About us
mtDNA Haplogroup I * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Descendants of 'Iris' Hello! We welcome everyone with mtDNA test results in the Family Tree DNA system, confirming that they belong to Haplogroup I. Prior to joining, please arrange to have mtDNA testing at FTDNA that shows assignment to Haplogroup I. MtDNA testing by other companies does not transfer to FTDNA because the data is incomplete and has many gaps. Haplogroup I is a West Eurasian haplogroup. It is relatively rare and one of the older mtDNA haplogroups in Europe. It is a downstream branch of the older macro-haplogroup N through N1a1b. In areas where it occurs, Haplogroup I is typically found at a frequency range of 2% to 4%. There are some locations with higher rates, including a small set of isolated populations that exceed 10%. These highest frequencies occur among: (a) the Lemkos in the Carpathian Mountains at 11.3%,1 (b) the inhabitants of Krk Island in the Adriatic Sea at 11.3%,1 and (c) two Cushitic tribes: the Rendilles and Elmolos at 15-20%, currently inhabiting an area of northern Kenya.2 (See references below.) Research indicates that, in ancient times, Haplogroup I occurred at higher-than-usual levels among certain populations of Vikings and Danes. The average frequency rate was 13% from the Iron Age to Medieval times. 3,4 (See references below.) During the past decade, the mtDNA tree for Haplogroup I has undergone vast development with many new subclades discovered. Participation of our project members contributed significantly to this research. However, no official updates have been published to the mtDNA tree (PhyloTree) since 2016. We hope an update will be made sooner rather than later. Since 2016, evidence has accumulated for many new subclades. We hope that this project will be useful in the study of the history, migrations, and connections of the various branches. *Links to research articles can be found near the end of this page. Also please don't miss out on our project page entitled "Results" (see link at the top of the page). ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Your Privacy: Be assured that your mtDNA test results are NEVER made public by joining this or any other FTDNA project. A very limited set of data CAN be voluntarily made viewable, but only if you change a setting in your account (which is otherwise defaulted as private). Our project NEVER shares your name, email, account profile, ancestor names, or family tree with anyone. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Making the Most of Your Full-Sequence Results: In many cases, our project will be able to group you into a proposed or anticipated subclade that has not yet been formally identified. When you join this project -- and periodically, thereafter, as the structure of the haplogroup grows -- we will place you in the most refined subclade that we can. To do this, it is necessary for administrators to see your |