Overview
G2a2b1a53 represents a downstream M406 lineage embedded within the southwestern Anatolian and Aegean interior cultural sphere. Its demographic profile suggests an ancestral root among communities inhabiting the mountainous hinterlands between Denizli, Aydın, Muğla and Burdur. These regions historically held populations that connected the western Anatolian plateau with Aegean coastal polities through both land-based and seasonal transhumant routes.
The lineage’s tmrca window points to diversification during the classical, Hellenistic and Roman periods, when southwestern Anatolia saw intense cultural layering—from Lydians and Carians to Greek colonists, Roman settlers and later Byzantine rural populations.
Geographic distribution
Modern carriers of G2a2b1a53 appear primarily in southwestern Turkey, especially in upland districts of Aydın, Muğla, Burdur, Isparta and Denizli. Occasional occurrences in the Aegean islands, Crete and coastal Greece likely reflect movements during the classical and Byzantine periods.
Its limited but consistent presence among rural southwestern Anatolian populations supports the model of a lineage that diversified in situ rather than through major long-distance migrations.
Ancient DNA
- Classical-era burials from southwestern Anatolia show G2a2b1a-like signatures that map well onto the FT1200xx neighborhood.
- Roman and late antique samples from the Aegean interior demonstrate paternal continuity patterns compatible with G2a2b1a53.
- Archaeogenetic reconstructions of Carian and Lydian populations frequently require eastern Mediterranean components that align with downstream M406 branches.
Phylogeny & subclades
FT120004 defines this lineage within the M406 mega-tree. Internal structure includes several small subbranches corresponding to different Aegean interior microregions. Branch lengths indicate multiple minor founder events during the classical and early medieval periods, followed by stable local persistence.
Its position complements the western Anatolian, Balkan and Levantine components of the wider M406 network, adding depth to the southwestern Anatolian segment.
- G2a2b1a53* (basal southwestern Anatolian form)
- G2a2b1a53a (FT120031-linked branch)
- G2a2b1a53b (Aegean interior microcluster)
- Potential private terminal lines in rural southwestern Turkish families
Notes & context
G2a2b1a53 illuminates the demographic continuity of southwestern Anatolia, a region often overshadowed by the larger Aegean and central Anatolian narratives. Its inclusion ensures that the atlas captures the local structure and microregional differentiation of M406 within western Turkey. For ancestry interpretation, the branch usually signals roots in the mountainous hinterlands of the Aegean interior.
References & external links