Kimberley Nyikina-Mangala DNA Project- Background

Background

Indigenous groups in the Kimberley region of Western Australia are very diverse - but not numerous in thier populations (e.g. Nyikina descendants could number less than 200 persons). It was hoped that Nyikina, Mangala, and other clan descendants could participate in this project to identify Y-DNA chromosomes and mtDNA chromosomes within this project and match them with other individual's DNA results world-wide to understand the diversity and distribution of this unique DNA with it's "genetic cousins" elsewhere.

The mtDNA and Y-DNA results from the Kimberley would eventually help to produce a map distribution of the DNA results; then in so doing, reveal a common related ancestry. It was further hoped that participants could find others who matched their own mtDNA or Y-Chromosome identity, and were therefore - genetically related, either by name, or simply through family.