DNA Tribes - Global Survey - Regional Affinities

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1

A New Genetic Map of Living Humans

in Interconnected World RegionsE. Valaitis1 and L. Martin

Revised and Expanded 01/14/2007

Table of Contents

Introduction....................................................................................................................... 3

What are DNA Tribes World Regions? .......................................................................... 3

A Map of DNA Tribes World Regions......................................................................... 3

How are DNA Tribes world regions identified?........................................................... 4

How are world regions related?.................................................................................... 4

Composition and Regional Affiliations of World Populations ..................................... 6

Native American Populations ....................................................................................... 7

European Populations ................................................................................................... 8

Latin American Populations ......................................................................................... 9

African Populations .................................................................................................... 10

Near Eastern Populations............................................................................................ 11

Populations of India .................................................................................................... 12

Central Asian Populations........................................................................................... 13

East Asian and Pacific Populations............................................................................. 14

1Dr. Eduardas Valaitis received his Doctorate in Statistics from Yale University, CT and is currently an

Assistant Professor in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at American University, DC.








2

Score Ranges for Three Major U.S. Ethnic Groups by Percentile............................. 15

Caucasian (U.S.A.) ..................................................................................................... 15

African-American (U.S.A.)......................................................................................... 16

Hispanic (U.S.A.)........................................................................................................ 17

Further Discussion: Regions, Not Races ........................................................................ 18








3

Introduction

DNA Tribes offers a genetic ancestry analysis that measures the likelihood of an

autosomal STR DNA profile of an individual in twenty four world regions (displayed inthe map below). These world regions have been identified by Dr. Eduardas Valaitis

using proprietary statistical analysis of our global DNA database of over 600 living

populations. This study provides an overview of these world regions and how theyintersect within of individual populations.

What are DNA Tribes World Regions?

Each world regions represents a unique genetic family within the human species shapedby shared history and geography. Each region is characterized by a distinctive pattern of

allele frequencies across the STR loci studied. Although all humans are connected by

ancient common origins, each of these genetic families shares a unique relationship dueto more intense and persistent contacts within a geographical area. DNA Tribes offers

the first and only analysis able to distinguish these genetic families without relying on

presumed racial or ethnic categories.

A Map of DNA Tribes World Regions

This map illustrates the geographical boundaries of these world regions. Please note that

even within the borders of nearly all regions, individuals can be found with genetic ties to

neighboring and sometimes distant regions.








4

How are DNA Tribes world regions identified?

Instead of relying on presumed racial or ethnic divisions, DNA Tribes defines world

regions by objective mathematical criteria. A proprietary statistical method is applied toover 600 individual population samples around the world to identify groups of

populations with shared genetic characteristics. These genetic groups are then plotted on

a map and named according to the geographical regions they occupy.

How are world regions related?

Method: Hierarchical clustering was performed on the twenty three world region

clusters with the distance metric as the sum of absolute differences. In this plot, the

distance between clusters is the average of the distances between the points in one cluster

and the points in the other cluster.

A r a b i a n

N o r t h A f r i c a n

M e d i t e r r a n e a n

A s i a M i n o r

N o r t h w e s t E u r o p e a n F

i n n o - U g r i a n

E a s t e r n E u r o p e a n

P o l y n e s i a n

A u s t r a l i a n

I n d i a T r i b a l

I n d i a

N o r t h

I n d i a

S u b - S a h a r a n A f r i c a n A

r c t i c

S a l i s h a n

N o r t h e a s t A m e

r i n d i a n

S o u t h A m e r i n d i a n

A t h a b a s k a n

M e s t i z o

J a p a n e s e

S o u t h e a s t A s i a n

S i n o - T i b e t a n

M a l a y A r c h i p e l a g o

M o n g o

l i a n

0 . 2

0 . 4

0 . 6

0 . 8

Discussion: This diagram illustrates the relationships between world regions identifiedby DNA Tribes. Closely related regions appear towards the bottom of the diagram. For

instance, the Mediterranean and Asia Minor regions are the two most closely related of

these regions. The deepest divisions appear at the top (root) of the tree. For instance, the








5

Australian region is only distantly related to other world regions and branches off alone

towards the top of the tree diagram.

Individual regions group together to form families and super-families of regions. Most of

these larger groupings correspond to major continents. For instance, all East Asian

regions form their own family that also includes the outlier Mongolian world region.This Central & East Asian family is part of a larger Asian super-family that also includes

South Asian regions. Similarly, all six Native American regions are part of their own

super-family that is distinct from the other super-family that includes all Asian, Pacific,European and African regions.

The relationships illustrated by this diagram are the cumulative product of (1) genetic

contact within each region created by migrations, intermarriage, and gradual diffusion;

and (2) relative isolation from other regions. Natural features that make these contacts

easier or more difficult can determine regional genetic relationships: waterways,mountain regions, fertile plains, and continental borders shape the pathways of human

interactions that create both cultural areas and genetic regions. For instance, the

historical difficulty of travel between Asia and North America corresponds to the greatdistance between the Native American super-family and all other world regions.








6

Composition and Regional Affiliations of World Populations

Method: Observed allele frequency data was used to simulate 4,000 individual genetic

profiles for the studied world populations. Each simulated profile was processed by the DNA Tribes algorithm, which measured the simulated individual’s occurrence frequency

in each world region. The strongest regional match was then identified for each

individual. These primary matches were then tallied for all simulated profiles to produce

regional affiliation proportions.

Every individual population includes a spectrum of regional affinities. The study on thefollowing pages illustrates the composition of individual ethnic and national populations:

Native American Populations .................................................................................... 7

European Populations ................................................................................................ 8

Latin American Populations ...................................................................................... 9

African Populations .................................................................................................. 10

Near Eastern Populations......................................................................................... 11

Populations of India .................................................................................................. 12

Central Asian Populations ....................................................................................... 13

East Asian and Pacific Populations ......................................................................... 14

In the following pages, each population is represented by a graph colored according to its

world region affiliations. For instance, on the next page, approximately 73% of Navajobelong primarily to the Athabaskan (blue) world region that also includes Apache and

Alaskan Athabaskans.










8

European Populations

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

F i n l a n

d

S t r a t h

c l y d e

, S c o t l a

n d

N o r w a y

G e r m

a n y

R u s s i a

O l d B

e l i e v e r s

( S u w

a l k i , P

o l a n d )

L i t h u

a n i a

S o u t h

e a s t P o

l a n d

A s h k e n a z i ( B

u d a p

e s t , H

u n g a

r y )

A n a d a l u

s i a , S p a i n

P i e m o

n t e , I t a l y

P u g l i a

, I t a l y

Finno-Ugrian

Northwest European

Eastern European

Mediterranean

Asia Minor

North AfricanArabian

India

Mongolian

Mestizo

Other








9

Latin American Populations

Latin American populations are descended from Native American, European and African

populations. The genetic affiliations of Latin American ethnic groups vary from

primarily Native American (such as inhabitants of Metztitlan), to predominantlyEuropean (such as non-Black Brazilians), to substantially African (such as Afro-

Brazilians), or to complex intermediates blending two or more of these ancestral

elements. However, most share a substantial proportion of individuals best described as Mestizo, or “mixed,” representing a novel world region created by this recent meeting of

peoples. Variation can be observed even within nations and ethnic groups, for instance

between rural and urban populations (as illustrated by the contrast between Buenos Aires

and Rio Negro, Argentina).

A primary affiliation with the Mestizo world region is also frequently observed for mixed

individuals of substantial Native American ancestry, regardless of Spanish or Hispaniccultural ties. This is because the combination of Native American and European

ancestries is far more common within Latin American and Hispanic populations than

within non-Hispanic diaspora populations of North America.

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

M e t z t i t l a

n , M e

x i c o

G u a t e

m a l a

P e r u

E l S a l v a

d o r

R i o N

e g o , A r g e n t i n a

B u e n o s A

i r e s , A r g e n t i n a

C e n t r

a l M e

x i c o

H i s p a n i c

( A r i z

o n a )

C o s t a

R i c a

C a r a c a s , V e

n e z u e l a

P u e r t

o R i c a

n

A f r o - B r

a z i l i a

n

N o n - B l a

c k B r a z i l i a

n

Athabaskan

Northeast Amerindian

Salishan

South Amerindian

Mestizo

Northwest European

Eastern European

Finno-Ugrian

Asia Minor

Mediterranean

North African

Arabian

Mongolian

Japanese

Sub-Saharan African

India

Other








10

African Populations

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

C a p e

T o w n

, S o u t h

A f r i c a

A n g o l a

J a m a i c a

G u i n e

a - B i s s

a u

B a h a

m a s

A

f r i c a n

- A m e

r i c a n

( A l a b

a m a )

A f r i c

a n - A m e

r i c a n

( C a l i f o r

n i a )

S o m a l i a

A f r o - B

r a z i l i a

n

M u s l i m

( A d a i m

a , E g

y p t )

M o r o c

c a n B

e r b e r

T u n i s i a

Arabian

North African

Sub-Saharan African

Northwest European

Asia Minor

Mediterranean

Eastern European

Finno-Ugrian

Mongolian

Mestizo

Other








11

Near Eastern Populations

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

M o r o c

c a n B

e r b e r

T u n i s i a

E g y p t i a

n C o p t

E g y p t i a

n M u s l i m

G r e e k C

y p r i o t

S y r i a

Q a t a r

S a u d i A

r a b i a

Y e m e

n

K u r d i s h

( I r a q )

E a s t A

n a t o l i a ,

T u r k e

y I r a

n

A f g h a

n i s t a n

Sub-Saharan African

North African

Arabian

Asia Minor

Mediterranean

Eastern EuropeanNorthwest European

Finno-Ugrian

India

Mongolian

Japanese

Mestizo

Other








12

Populations of India

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

K u r m i ( N o

r t h I n d i a )

T h a k u r R a

j p u t ( N o

r t h I n d i a )

J a t ( N

o r t h I

n d i a )

I n d i a n

( C a n a d

a )

M u s l i m

( S o u t h w

e s t I n

d i a )

R e d d

y ( S o

u t h e a s t I n d

i a )

O r i y a

B r a h

m i n ( E a

s t e r n I n d

i a )

T a m i l ( S

o u t h

I n d i a )

I y e n g

a r B r

a h m i n (

S o u t h

w e s t I n d

i a )

S a o r a

T r i b a

l ( E a s t e r

n I n d i a )

D e s a s t h

B r a h

m i n ( W e

s t e r n I n d

i a )

D h a k a , B a

n g l a d

e s h

J u a n g T

r i b a l ( E a s t e r

n I n d i a )

P a r o j a T

r i b a l ( E a

s t e r n I n d

i a )

Finno-Ugrian

Northwest European

North African

Mediterranean

Asia Minor

Arabian

North India

India

India Tribal

Malay Archipelago

Southeast Asian

Japanese

Mongolian

Mestizo

Other








13

Central Asian Populations

0%

10%

20%

30%40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

T u r k e

y

A f g h a

n i s t a n

K a t h m

a n d u

, N e p

a l

U y g h u

r ( C h i n

e s e T

u r k e s t a n

)

T a t a r

( P o l a n

d )

H u i C

h i n e s e M

u s l i m

( N i n g

x i a , C h i n

a )

K a z a k h

( C h i n

e s e T

u r k e s t a n

)

E v e n k (

H a r b i n ,

C h i n e

s e M a n c h u r i

a )

M o n g

o l i a

L h a s a , T i b

e t

C h i n e

s e I n n e

r M o n g o l i a

E v e n k

( H u l u

n b u i r

, C h i n

e s e M

a n c h u r i

a )

H a n (

J i l i n ,

C h i n a

)

Japanese

Sino-Tibetan

Southeast Asian

Malay Archipelago

India

Mongolian

Finno-Ugrian

Eastern European

Northwest European

Asia Minor

Mediterranean

North African

Arabian

Mestizo

Other








14

East Asian and Pacific Populations

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

J a p a

n K o

r e a

H a n (

J i l i n ,

C h i n

a )

S i c h u

a n , C h i n

a

E a s t e

r n C h i n a

L h a s a , T i b

e t

V i e t n a

m

T h a i l a n d

M a o n

a n ( G u a n x i , C

h i n a )

P h i l i p

p i n e s

J a v a

, I n d o

n e s i a

A u s t r a

l i a n A

b o r i g i n a

l

S a m o

a

Mongolian

Japanese

Sino-Tibetan

Southeast Asian

Malay Archipelago

Australian

Polynesian

India

India Tribal

Other








15

Score Ranges for Three Major U.S. Ethnic Groups by Percentile

Individuals within each population exhibit a characteristic range of world region scores.

The following tables list scores by percentile for Caucasians, African-Americans and

Hispanics living in the United States. These percentiles provide the range of expectedscores for individuals within each group.

For instance, half of all U.S. Caucasians obtain a Northwest European score between 7.77and 77.50, with a median of 23.12. Northwest European scores within this range could

be considered ordinary for Caucasian individuals. Only five percent of Caucasians obtain

a score either below 1.91 or above 737.10. These could be considered very low and very

high scores within this ethnic group, respectively.

Caucasian (U.S.A.)

5% 25% 50% 75% 95%

(very low) (ordinary) (ordinary) (ordinary) (very high)

Northwest European 1.91 7.77 23.12 77.50 737.10

Mediterranean 1.78 6.42 17.11 50.44 566.27

Eastern European 0.95 4.74 14.50 50.56 383.65

Asia Minor 1.82 5.02 10.51 25.39 265.44

Finno-Ugrian 0.40 2.23 7.22 26.47 257.13

Mestizo 0.14 1.33 3.65 8.90 31.88

North African 0.06 0.72 2.44 6.97 34.72

Arabian 0.11 0.65 2.40 7.94 49.57

Mongolian 0.10 0.83 2.16 5.49 34.82India 0.11 0.52 1.35 3.29 13.21

Sub-Saharan African 0.00 0.03 0.22 1.40 19.61

North India 0.02 0.06 0.18 0.65 6.57

Japanese 0.00 0.03 0.15 0.65 4.43

Southeast Asian 0.00 0.02 0.09 0.39 2.87

Malay Archipelago 0.00 0.03 0.09 0.33 1.78

India Tribal 0.00 0.01 0.08 0.40 3.23

South Amerindian 0.00 0.01 0.07 0.41 4.63

Sino-Tibetan 0.00 0.02 0.06 0.26 1.89

Australian 0.00 0.01 0.06 0.27 2.71

Northeast Amerindian 0.00 0.00 0.03 0.17 2.22

Salishan 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.02 0.55Polynesian 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.02 0.65

Arctic 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.02

Athabaskan 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.01 0.23








16

African-American (U.S.A.)

5% 25% 50% 75% 95%


Sub-Saharan African 1.47 31.61 522.87 22,079.01 4,024,503.25

North African 0.46 5.48 26.22 198.81 5,391.65

Arabian 0.31 2.56 10.81 60.67 794.16

Asia Minor 1.27 3.35 7.34 18.67 128.58

Mediterranean 0.80 2.53 6.03 15.43 71.97



Mestizo 0.06 0.58 1.80 4.74 18.84

Finno-Ugrian 0.08 0.39 1.15 3.43 18.56

India 0.07 0.39 0.97 2.62 11.54Mongolian 0.03 0.28 0.77 1.98 8.81

North India 0.02 0.11 0.42 2.90 557.72


Japanese 0.00 0.04 0.25 1.64 34.10

Sino-Tibetan 0.00 0.03 0.12 0.52 4.41

Australian 0.00 0.02 0.10 0.60 9.29

Southeast Asian 0.00 0.02 0.09 0.42 4.36


India Tribal 0.00 0.01 0.05 0.29 4.23


Polynesian 0.00 0.00 0.01 0.13 4.69

Arctic 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.06Salishan 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.01 0.52

Athabaskan 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.16

For instance, half of all African-Americans obtain a Sub-Saharan African score between

31.61 and 22,079.01, with a median of 522.87. Sub-Saharan African scores within this

range could be considered ordinary for African-American individuals. Only five percentof African-Americans obtain a score either below 1.47 or above 4,024,503.25. These

could be considered very low and very high scores within this ethnic group, respectively.








17

Hispanic (U.S.A.)

5% 25% 50% 75% 95%


Mestizo 0.66 4.50 12.91 39.99 259.76

Asia Minor 0.13 1.40 3.21 7.19 41.28


Mediterranean 0.11 0.99 2.74 7.02 35.55

Mongolian 0.22 0.93 2.35 6.25 30.98



Finno-Ugrian 0.11 0.50 1.38 4.28 24.44

India 0.03 0.30 0.90 2.27 8.87

Arabian 0.01 0.12 0.57 2.37 18.06North African 0.01 0.12 0.52 1.99 13.01


Japanese 0.01 0.10 0.46 1.82 13.05

Sub-Saharan African 0.00 0.02 0.15 1.01 18.06

Southeast Asian 0.00 0.03 0.14 0.55 4.09

Sino-Tibetan 0.00 0.04 0.14 0.50 3.30

North India 0.01 0.04 0.13 0.44 7.07


Athabaskan 0.00 0.00 0.04 0.51 25.11

Salishan 0.00 0.00 0.03 0.48 18.68

India Tribal 0.00 0.00 0.03 0.17 1.43

Australian 0.00 0.00 0.03 0.13 1.15Polynesian 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.01 0.58

Arctic 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.01 0.53

For instance, half of all U.S Hispanics obtain a Mestizo score between 4.50 and 39.99,

with a median of 12.91. Mestizo scores within this range could be considered ordinary

for U.S. Hispanic individuals. Only five percent of U.S. Hispanics obtain a score eitherbelow 0.66 or above 259.76. These could be considered very low and very high scores

within this ethnic group, respectively.








18

Further Discussion: Regions, Not Races

For several decades, scientists have known that geographical variation exists within the

human species. People around the world share genetic traits with their neighbors thatdistinguish them from peoples living further away. However, scientists have also known

that 3-5 simple racial categories are insufficient to describe the genetic diversity of living

human populations. This creates the open question: how can the genetic landscape of mankind be described? DNA Tribes provides a fresh answer to this question by

describing the world not as an over-simplified checkerboard of racial divisions, but as a

complex mosaic of overlapping world regions.

Traditional anthropology once classified four races corresponding to four major

continents: African, European, Asian and American. This simple system of classification

dates back to the 18th century taxonomist Carolus Linnaeus and is still commonly usedwhen describing ethnic groups and individuals. Certain areas of each continent are

traditionally designated as pure representatives of each race, and other regions are

assumed to be mixed between these presumedly pure areas. Since molecular DNA hasprovided a more objective way of charting human relationships, scientists have known

these racial groups do not exist as genetic units but also observed clear differences

between regions.

However, interpretations of molecular DNA continue to use this traditional racial scheme

in the absence of a more fully descriptive global model. The genetic differences between

peoples traditionally identified as Black, White, Asian and Native American in NorthAmerica are great enough to allow a rough estimate of an individual’s “percentage”

membership in each racial group. This approach has been used for medical and police

applications as well as for individuals interested in learning more about their geneticancestry.

However, this racial scheme creates problems when used outside of the core regionsancestral to modern North Americans. For instance, a Subcontinental Indian or Samoan

can be classified as some percentage of Native American, European, East Asian and Sub-

Saharan Africa, but the result would lack meaning. At a theoretical level, this approach

adds nothing to the popular or scientific understanding of human relationships andbestows an air to scientific legitimacy on outdated ideas of race. Technological

applications of these over-simplifying models present potential for neglect or harm: forinstance, to the Subcontinental Indian or Samoan administered a drug regimen based on aracial admixture model that does not take into account their world region of origins.







h li k d ib i id d

19

As the global survey in the proceeding pages illustrates, the four-fold racial division is

insufficient to fully describe the diversity of the human species. The world regionsidentified by DNA Tribes offer a novel approach to the question by objectively

identifying groups of populations based on a statistical analysis of neutral genetic

markers. The result is a network of world regions each characterized by shared history

and genetic patterns. The geographical outlines of these regions echo the borders of countless empires, trade networks and kin groups. They do not propose historical

relationships between these groups; instead, they describe the cumulative outcome of

historical interactions.

As DNA Tribes continues to incorporate more data in a refined statistical analysis, this

map will likely be clarified. However, a number of basic points have become apparent:

• Native Americans, traditionally considered a homogeneous group or perhaps a minoroffshoot of a putative Asian “Mongoloid race,” are instead a complex group of world

regions. The genetic divisions between some of these regions are deeper than thosebetween traditional races. For instance, the distance between Salishans and all other

non-Arctic Native Americans is greater than the distance between Europeans and

Asians (see tree diagram on page 4).

• Mongolians proper are affiliated with a Mongolian world region distributedthroughout Central Asia that bears only a distant outlier relation within a family of

regions including East Asians.

• Intermediate regions within Eurasia are not equivalent to hypothetical admixturesbetween far Western Europeans and far Eastern Asians. Anatolians, Mongolians,

North Indians and others possess unique genetic characteristics not explained by a

simple racial model.

• South Asia is the home of at least several unique world regions not consistent with asimple model of East-West contact. Each of the India, India Tribal and North India

regions is characterized by distinct allele frequencies.

• The cultural term “Hispanic” as used in the United States describes geneticallydisparate populations descended from Native American, European and African

ancestors, most of which share substantial affiliation with a Mestizo world region.

• Many diaspora ethnic groups retain traces of their origins as well as their currenthomes. For instance, Polish Tatars are descended from Central Asians and retain

Mongolian genetic affiliations as well as affiliations with European populations.

Documents

DNA Tribes - Global Survey - Regional Affinities