2006/12/22 by Gyaneshwer Chaubey, Mait Metspalu, Toomas Kivisild +1 · 8 citations
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · Arts and Humanities · #Forensic and Genetic Research #Forensic Anthropology and Bioarchaeology Studies #Race, Genetics, and Society #Caste #Endogamy #Tribe #Geography #South asia #Evolutionary biology #Ethnology #Ecology #Biology #Population #Demography #History #Anthropology #Sociology
paper · doi:10.1002/bies.20525
openalex publication_date 2006/12/22 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/05/21
In recent years, mtDNA and Y chromosome studies involving human populations from South Asia and the rest of the world have revealed new insights about the peopling of the world by anatomically modern humans during the late Pleistocene, some 40,000-60,000 years ago, over the southern coastal route from Africa. Molecular studies and archaeological record are both largely consistent with autochthonous differentiation of the genetic structure of the caste and tribal populations in South Asia. High level of endogamy created by numerous social boundaries within and between castes and tribes, along with the influence of several evolutionary forces such as genetic drift, fragmentation and long-term isolation, has kept the Indian populations diverse and distant from each other as well as from other continental populations. This review attempts to summarize recent genetic studies on Indian caste and tribal populations with the focus on the information embedded in the socially defined structure of Indian populations.