Overview
J2b-Z43244 is a downstream lineage of the J2b-M241 radiation with a demographic center spanning the southern Balkans, the Aegean islands and coastal western Anatolia. Its roots lie in late Neolithic and Chalcolithic settlement networks that integrated river-valley agriculture with maritime connectivity. These groups established early agricultural villages, ceramic traditions and exchange systems that linked the Adriatic, Ionian and Aegean basins.
By the Bronze Age, Z43244-bearing populations appear within Mycenaean coastal sites, Aegean island polities and western Anatolian coastal regions. Its downstream phylogeny reflects microregional founder events tied to Aegean island clusters, southern Balkan river valleys and coastal Anatolian plains. Iron Age and classical populations across these regions retain J2b-M241 variation consistent with the expected geographic trajectory of Z43244, indicating its role as a persistent paternal component of the Aegean–Balkan maritime sphere.
Geographic distribution
Greece, Albania, Bulgaria, western Turkey, with lower frequencies in Italy, Cyprus and the Adriatic coast.
Ancient DNA
- Neolithic Balkan individuals show upstream J2b-M241 variation ancestral to Z43244.
- Aegean Bronze Age genomes include J2b lineages that align with expected positions of this clade.
- Western Anatolian Bronze Age burials display upstream components tied to Z43244.
- Iron Age coastal and island populations reflect downstream J2b signatures compatible with this lineage.
- Classical Greek and Thracian coastal communities preserve paternal continuity within the Z43244 range.
Phylogeny & subclades
A maritime-oriented J2b-M241 branch with diversification along southern Balkan river basins, Aegean islands and western Anatolian coasts.
- Z43244*
- Aegean island microbranches
- Southern Balkan derivatives
Notes & context
J2b-Z43244 provides crucial resolution for reconstructing population movements across the Aegean–Balkan–Anatolian maritime interaction sphere.
References & external links