A South Asian lineage of the subcontinent
Haplogroup H is a lineage centred firmly on the Indian subcontinent, where it is one of the most common paternal lineages. It is found across India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal and neighbouring regions, and it was carried westward into Europe by the Roma, among whom particular branches of H are frequent.
Haplogroup H is concentrated in South Asia, where it occurs across many populations of the subcontinent at substantial frequencies. It is comparatively rare outside this region, with the notable exception of the Roma populations of Europe, whose South Asian origins are reflected in their carriage of specific H branches. Low frequencies also appear in parts of the Near East and Central Asia.
Haplogroup H is generally regarded as having originated in South Asia and to have been present in the subcontinent for a very long time, with age estimates in the tens of thousands of years. Its strong association with the region across many population and caste groups makes it one of the characteristic indigenous lineages of the subcontinent.
H divides into several branches, some broadly distributed across South Asia and others with narrower distributions. The branches carried by the Roma are a well-studied case, providing a genetic link that corroborates the linguistic and historical evidence for their migration out of the subcontinent.
An H result strongly indicates South Asian paternal ancestry. For those of Roma heritage it may reflect that specific history. Downstream testing refines which branch you carry and can help distinguish broad subcontinental ancestry from the particular lineages associated with specific communities.
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