The Journey of the J Haplogroups: Unraveling Using Ancient GPS

Human migration has been an intrinsic part of our existence since time immemorial. It's woven into the very fabric of our being, an innate aspect of our collective identity. There is something inside us all that propels us to move and explore. Understanding the patterns and timelines of human migration is essential, as it sheds light on our shared history and how we have populated the world over the past ~220,000 years since the emergence of our species. (Elhaik et al. 2014)

One fascinating thread in this narrative is the journey of the Y chromosome J haplogroup. The J haplogroup represents a large lineage of genetic markers on the Y chromosome. J is separated into subclades J1 and J2 and they, in turn, can be separated into further subclades.

The geographical origin of this clade has been debated for over 20 years. With 37% prevalence, J is the most common haplogroup among Ashkenazic Jews (Das et al. 2016) (J1a is 20%, J2a is 13%, and J2b is 4%), which only intensified the discussion of its origin.

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Y chromosomal haplogroups among Ashkenazic Jews. (Das et al./ Author Provided)

Did the J haplogroup originate in Israel, and if so, when did it arrive and where from? Could it be a hallmark of Jewishness? These speculations were further fulled by the “discovery” of the now thoroughly debunked “Cohen Modal Haplotype (CMH),” a small subbranch of J1 that was found among Jews with a Cohen surname as well as non-Jews. Indeed, as soon as researchers began collecting data, it became apparent that J is common all around the Mediterranean, including the Middle East, Eastern Africa, and parts of Northwestern Africa and Central Asia.

Klyosov, for example, reported that the most recent common ancestors of haplogroup J1 and J2 lived 4,300±500 and 4,175±510 years before the present, respectively (Klyosov 2010). Those dates fit with the emergence of the Israelites, but as we will see, as with all reconstructions that are based solely on modern-day data (as offered by genetic testing companies), they are inaccurate.

With the increased availability of ancient DNA, the Js have also started to emerge in the data, giving us a chance to answer these critical questions about J without considering modern-day migrations.

But while we often know where the J carriers were buried, we lack information about where they are from. This is where the ancient Geographic Population Structure (ancient GPS) comes into play. aGPS is an AI-based tool is capable of using ancient genomic data and predicting the site of origin for the DNA and its age. Putting together all this information allows reconstructing the migration routes of our ancestors who carried out the Js. The advantage of this approach is that it uses actual data, compared to reconstructions based solely on modern-day data that go back thousands of years without any evidence.

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Camel procession through the night. (SANGHYUN/Adobe Stock)

The Origins of Haplogroup J:

Our journey begins in the cradle of humanity, Africa, where the roots of haplogroup J extend back over 70,000 years. Emerging from the broader haplogroup CF, haplogroup J represents a pivotal branch in the human family tree. Around 50,000 to 60,000 years ago, a significant divergence occurred, giving rise to haplogroups I and J, setting the stage for a remarkable journey of genetic exploration. As the Ice Age gripped Europe in its frozen embrace, our ancient J ancestors ventured forth, probably finding refuge in the Middle East. While the Neanderthals (belonging to basal haplogroup A), faded into the annals of history and no longer competed with humans on the scarce resources like caves and game, the J’s began to spread.

The Rise of Civilization (12,000 – 8000 BC):

As the millennia unfolded, the J haplogroups witnessed the dawn of civilization and the birth of monumental achievements. Around 12,000 BC, we found a J2 near sites such as Göbekli Tepe in Turkey, where the world’s oldest known megalith stood. These towering stone pillars, erected by our ancient ancestors, predate the advent of agriculture and settled societies. Other J’s pop up in southern France and Iran. The first J migrant moved from Iran to Turkey, again very close to Göbekli Tepe.

Göbekli Tepe, Şanlıurfa, Turkey, the earliest known megalithic temple. (Teomancimit/CC BY-SA 3.0)

The Neolithic Revolution (5,500 – 4000 BC):

Around 5500 BC, the J’s embarked on a new chapter in their journey, migrating across Europe as part of the Neolithic revolution. They journeyed from Italy to the Balkans and around the Black Sea, coinciding with the transition of local populations from hunter-gatherer lifestyles to agriculture. This shift reshaped the landscape and laid the foundations for the following civilizations.

The Neolithic Revolution brought agriculture. (AI Generated)

The Age of Exploration (4,000 – 2800 BC):

As centuries passed, the J haplogroups continued their migratory journey, venturing into new frontiers and forging connections across distant lands. From the shores of the Black Sea to the vast expanses of Mongolia, where the first J1 appeared, they continued to move around Turkey and Iran, two of the three corners of the region that witnessed the agricultural revolution.

The Founding of Jerusalem (2500 – 1900 BC):

The earliest written mention of Jerusalem comes from Egyptian texts dating back to 2000-1800 BC, referring to it as “Rushalimum” as a city-state. The name “Urusalim” is mentioned in the Egyptian Amarna letters, which date back to between 1388-1332 BC.

The first archaeological find of the name Yerushalayim written in Hebrew is found in a burial cave near the town of Lachish, dating to the 6th century BC. The city was likely founded by the Jebusites, a Canaanite clan, who built the city as a fortress city and named it Jebus (Jerusalem). This story is recorded in Judges 1 (1:8): “Now the children of Judah had fought against Jerusalem and had taken it, and smitten it with the edge of the sword, and set the city on fire,” which is unfortunately contradicted in verse 21 “And the children of Benjamin did not drive out the Jebusites that inhabited Jerusalem; but the Jebusites dwell with the children of Benjamin in Jerusalem unto this day,” which tells us that the victory wasn’t exactly a complete annihilation, and the Israelites and Jebusiteses lived together in Jerusalem (Kalimi 2002).

Taking the earliest Egyptian 2000 BC, we see a J1 migrating to Jerusalem. Was he a Jebusite who constructed the most famous city in the world? We cannot say. However, he is not the last J to pop up in Jerusalem.

A reconstruction of Herod's Temple from the Holyland Model of Jerusalem. (Public domain)

The Legacy of Ugarit (1500  BC):

Shortly after the founding of Jerusalem, another very famous city emerged in the northern Levant, and once again, the Js were there to see it rise.  Thriving during the Late Bronze Age, Ugarit stood as a bustling trade hub, connecting diverse cultures from Mesopotamia to Egypt.

The discovery of clay tablet archives in Ugarit offers a tantalizing glimpse into daily life in the ancient Near East, shedding light on everything from commerce to religion and influencing the development of alphabetic writing systems. We see 5 J2s moving from the Caucasus and West Syria to Ugarit, as it was founded. We also see a J1 moving from Jerusalem to Ugarit around 1400 BC. Was he a scribe?

The connection between the cities, shown here for the first time using ancient DNA, may explain the high similarity between certain Ugaritic texts and passages found in the Hebrew Bible, particularly in poetic compositions such as the Psalms and prophetic literature. Unfortunately, this is also the last Js that we see in the Levant. They disappeared from the records following the Assyrian Exile of the Last Ten Tribes of Israel.

The Journey Continues (1000 BC):

From the Roman Empire to the shores of England and the forests of Scandinavia, we see the movements of J2 that span countries and centuries. By 100 BC, most of the J2s activity was in Europe, with the J2s rushing to the Roman Empire. In 200 AD, we see J2s from around the Black Sea and the Balkans arriving in England for the first time. There was also a lot of J activity in Germany in the 9th century, some 100 years after the large cities were constructed. In the 10th century, J2s first appeared in Scandinavia.

The Js today

Today, the Js are spread mostly throughout the Middle East and around the Mediterranean with offshoots in Asia and Central Europe. The limited availability of ancient DNA data allows for the telling of only a part of the story of the J migrants, skipping much of their African history. However, even with those pieces, ancient GPS was able to recreate the migration history of the J haplogroups. We can only hope that, with time, we can add more pieces to this puzzle.

The distribution of the J haplogroup. (Public domain)

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Top image: Ancient migration procession, representing movement of J haplogroup..                Source: VK Studio/Adobe Stock

By Dr. Eran Elhaik