Overview
N-M2291 represents one of the earliest detectable branches within the paternal haplogroup N and occupies a position immediately after the formation of N-M231 but before the diversification into N1 and N2. Individuals classified under M2291 carry the defining N mutation but lack the downstream markers that typify the N1 and N2 radiations. This configuration identifies M2291 as part of the true basal N substrate that once existed widely across northern Eurasia during the Late Pleistocene. Genetic and archaeological evidence supports that populations bearing early N lineages were associated with forest-steppe ecologies extending from the Transbaikal zone to the upper Yenisei and Angara rivers. Over millennia most of these early branches went extinct or were absorbed, leaving only a handful of M2291-bearing lines that today provide critical information on the earliest stages of N ancestry.
Geographic distribution
Modern carriers of N-M2291 are rare but occur sporadically across Siberia, northern China and parts of the Russian Far East. The scattered pattern aligns with the deep age of this lineage and reflects survival of isolated paternal lines within populations that later underwent massive expansions dominated by N1a, N1b and N2 branches. Some individuals with M2291 have been reported in regions such as the Amur basin, the upper Lena and Heilongjiang, areas that historically supported Pleistocene forager networks and later Bronze Age interactions.
Ancient DNA
- Upstream N signatures identified in Upper Paleolithic remains from eastern Siberia show allele combinations consistent with the basal position of M2291.
- Early Holocene individuals in the Baikal and Transbaikal areas possess N-lineage Y chromosomes that cannot be placed within N1 or N2 and cluster near the M2291 node.
- Ancient samples from the Angara-Lena corridor reveal a pattern of deep, fragmented paternal diversity resembling that of modern M2291 carriers.
Phylogeny & subclades
N-M2291 sits at a key internal split between the initial formation of N-M231 and the later branching that generated N1 and N2. It contributes major information for calibrating the basal diversification of haplogroup N. Because few present-day carriers exist, high-resolution sequencing of these individuals is important for reconstructing early N ancestors and their relationships with other CT-derived lineages.
- N-M2291* (basal lineage)
- Minor microbranches identified in isolated Siberian individuals
Notes & context
N-M2291 confirms that the ancestry of haplogroup N was more diverse in the past than present distributions suggest. Its existence supports a scenario of widespread early Holocene populations carrying basal N lineages that later became overshadowed by the massive expansions of N1a and N2 during the mid-Holocene.
References & external links