A · BT · CT · F · K · P · P1 · Q-M242 · Q1-F1096 · Q1b-M378 · Q-M378 · Q-L938

Haplogroup Q-L938

Q-L938 (Levantine/Jewish lineage)

Macro-haplogroup

Parent clade

Q-M378

Formed (estimate)

c. 8,000–10,000 years before present

TMRCA (estimate)

c. 3,000–4,500 years ago

L938

Overview

Q-L938 is one of the best-known Q1b subclades due to its elevated frequencies among certain Jewish populations, including Ashkenazi and Sephardi lineages. Its geographic focus in the Levant suggests an origin among Bronze Age Levantine communities. Population expansions during the Iron Age, classical antiquity and diaspora periods shaped the lineage’s modern distribution.

Geographic distribution

High frequencies in some Jewish groups, particularly Ashkenazi subclusters. Also present in the Levant, Anatolia, Iran, and populations with historical Levantine paternal input.

Ancient DNA

Ancient Levantine genomes from the Bronze Age and Iron Age include paternal components consistent with L938-related ancestry.
Patterns of coalescence align with demographic expansions associated with early Semitic-speaking populations.
Distribution fits with historical diaspora movements from the eastern Mediterranean.

Phylogeny & subclades

L938 sits under the broader Q-M378 West Asian network and contains multiple downstream subclusters concentrated among Levantine and Jewish diaspora populations.

Jewish L938 cluster

Notes & context