Description
R1a-Z93 is the predominant Asian branch of R1a and the key genetic marker of the Indo-Iranian expansion. Arising in the steppe regions of Southern Russia and Kazakhstan, its carriers moved southward in massive migrations that reached the Iranian plateau and the Indian subcontinent. It is found at very high frequencies among high-caste Hindus in India (Brahmins), Indo-Iranian speaking peoples like Persians and Tajiks, and also among many Turkic and Mongolic groups due to later historical admixtures on the steppe.
Interesting Fact
R1a-Z93 was the dominant lineage of the Sintashta and Andronovo cultures, the people who invented the spoke-wheeled chariot and are widely believed to be the proto-Indo-Iranians who wrote the earliest hymns of the Rigveda and the Avesta.
Distribution by Ethnicity
| Ethnic distribution | Region | Frequency | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brahmins (India) | South Asia | n=200 | |
| Tajiks | Central Asia | n=180 | |
| Kyrgyz | Central Asia | n=150 | |
| Pashtuns | South Asia / Central Asia | n=250 | |
| Altai | Siberia | n=150 |
Associated Clans & Tribes
Tribe
Sintashta culture
South Urals
Early Bronze Age chariot-using culture, predominantly Z93
Tribe
Andronovo culture
Central Asia
Massive Bronze Age archaeological horizon linked to Indo-Iranians
Clan
Scythians
Eurasian Steppe
Iron Age nomadic warriors with high Z93 frequency
Tags
References
- Narasimhan et al. (2019) — The formation of human populations in South and Central Asia. Science 365(6457).
- Allentoft et al. (2015) — Population genomics of Bronze Age Eurasia. Nature 522, 167–172.