Overview
J1-FGC9102 is a downstream lineage within the highland-oriented J1-Z1828 radiation, with origins among early agro-pastoral populations in the Armenian Highlands, eastern Anatolia and the northern Zagros. These early communities practiced transhumant herding, utilized upland fortresses and contributed to cultural developments that preceded the Kura-Araxes expansion. The mountainous geography of the region fostered stable demographic patterns and limited gene flow, resulting in localized phylogenetic clustering. By the Bronze and Iron Ages, populations carrying FGC9102 inhabited fortified highland settlements and remote mesa-top communities. The lineage's downstream diversification reveals microbranches restricted to valleys and plateau systems that maintained long-term isolation. The persistence of these microclades into the medieval period underscores the demographic stability characteristic of upland pastoral societies in the South Caucasus.