Early Holocenic and Historic mtDNA African Signatures in the Iberian Peninsula: The Andalusian Region as a Paradigm Candela L. Hernández, 2015
Abstract Determining the timing, identity and direction of migrations in the Mediterranean Basin, the role of “migratory routes” in and among regions of Africa, Europe and Asia, and the effects of sex-specific behaviors of population movements have important implications for our understanding of the present human genetic diversity. A crucial component of the Mediterranean world is its westernmost region. Clear features of transcontinental ancient contacts between North African and Iberian populations surrounding the maritime region of Gibraltar Strait have been identified from archeological data. The attempt to discern origin and dates of migration between close geographically related regions has been a challenge in the field of uniparental-based population genetics. Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) studies have been focused on surveying the H1, H3 and V lineages when trying to ascertain north-south migrations, and U6 and L in the opposite direction, assuming that those lineages are good proxies for the ancestry of each side of the Mediterranean. To this end, in the present work we have screened entire mtDNA sequences belonging to U6, M1 and L haplogroups in Andalusians—from Huelva and Granada provinces—and Moroccan Berbers. We present here pioneer data and interpretations on the role of NW Africa and the Iberian Peninsula regarding the time of origin, number of founders and expansion directions of these specific markers. The estimated entrance of the North African U6 lineages into Iberia at 10 ky correlates well with other L African clades, indicating that U6 and some L lineages moved together from Africa to Iberia in the Early Holocene. Still, founder analysis highlights that the high sharing of lineages between North Africa and Iberia results from a complex process continued through time, impairing simplistic interpretations. In particular, our work supports the existence of an ancient,***** frequently denied******, bridge connecting the Maghreb and Andalusia.
COVID-19 has showed me again how small group of people has the power to control the narrative, and they have been doing it for a long time.
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Haplogroup U6 has a prevalence of around 10% in Northwest Africa with a maximum of 29% in an Algerian Mozabites. However in this article they used samples of Moroccan Berbers for their U6 analysis. As we can see in these three Moroccan Berber groups the Asni have 11.32% U6 carriers while the Figuig, much less 3.19 and the Bouhia under 2%. On the Andalusian side, total about 9% The L lineages in Morocco are not corresponding highest in the Asni, Instead it's with the Figuig 21.3% much higher than the other Moroccan groups and on the Andalusian side, total about 5.5 %
Regarding lineage L, the sub-haplogroups L1 (L1b), L2 (L2a, L2b) and L3 (L3d, L3f, L3h, L3x) again distinguish western (3.92%) from eastern (1.28%) Andalusians. In the analyzed Berber samples, the L1b registered an average of 7% (~6–8%).
In Figuig Berbers, L3e appears conspicuously represented (21.3%), which is a finding that is not shared by the other two Moroccan Berber populations (3–8%).
The evolutionary origins of the L0, L1, L2 and L3 lineages are located in sub-Saharan Africa [41]. The neat markers of mtDNA L lineages among North Africans again support the view that the Sahara desert has not been an insurmountable barrier to the populations that border it (15,38,42], among others). The M1 haplogroup is weakly represented in Andalusia under 1% (Iberia 0–2.1%), whereas in Moroccan Berbers, the frequencies vary between 2.1 and 4.3%.
