Parallel evolution of genes and languages in the Caucasus region

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dc.contributor.authorBalanovsky, O.
dc.contributor.authorHaak, W.
dc.contributor.authorAdler, C.
dc.contributor.authorCooper, A.
dc.contributor.authorDersarkissian, C.
dc.date.issued2011
dc.description.abstractWe analyzed 40 single nucleotide polymorphism and 19 short tandem repeat Y-chromosomal markers in a large sample of 1,525 indigenous individuals from 14 populations in the Caucasus and 254 additional individuals representing potential source populations. We also employed a lexicostatistical approach to reconstruct the history of the languages of the North Caucasian family spoken by the Caucasus populations. We found a different major haplogroup to be prevalent in each of four sets of populations that occupy distinct geographic regions and belong to different linguistic branches. The haplogroup frequencies correlated with geography and, even more strongly, with language. Within haplogroups, a number of haplotype clusters were shown to be specific to individual populations and languages. The data suggested a direct origin of Caucasus male lineages from the Near East, followed by high levels of isolation, differentiation, and genetic drift in situ. Comparison of genetic and linguistic reconstructions covering the last few millennia showed striking correspondences between the topology and dates of the respective gene and language trees and with documented historical events. Overall, in the Caucasus region, unmatched levels of gene–language coevolution occurred within geographically isolated populations, probably due to its mountainous terrain.
dc.description.statementofresponsibilityOleg Balanovsky, Khadizhat Dibirova, Anna Dybo, Oleg Mudrak, Svetlana Frolova, Elvira Pocheshkhova, Marc Haber, Daniel Platt, Theodore Schurr, Wolfgang Haak, Marina Kuznetsova, Magomed Radzhabov, Olga Balaganskaya, Alexey Romanov, Tatiana Zakharova, David F. Soria Hernanz, Pierre Zalloua, Sergey Koshel, Merritt Ruhlen, Colin Renfrew, R. Spencer Wells, Chris Tyler-Smith, Elena Balanovska and The Genographic Consortium
dc.identifier.citationMolecular Biology and Evolution, 2011; 28(10):2905-2920
dc.identifier.doi10.1093/molbev/msr126
dc.identifier.issn0737-4038
dc.identifier.issn1537-1719
dc.identifier.orcidHaak, W. [0000-0003-2475-2007]
dc.identifier.orcidCooper, A. [0000-0002-7738-7851]
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/2440/65790
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherOxford Univ Press
dc.source.urihttps://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msr126
dc.subjectGenographic Consortium
dc.subjectChromosomes, Human, Y
dc.subjectHumans
dc.subjectSequence Analysis, DNA
dc.subjectLanguage
dc.subjectGenetics, Population
dc.subjectEvolution, Molecular
dc.subjectPhylogeny
dc.subjectMicrosatellite Repeats
dc.subjectGene Pool
dc.subjectHaplotypes
dc.subjectPolymorphism, Single Nucleotide
dc.subjectLinguistics
dc.subjectRussia
dc.subjectMale
dc.subjectAsian People
dc.subjectWhite People
dc.titleParallel evolution of genes and languages in the Caucasus region
dc.typeJournal article
pubs.publication-statusPublished

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