Overview
Haplogroup O-M175 is the dominant paternal lineage of East and Southeast Asia and forms one of the most influential expansions of the Late Upper Paleolithic Eurasia. Originating somewhere in East Asia, likely within the region extending from southern China to mainland Southeast Asia, O-M175 became the ancestral source of the majority of modern Han Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Vietnamese, and Austronesian males. Its deep time-depth reflects a long period of genetic continuity, followed by massive expansions during the Neolithic when agriculture spread across the Yellow River and Yangtze basins.
Geographic distribution
Today O-M175 accounts for more than one-third of all Y-chromosomes in East Asia and is widespread from China, Korea, Japan, and Mongolia to Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Taiwan and the Pacific Ocean islands. O also appears in South Asia, particularly northeastern India and Bangladesh, due to prehistoric and historic gene flow.
Ancient DNA
- Ancient Chinese Neolithic genomes (Yangshao, Hongshan, Liangzhu) carry upstream O lineages.
- Early Austronesian cultures of Taiwan show O1a-related ancestry.
- Multiple ancient samples from the Yellow River region belong to O2-derived lineages.
Phylogeny & subclades
O-M175 splits into two major branches: O1 (associated with Austronesian and Southeast Asian dispersals) and O2 (dominant among Han Chinese and Sino-Tibetan speakers). This bifurcation defines much of the paternal population structure of East Asia.
- O1-MSY2.2
- O1a-M119
- O1b-F3651
- O2-M122
Notes & context
O is essential for understanding East Asian population history, Neolithic agricultural expansions, and Austronesian maritime dispersals.
References & external links