Eupedia
Eupedia Genetics


Eupedia Home > Genetics > DNA projects > China & Mongolia Regional DNA Project

China & Mongolia Regional DNA Project

中文版

One Family Project

The One Family One World Project is a partnership between Living DNA and Eupedia initiated in 2017. The project aims to map the regional genetic variations of the world with a great level of detail and accuracy in order to improve our understanding of both recent and ancient migrations and see how humans are all connected with one another as one big family.


Genetic variations within China & Mongolia

China is the world's most populous country and one of the largest in terms of land area. Over half of the country is occupied by some 55 ethnic minorities that make up less than 10% of the overall population.

Historical context

The ethnic Han majority grew from a small population of farmers in the Neolithic period. Over the centuries and millennia, the Hans differentiated into regional groups with their own dialects, particularly in the south.

Numerous foreign invasions, particularly from Mongolia, slightly altered the gene pool of northern Hans. The Indo-Europeans from Russia brought bronze working, horses and chariots to Mongolia and northern China from 3000 to 3500 years ago, leaving a few percents of European DNA among these populations, particularly in Mongolia, where about 10% of the Y chromosomes and autosomal DNA may be of European origin.

The Mongols conquered China under Kublai Khan in the 13rd century. From 1644 to 1912, China was ruled by a Jurchen elite from Manchuria. Both the Mongols and the Manchus left genetic marks on the Han population.

Objective & Methodology

This project aims at unravelling the regional genetic differences between the various ethnic groups found in China and Mongolia.

To determine the boundaries between proposed genetic regions we took into account the location of the main modern ethnic groups. As historically people tended to marry much more frequently within the confines of their geographic and linguistic boundaries, the Han population was divided according to the perimeters of the Han dialects, and not along the political borders of modern provinces.

Since this study aims at identifying distinct regional ancestry among the Hans, recent Han migrants to Xinjiang and Tibet should apply for their ancestral region.

Proposed genetic regions of China & Mongolia

Our preliminary research indicates at least 55 areas of China & Mongolia may have distinct genetic differences. Ethnic minorities with low populations (less than 100,000 individuals) were not taken into account for this project.

Proposed genetic divisions of China & Mongolia - One Family One World DNA Project

Ethnic Hans

  • Beijing Hans
  • Chonqing Hans
  • Gan Hans
  • Gansu Hans
  • Guizhou Hans
  • Hainan Hans
  • Hakka Hans
  • Hebei Hans
  • Heilongjian Hans
  • Henan Hans
  • Hubei Hans
  • Jiaoliao Hans
  • Jilin & Liaoning Hans
  • Lower Yangtze Hans
  • Min Hans
  • Shaanxi Hans
  • Shandong Hans
  • Shanxi Hans
  • Sichuan Hans
  • Taiwan Hans
  • Tianjin Hans
  • Wu Hans
  • Xiang Hans
  • Yue Hans
  • Yunnan Hans

Mongols

  • Buryats
  • Chinese Mongols
  • Daurs
  • Khalka Mongols
  • Oirat Mongols
  • Sartuul Mongols

Ethnic minorities

  • Bai
  • Chinese Koreans
  • Dai
  • Dong
  • Evenki
  • Hani
  • Hui
  • Jingpo
  • Kazakhs
  • Kyrgyz
  • Lahu
  • Li
  • Lisu
  • Manchus
  • Miao
  • Taiwan Aborigines
  • Tajiks
  • Tibetans
  • Tujia
  • Uyghurs
  • Wa
  • Yao
  • Yi
  • Zhuang


How do I qualify?

The One Family project is open to everyone worldwide and has two parts.

  • 1. To build a genetic family tree of everyone from around the world, regardless of where your family comes from.
  • 2. To build a regional genetic breakdown of ancestry within countries, similar to 'The Peopling of the British Isles project'. This part of the project is looking for people with all four grandparents born within 80km (50mi) of each other inside our project areas of interest.

If you have already tested with Living DNA, all you need to do to join the project is log into your account, click on the Research tab and choose to participate in our global ancestry research project, if you haven't already done it.

If you already tested your DNA with another company (23andMe, AncestryDNA, MyHeritage, or FTDNA's Family Finder), you can join the project here for free. After submitting the form with your family information, you will receive an email to confirm the creation of your Living DNA account and will be asked to upload your genome there for free.

If you have not yet tested your DNA with one of the above companies, then you will need to order a Living DNA test to take part.

The data provided as part of the project is kept strictly private and confidential under Living DNA’s ISO:27001 certification for information security. Please read Living DNA's Privacy Policy for more information.


Eupedia
Copyright © 2004-2022 Eupedia.com All Rights Reserved.