haplogroups.info
Y-DNA Haplogroup Atlas

A · BT · CT · CF · F · I · I2 · I2a · I2a1 · I2a1i

Haplogroup I2a1i

I2-Y23062

Macro-haplogroup
I
Parent clade
I2a1
Formed (estimate)
c. 10,000–12,000 years before present
TMRCA (estimate)
c. 5,000–6,000 years ago

Overview

I2a1i (Y23062) is a minor but significant branch of the I2a1 lineage with origins in the highlands and foothills surrounding the Carpathians and northern Balkans. Its ancestors likely belonged to late Mesolithic forager groups that persisted in ecologically stable refugia, later interacting with early Neolithic farmers arriving from the south. This lineage reveals localized continuity through several major cultural transitions.

Geographic distribution

Modern carriers occur in Romania, Serbia, Bulgaria, Moldova and western Ukraine. Additional presence in Hungary and Slovakia reflects Neolithic and Bronze Age connectivity along the Carpathian–Danube corridor.

Ancient DNA

  • Mesolithic forager remains from the Iron Gates region exhibit upstream I2a1 signals ancestral to I2a1i.
  • Neolithic and Copper Age burials across Romania and Bulgaria include I2 clades near the Y23062 node.
  • Early Bronze Age Carpathian genomes show continuity with deep I2a1 substrates.

Phylogeny & subclades

I2a1i forms a sister branch to several I2a1 radiations (I2a1a–h). Y23062, Y23064 and BY17612 anchor the clade, which exhibits shallow but regionally coherent internal structure.

  • I2-Y23064
  • I2-BY17612
  • Basal I2a1i*

Notes & context

I2a1i is critical for mapping the paternal genetic landscape of the Carpathian–Balkan region during the Holocene, capturing continuity between forager groups and early agricultural societies.