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Publication Details
AFRICAN RESEARCH NEXUS
SHINING A SPOTLIGHT ON AFRICAN RESEARCH
agricultural and biological sciences
The Bantu expansion revisited: A new analysis of y chromosome variation in Central Western Africa
Molecular Ecology, Volume 20, No. 13, Year 2011
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Description
The current distribution of Bantu languages is commonly considered to be a consequence of a relatively recent population expansion (3-5 kya) in Central Western Africa. While there is a substantial consensus regarding the centre of origin of Bantu languages (the Benue River Valley, between South East Nigeria and Western Cameroon), the identification of the area from where the population expansion actually started, the relation between the processes leading to the spread of languages and peoples and the relevance of local migratory events remain controversial. In order to shed new light on these aspects, we studied Y chromosome variation in a broad dataset of populations encompassing Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon and Congo. Our results evidence an evolutionary scenario which is more complex than had been previously thought, pointing to a marked differentiation of Cameroonian populations from the rest of the dataset. In fact, in contrast with the current view of Bantu speakers as a homogeneous group of populations, we observed an unexpectedly high level of interpopulation genetic heterogeneity and highlighted previously undetected diversity for lineages associated with the diffusion of Bantu languages (E1b1a (M2) sub-branches). We also detected substantial differences in local demographic histories, which concord with the hypotheses regarding an early diffusion of Bantu languages into the forest area and a subsequent demographic expansion and migration towards eastern and western Africa. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
Authors & Co-Authors
Montano, Valeria
Italy, Rome
Sapienza Università Di Roma
Spain, Barcelona
Csic-upf - Instituto de Biologia Evolutiva Ibe
Ferri, Gianmarco
Italy, Modena
Università Degli Studi Di Modena e Reggio Emilia
Marcari, Veronica
Italy, Rome
Sapienza Università Di Roma
Batini, Chiara
United Kingdom, Leicester
University of Leicester
Anyaele, Okorie Okogbue
Nigeria, Ibadan
University of Ibadan
Destro Bisol, Giovanni Giovanni
Italy, Rome
Istituto Italiano Di Antropologia
Comas, D.
Spain, Barcelona
Csic-upf - Instituto de Biologia Evolutiva Ibe
Statistics
Citations: 52
Authors: 7
Affiliations: 6
Identifiers
Doi:
10.1111/j.1365-294X.2011.05130.x
ISSN:
09621083
e-ISSN:
1365294X
Research Areas
Genetics And Genomics
Study Design
Cross Sectional Study
Study Locations
Cameroon
Congo
Gabon
Nigeria