Overview
G2a2b1a46 is a downstream branch of the Anatolian M406 framework with a demographic focus in the eastern Mediterranean and Levantine coastal world. It likely originated from M406-bearing groups occupying eastern or southeastern Anatolia and radiated southward and westward along maritime and overland trade routes during the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age.
The branch’s coalescent timeframe overlaps with the period of intense connectivity among Phoenician, Aramaean, Neo-Hittite and early Greek polities. G2a2b1a46 can therefore be interpreted as a paternal lineage embedded within those mixed coastal–inland societies, participating in the transfer of people and culture around the eastern Mediterranean basin without ever reaching the spectacular frequencies observed for some later, more drift-prone clades.
Geographic distribution
In present-day data, G2a2b1a46 is found at low to moderate frequencies across the Levantine coast: Lebanon, coastal Syria, northern Israel, and Cyprus. It also occurs among some populations in southern Turkey (Adana–Hatay–Mersin region) and in small clusters among Greek islanders and coastal Anatolian communities.
Its scarcity inland and its concentration along maritime zones suggest that its expansion was closely tied to seaborne commerce and urban networks rather than to inland agrarian dispersals. The lineage is occasionally observed in diaspora populations of Levantine origin in Europe and the Americas, reflecting recent migration rather than ancient expansion.
Ancient DNA
- Iron Age coastal Levantine and Phoenician-related individuals frequently carry M406-derived lineages; G2a2b1a46 is a plausible descendant of these paternal backgrounds.
- Classical-era and Hellenistic remains from coastal Levantine cities show G2a2b1a-type signatures consistent with the Y2769xx block.
- Ancient Mediterranean aDNA from shipwreck contexts and colonial harbor sites reveals G2a2b1a presences that, while not yet resolved to this subclade, fall within its likely ancestral space.
Phylogeny & subclades
G2a2b1a46 is defined by Y276910 and downstream variants. It branches off from the main M406 trunk as a relatively young but distinct node, with several small subbranches that map to different segments of the eastern Mediterranean littoral. Its internal structure suggests multiple modest founder events associated with particular port cities or coastal communities rather than a single, pan-Levantine ancestor.
Within the dense G2a2b1a network, G2a2b1a46 helps define the coastal Near Eastern component, complementing more inland branches that are centered in Anatolia and Upper Mesopotamia.
- G2a2b1a46* (basal eastern Mediterranean form)
- G2a2b1a46a (Y276933-linked Levantine coastal cluster)
- G2a2b1a46b (Cypriot and Aegean microbranch)
Notes & context
G2a2b1a46 is a good example of how a lineage can be regionally important yet numerically modest. For a haplogroup atlas, its inclusion is crucial because it connects the M406 story not only to inland Anatolia and the Balkans, but also to the Levantine maritime sphere. For individuals, belonging to this clade often implies deep paternal roots in coastal Levantine or nearby Anatolian populations with historically strong seaborne ties.
References & external links