2000/07/18 by Bing Su, Jin Li, Peter A. Underhill +8 · 9 citations
Social Sciences · Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · #Pacific and Southeast Asian Studies #Genetic diversity and population structure #Forensic and Genetic Research
paper · doi:10.1073/pnas.97.15.8225
openalex publication_date 2000/07/18 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/06/11
The question surrounding the colonization of Polynesia has remained controversial. Two hypotheses, one postulating Taiwan as the putative homeland and the other asserting a Melanesian origin of the Polynesian people, have received considerable attention. In this work, we present haplotype data based on the distribution of 19 biallelic polymorphisms on the Y chromosome in a sample of 551 male individuals from 36 populations living in Southeast Asia, Taiwan, Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia. Surprisingly, nearly none of the Taiwanese Y haplotypes were found in Micronesia and Polynesia. Likewise, a Melanesian-specific haplotype was not found among the Polynesians. However, all of the Polynesian, Micronesian, and Taiwanese haplotypes are present in the extant Southeast Asian populations. Evidently, the Y-chromosome data do not lend support to either of the prevailing hypotheses. Rather, we postulate that Southeast Asia provided a genetic source for two independent migrations, one toward Taiwan and the other toward Polynesia through island Southeast Asia.