally structured components of the G1a radiation.

  • G1a5* basal
  • Turkmenistan microbranches
  • Iran–Afghanistan foothill microclades

Notes & context

G1a5 is valuable for reconstructing Bronze–Iron Age interactions between Iranian Plateau settlers and Central Asian steppe-border populations. It demonstrates how even small paternal lineages help map ancient mobility and ethnogenesis.