Humans Migrated Out Of Africa, Then Some Went Back, Study Says

"All humans come from lines designated L1, L2, and L3. Everyone outside Africa are descended from L3 and are more related to themselves than anyone in Africa. The L1 and L2 lines are still in Africa but, the L3 line has gone extinct in Africa."
I could have sworn that L3 Haplogroup is ONLY found in Africa???

African mtDNA haplogroups

L1 (L1a, L1b, L1c) - Populations carrying L1 are the descendants of the KhoiSan speaking peoples

L2 - This haplogroup is east African and it is related with the Bantu expansion

L2a, the most common clade (62% of the total L2), is the only one widespread all over Africa. Not surprisingly, it is also the one more associated with the Bantu and their expansion

L2b and L2c are more concentrated in western Africa (particularly Senegal) and are virtually absent in eastern Africans, in Biakaand Mbuti Pygmies, and is rare in southern Africans. It is common in some Senegalese populations.

L2d is the rarest, but it also appears mainly restricted to western Africa (particularly Western Sahara and Mauritania/Senegal).

L3 (L3b, L3d, L3e)- This haplogroup is east African and it is related with the Bantu expansion

L3* (also known as N/M/L3) - It is particularly important to make it quite clear that this group is specific to sub-Saharan Africa, since it is present in a great deal of the European populations including the Finns [Passarino et al. (2002) even found L2 lineages in a Norwegian sample, so the presence of African markers introduced in Nordic populations during the Neolithic shouldn't be a surprise]. This African haplogroup, mostly introduced in Europe during the Neolithic (as explained in Gonzalez et al. 2003) is distinguished from the Eurasian haplogroups M and N at the nucleotide positions 10400 and 10873, respectively (Quintana-Murci et al. 1999).

Looks like I may have misunderstood what I read. I always get into trouble with the DNA stuff.

Mitochondrial Eve: The Mother of Us All

Ancestral Line: “Mitochondrial Eve”

Our story begins in Africa sometime between 150,000 and 170,000 years ago, with a woman whom anthropologists have nicknamed “Mitochondrial Eve.”

She was awarded this mythic epithet in 1987 when population geneticists discovered that all people alive on the planet today can trace their maternal lineage back to her.

But Mitochondrial Eve was not the first female human. Homo sapiens evolved in Africa around 200,000 years ago, and the first hominids?characterized by their unique bipedal stature?appeared nearly two million years before that. Yet despite humans having been around for almost 30,000 years, Eve is exceptional because hers is the only lineage from that distant time to survive to the present day.

Which begs the question, “So why Eve?”

Simply put, Eve was a survivor. A maternal line can become extinct for a number of reasons. A woman may not have children, or she may bear only sons (who do not pass her mtDNA to the next generation). She may fall victim to a catastrophic event such as a volcanic eruption, flood, or famine, all of which have plagued humans since the dawn of our species.

None of these extinction events happened to Eve’s line. It may have been simple luck, or it may have been something much more. It was around this same time that modern humans’ intellectual capacity underwent what author Jared Diamond coined the Great Leap Forward.
Many anthropologists believe that the emergence of language gave us a huge advantage over other early human species. Improved tools and weapons, the ability to plan ahead and cooperate with one another, and an increased capacity to exploit resources in ways we hadn’t been able to earlier, all allowed modern humans to rapidly migrate to new territories, exploit new resources, and outcompete and replace other hominids, such as the Neandertals.

It is difficult to pinpoint the chain of events that led to Eve’s unique success, but we can say with certainty that all of us trace our maternal lineage back to this one woman.

The L Haplogroups: The Deepest Branches

Ancestral line: “Eve” > L1/L0

Mitochondrial Eve represents the root of the human family tree. Her descendents, moving around within Africa, eventually split into two distinct groups, characterized by a different set of mutations their members carry.

These groups are referred to as L0 and L1, and these individuals have the most divergent genetic sequences of anybody alive today, meaning they represent the deepest branches of the mitochondrial tree. Importantly, current genetic data indicates that indigenous people belonging to these groups are found exclusively in Africa. This means that, because all humans have a common female ancestor, “Eve,” and because the genetic data shows that Africans are the oldest groups on the planet, we know our species originated there.

Haplogroups L1 and L0 likely originated in East Africa and then spread throughout the rest of the continent. Today, these lineages are found at highest frequencies in Africa’s indigenous populations, the hunter-gatherer groups who have maintained their ancestors’ culture, language, and customs for thousands of years.

At some point, after these two groups had coexisted in Africa for a few thousand years, something important happened. The mitochondrial sequence of a woman in one of these groups, L1, mutated. A letter in her DNA changed, and because many of her descendants have survived to the present, this change has become a window into the past. The descendants of this woman, characterized by this signpost mutation, went on to form their own group, called L2. Because the ancestor of L2 was herself a member of L1, we can say something about the emergence of these important groups: Eve begat L1, and L1 begat L2. Now we’re starting to move down your ancestral line.

Haplogroup L2: West Africa

Ancestral line: “Eve” > L1/L0 > L2

L2 individuals are found in sub-Saharan Africa, and like their L1 predecessors, they also live in Central Africa and as far south as South Africa. But whereas L1/L0 individuals remained predominantly in eastern and southern Africa, your ancestors broke off into a different direction, which you can follow on the map above.

L2 individuals are most predominant in West Africa, where they constitute the majority of female lineages. And because L2 individuals are found at high frequencies and widely distributed along western Africa, they represent one of the predominant lineages in African-Americans. Unfortunately, it is difficult to pinpoint where a specific L2 lineage might have arisen. For an African-American who is L2?the likely result of West Africans being brought to America during the slave trade?it is difficult to say with certainty exactly where in Africa that lineage arose.

Fortunately, collaborative sampling with indigenous groups is currently underway to help learn more about these types of questions and to possibly bridge the gap that was created during those transatlantic voyages hundreds of years ago.

Haplogroup L3: Out of Africa

Ancestral line: “Eve” > L1/L0 > L2 > L3

Your next signpost ancestor is the woman whose birth around 80,000 years ago began haplogroup L3. It is a similar story: an individual in L2 underwent a mutation to her mitochondrial DNA, which was passed onto her children. The children were successful, and their descendants ultimately broke away from the L2 clan, eventually separating into a new group called L3. You can see above that this has revealed another step in your ancestral line.

While L3 individuals are found all over Africa, including the southern reaches of sub-Sahara, L3 is important for its movements north. You can follow this movement of the map above, seeing first the expansions of L1/L0, then L2, and followed by the northward migration of L3.

Your L3 ancestors were significant because they are the first modern humans to have left Africa, representing the deepest branches of the tree found outside of that continent.

Why would humans have first ventured out of the familiar African hunting grounds and into unexplored lands? It is likely that a fluctuation in climate may have provided the impetus for your ancestors’ exodus out of Africa.

The African Ice Age was characterized by drought rather than by cold. Around 50,000 years ago the ice sheets of northern Europe began to melt, introducing a period of warmer temperatures and moister climate in Africa. Parts of the inhospitable Sahara briefly became habitable. As the drought-ridden desert changed to savanna, the animals your ancestors hunted expanded their range and began moving through the newly emerging green corridor of grasslands. Your nomadic ancestors followed the good weather and plentiful game northward across this Saharan Gateway, although the exact route they followed remains to be determined.

Today, L3 individuals are found at high frequencies in populations across North Africa. From there, members of this group went in a few different directions. Some lineages within L3 testify to a distinct expansion event in the mid-Holocene that headed south, and are predominant in many Bantu groups found all over Africa. One group of individuals headed west and is primarily restricted to Atlantic western Africa, including the islands of Cabo Verde.

Other L3 individuals, your ancestors, kept moving northward, eventually leaving the African continent completely. These people currently make up around ten percent of the Middle Eastern population, and gave rise to two important haplogroups that went on to populate the rest of the world.

Haplogroup N: The Incubation Period

Ancestral line: “Eve” > L1/L0 > L2 > L3 > N

Your next signpost ancestor is the woman whose descendants formed haplogroup N. Haplogroup N comprises one of two groups that were created by the descendants of L3.

The first of these groups, M, was the result of the first great wave of migration of modern humans to leave Africa. These people likely left the continent across the Horn of Africa near Ethiopia, and their descendants followed a coastal route eastward, eventually making it all the way to Australia and Polynesia.

The second great wave, also of L3 individuals, moved north rather than east and left the African continent across the Sinai Peninsula, in present-day Egypt. Also faced with the harsh desert conditions of the Sahara, these people likely followed the Nile basin, which would have proved a reliable water and food supply in spite of the surrounding desert and its frequent sandstorms.

Descendants of these migrants eventually formed haplogroup N. Early members of this group lived in the eastern Mediterranean region and western Asia, where they likely coexisted for a time with other hominids such as Neandertals. Excavations in Israel’s Kebara Cave (Mount Carmel) have unearthed Neandertal skeletons as recent as 60,000 years old, indicating that there was both geographic and temporal overlap of these two hominids.

The ancient members of haplogroup N spawned many sublineages, which went on to populate much of the rest of the globe. They are found throughout Asia, Europe, India, and the Americas.

Haplogroup R: Spreading Out

Ancestral line: “Eve” > L1/L0 > L2 > L3 > N > R

After several thousand years in the Near East, individuals belonging to a new group called haplogroup R began to move out and explore the surrounding areas. Some moved south, migrating back into northern Africa. Others went west across Anatolia (present-day Turkey) and north across the Caucasus Mountains of Georgia and southern Russia. Still others headed east into the Middle East, and on to Central Asia. All of these individuals had one thing in common: they shared a female ancestor from the N clan, a recent descendant of the migration out of Africa.

The story of haplogroup R is complicated, however, because these individuals can be found almost everywhere, and because their origin is quite ancient. In fact, the ancestor of haplogroup R lived relatively soon after humans moved out of Africa during the second wave, and her descendants undertook many of the same migrations as her own group, N.

Because the two groups lived side by side for thousands of years, it is likely that the migrations radiating out from the Near East comprised individuals from both of these groups. They simply moved together, bringing their N and R lineages to the same places around the same times. The tapestry of genetic lines became quickly entangled, and geneticists are currently working to unravel the different stories of haplogroups N and R, since they are found in many of the same far-reaching places.

Haplogroup K: Your Branch on the Tree

Ancestral line: “Eve” > L1/L0 > L2 > L3 > N > R > K

We finally arrive at your own clan, a group of individuals who descend from a woman in the R branch of the tree. Because of the great genetic diversity found in haplogroup K, it is likely that she lived around 50,000 years ago.

Interestingly, her descendants gave rise to several different subgroups, some of which exhibit very specific geographic homelands. The very old age of these subgroups has led to a wide distribution; today they harbor specific European, northern African, and Indian components, and are found in Arabia, the northern Caucasus Mountains, and throughout the Near East.

While some members of your haplogroup headed north into Scandinavia, or south into North Africa, most members of your haplogroup K stem from a group of individuals who moved northward out of the Near East. These women crossed the rugged Caucasus Mountains in southern Russia, and moved on to the steppes of the Black Sea.

Interestingly, your haplogroup is also very significant because its members constitute three of the four major Ashkenazi Jewish founder lineages.

The term “Ashkenazi” refers to Jews of mainly central and eastern European ancestry. Most historical records indicate that the founding of Ashkenazi Jewry took place in the Rhine Basin where it subsequently underwent vast population expansions. In more recent times, the Ashkenazi population was estimated at approximately 25,000 individuals around 1300 A.D., whereas that number had increased to about 8,500,000 individuals by the turn of the twentieth century.

Around half of all Ashkenazi Jews trace their mitochondrial lineage back to one of four women, and your haplogroup K represents a lineage that gave rise to three of them. While this lineage is found at a smaller frequency in non-Ashkenazi Jews, the three K lineages that helped found the Ashkenazi population are seldom found in other populations. While virtually absent in Europeans, they appear at frequencies of three percent or higher in groups from the Levant, Arabia, and Egypt. This indicates a strong genetic role in the Ashkenazi founder event, which likely occurred in the Near East.

Today, K has given rise to three of the four most common haplogroups in Ashkenazi Jews and is currently shared by over 3,000,000 people.

"Looks like I may have misunderstood what I read. I always get into trouble with the DNA stuff."

Yeah, tell me about it! No problem.
I find it fascinating but my understanding is at the kindergarten level! Luckily for me, I've got a good friend who is a Professor of Genetics!

Was it supposed that migration could only occur in one direction vis-a-vis Africa? Was Suez a one-way valve?

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Problem is a concept called "the neololithic toolkit" or "the paleolithic toolkit" ~ which refers to the technology available to stoneage, or newstoneage people in different locations or at different times.

When it comes to Australia and Tasmania, it's easy to show that the Tasmanians had a depleted "kit" and would have had a hard time withstanding a good winter. Alternatively, since they'd traveled the farthest, they had the "original kit" and it was not satisfactory for cold weather life.

10 years of serious Winter at the Equator might have made it possible for someone to walk on the ice all the way to Australia, but he'd frozen to death on the way due to the fact he didn't have good clothing or boots.

Oh, yeah, that “winter” at the Equator would have left some evidence that it’d happened. For one, the Equator would have nothing but winter-hardy plants!

Problem is a concept called "the neololithic toolkit" or "the paleolithic toolkit" ~ which refers to the technology available to stoneage, or newstoneage people in different locations or at different times.

The definition is probably an inaccurate one at best.
It might make sense if "modern" man was the first of our species, but we know that is simply not the case.

We have evidence of "homo erectus" and, more significantly, neanderthal man.
Neanderthal goes back at least 250,000 years, and in the case of the migration mentioned in the article, we are only talking about 60K to 75K years.

Neanderthal knew how to fahion weapons, had flint technology, understood how to use fibers to tie and plait reeds, grass, rock (flint) and wood, etc..
They also knew how to fashion animal skins into clothing, specifically, cold weather clothing.
I'm reasonably sure that knowledge was passed down as to what animals provided the best outer wear, having water-repellent qualities, or heat insulating capability.

Homo sapiens was intellectually capable of learning such knowledge from their contact with neanderthal, and adapting it, even expanding upon it.
There is evidence that neanderthal, in turn, learned the idea of personal decoration and symbolism from Homo Sapiens.

You are, however, more than likely correct about the ice travel scenario via Indonesia to Australia, with the exception that the Toba eruption, coinciding with Ice Age conditions may have produced extreme cold snaps for a few years, maybe even a decade or more.
Such a climatic event occurring at the equatorial region would be extremely rare and even improbable, but not impossible. ( just my opinion )

That leaves us with sea travel, which would probably be the more likely scenario.
Migration along the coastal regions would have amply provided opportunity to learn the best ways to navigate the oceans.
Even without sails, fairly long distance travel can be achieved by rowing, if the crew is large enough, the dugout big enough, outriggers are used to stabilize the boat.
As for sails, a quick internet search didn't provide any archeological evidence for "weaving" past approximately 15,000 years ago, but something as simple as a reed mat, or even handmade fishing nets could have been the basis for rudimentary sails.
Simply hanging fishing nets up to dry would have been enough to show how they can catch the wind, and a simple process of net to woven fabric would have been pretty obvious once a "tighter" net was made.

Reed mats would be used as both ground cover and draped over supports for shade.
Any gust of wind would have demonstrated the facility for such mats catching and holding the wind, and if being used for shade on a sea-going vessel, be it raft or dugout, a practical demonstration of use as a sail would have occurred almost immediately.

Problem solved, please notify the archeological community. ;oD

The Neanderthals lived far to the North and West of Australia. Word is they never got there.

Early 19th century adventurers and explorers give us our information about the "tool kit" available to the nekkid natives in Tasmania.

They were very primitive, as were the nekkid natives in the far South of South America.

Neanderthals were pretty cold adapted ~ hence their size and geometry. Likely those bad boys could go out in a below zero raging gale and treat it like just a breezy day.

I'm presently reading a book titled, Before The Dawn, by Nicholas Wade and he says that the migration of Modern Humans out of Africa was blocked for thousands of years by the Neanderthals in Europe and the Middle East.

Interesting, I'll have to pick up a copy of that book.

" Likely those bad boys could go out in a below zero raging gale and treat it like just a breezy day."

I'm not so sure. Their extinction coincided with the approach of the Last Glacial Maximum, 18-23,000 years ago.

“Their extinction coincided with the approach of the Last Glacial Maximum, 18-23,000 years ago.”

The polar bears got em.

They were in Europe long enough to have met a glacial maximum (and a whole big bunch of other peaks pret'near as bad) several times.

"They were in Europe long enough to have met a glacial maximum (and a whole big bunch of other peaks pret'near as bad) several times."

You're correct...just a passing thought.

Neanderthals were pretty cold adapted ~ hence their size and geometry. Likely those bad boys could go out in a below zero raging gale and treat it like just a breezy day.

Likewise Homo Sapiens.
Note the excerpt from Wiki article on "Feral Children".
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victor_of_Aveyron

"Shortly after Victor's discovery, a local abbot and biology professor, Pierre Joseph Bonnaterre, examined him. He removed the boy's clothing and led him outside into the snow, where, far from being upset, Victor began to frolic about in the nude. This indicated to some that human reaction to temperature is greatly a result of conditioning and experience."

First seen in 1797, near Toulouse, France, at age 12. ( approximated age, stunted growth may have caused him to look younger than he actually was. )
This is during the climatic period known as the "Little Ice Age" in europe, yet, he was virtually unaffected by the cold. In January.

*

If he were of substantial Sa’ami ancestry (and his small size suggests he was) all of that is normal. They are “cold adapted” people already. Now, the question is, how did he end up in France?

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	Gods Graves Glyphs	Just updating the GGG info, not sending a general distribution. Thanks bigheadfred for the kind remark! [2000] How closely related are humans to apes and other animals? [2002] Origin Of Bipedalism Closely Tied To Environmental Changes [2003] Study Suggests Orangutans Are Cultured [2003] Genome Evolution: First, a Bang Then, a Shuffle [2003] Stranger In A New Land (Archaeology) [2004] Dispute Over Classification Of New Species Of Prehistoric 'Human' [2005] Infectious Evolution: Ancient Virus Hit Apes, Not Our Ancestors, In The Genes -- #34 by blam [2005] Evidence for the Orangutan Relationship [2005] Chimp genome sequence very different from man [2005] Did Early Humans First Arise in Asia, Not Africa? [2006] Early Human Ancestors Walked On The Wild Side [2006] Early Humans Walked Peculiarly [2006] Time Aping over Human-Chimp Genetic Similarities [2006] Humans Migrated Out Of Africa, Then Some Went Back, Study Says [2007] Ancient Trade-Off May Explain Why Humans Get HIV [2007] Ancient Humans Walked But 'Struggled To Run' [2007] Most Ancient Case Of Tuberculosis Found [2007] Human Ancestor Preserved in Stone [2007] Ape To Human: Walking Upright May Have Protected Heavy Human Babies [2007] Human Ancestors Went Out Of Africa And Then Came Back... [1998] To all -- please ping me to other topics which are appropriate for the GGG list. GGG managers are SunkenCiv, StayAt HomeMother, and Ernest_at_the_Beach.
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Neanderthals and modern humans mated 50,000 years earlier than we thought, scientists say. [02/21/2016]
- Humans 'left Africa much earlier' (up to 50,000 years earlier) [01/27/2011]

Note: this topic is from 12/29/2006. Thanks again blam. Just updating the ping message.