Overview
Haplogroup R-CTS1843 is one of the major downstream branches of R-Z2106 and represents a key component of the steppe-derived paternal ancestry that spread across the Balkan Peninsula, the northern Caucasus and Anatolia during the Bronze Age. The formation age of CTS1843 corresponds closely with the expansionary phases of Yamnaya and related Catacomb groups, suggesting that CTS1843 emerged within populations that were heavily involved in the early Indo-European dispersals into southeastern Europe. Archaeogenetic studies of Bronze Age burials from Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia and northern Greece frequently reveal CTS1843 or closely related lineages, indicating that its bearers played a significant role in the demographic transformations affecting the Balkans during this period. CTS1843 lineages appear to have contributed to the paternal ancestry of early Thracian, Illyrian and proto-Hellenic communities. Today, CTS1843 shows a pronounced presence across the Caucasus and the Balkans, reflecting more than four millennia of regional continuity. Its downstream subclades highlight the complex demographic history of southeastern Europe, including Bronze Age migrations, classical era expansions and medieval population shifts.