Loads of New mtDNA from Paleo-Europe

Face from a Forgotten World

Ivory carving of Human face dating about 30,000 years old from an archaeological site in the Czech Republic. mtDNA samples from this site had U5* and U8c.

Posth 2016 published several dozen new fully-sequenced mtDNA results from Stone age Hunter Gatherers of Europe(mostly Germany, Belgium, France, Italy). I've added all the results to my mtDNA DataBase. There's now well over 100 mtDNA samples from Stone age European Hunter Gatherers.

The results Posth 2016 are near 100% under haplogroup U(xK), like the results we've been getting from European Hunter Gatherers for years. The only surprise is M* dating about 30,000 years old in Belgium and France.

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Short summary of the history of European mtDNA, up until 6,000 years ago.

30,000+ years ago Europe was settled by humans carrying mostly mtDNA U(U5, U2, U8, etc), but also M*, N*, and R*. Sometime between 30,000 and 15,000 years ago, U5a'b replaced other forms of U in Europe. Western Europe was dominated by U5b and Eastern Europe by U5a, U4, and U2e. No dramatic changes occurred in European mtDNA, till 8,000-6,000 years ago when humans from Turkey and Caucasus mountains brought JT, R0(inlcu. H), U, N1, X, and W.

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The story of European genetics is fascinating and surprising. Modern Europeans are the result of at least two massive migrations from Asia/Far East Europe and a mixture of at least 4 distinct ancestors. They have very close ties to Middle Easterners and to a lesser extent Native Americans and North Asians. In this narrative U-dominated Paleo-Europeans are the aboriginal Europeans. They were some of the first humans to settle Europe and they lived undisturbed for 10,000s of years.