Multiple Origins of Ashkenazi Levites: Y Chromosome Evidence for Both
Near Eastern and European Ancestries
http://www.familytreedna.com/pdf/Levite%20paper.pdf
Previous Y chromosome studies have shown that the Cohanim, a paternally inherited Jewish priestly caste, predominantly
share a recent common ancestry irrespective of the geographically defined post-Diaspora community
to which they belong, a finding consistent with common Jewish origins in the Near East. In contrast, the Levites,
another paternally inherited Jewish caste, display evidence for multiple recent origins, with Ashkenazi Levites having
a high frequency of a distinctive, non–Near Eastern haplogroup. Here, we show that the Ashkenazi Levite microsatellite
haplotypes within this haplogroup are extremely tightly clustered, with an inferred common ancestor within
the past 2,000 years. Comparisons with other Jewish and non-Jewish groups suggest that a founding event, probably
involving one or very few European men occurring at a time close to the initial formation and settlement of the
Ashkenazi community, is the most likely explanation for the presence of this distinctive haplogroup found today
in 50% of Ashkenazi Levites.
If a European origin for the Ashkenazi Levite haplogroup
R1a1 component is accepted as a reasonable
possibility, it is of interest to speculate further on the
possible timing, location, and mechanism of this event.
Because the modal haplotype of haplogroup R1a1
found in the Ashkenazi Levites is found at reasonably
high frequency throughout the eastern European region
Intriguingly, the Sorbian
tongue, relexified with a German vocabulary, has been
proposed as the origin of Yiddish
LOL ]:-)
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