Nilotic ancestry map
Nilotic (Dinka) · South Sudan (modern reference)
How to read these maps: pale yellow means little or none of the selected ancestry, orange a medium share and deep red the highest values. Each dot is the average of a modern population: hover or tap it to see its numbers. Areas with no samples nearby stay blank.
Nilotic (Dinka)
South Sudan (modern reference)
Faded dots are populations the model fits less well: read their values with care. Click the map to zoom with your mouse wheel.
Who are the Dinka?
The Dinka are a Nilotic people of South Sudan, living along the White Nile and its wetlands, where cattle herding is at the heart of social life. They are among the tallest people in the world, and their language belongs to the Nilotic branch of the Nilo-Saharan languages.
In genetic studies the Dinka are a standard reference for a distinctive East African ancestry. Ancient DNA shows that ancestry related to Nilotic groups spread south with herders into Kenya and Tanzania within the last few thousand years, mixing with local foragers and with earlier herders who carried ancestry from the Near East.
Today Nilotic-related ancestry is a large component in South Sudan and in many peoples of Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania, such as the Maasai, and smaller shares appear in Ethiopia and Sudan. This map uses the Dinka as a modern proxy for that heritage.
In our model, Nilotic ancestry peaks today in Shilluk (South Sudan), at 97.3%, followed by Dinka (South Sudan) (97.0%) and South Sudanese (96.5%). The ten highest values come from South Sudan, Sudan and Ethiopia. It reaches at least 5% in 122 of the 1,998 populations on the map, and at least 20% in 75 of them. On the world scale the colours run from 0 to 49.2%, the level reached by the top 2% of populations, so the deepest red marks the real hot spots.
Where Nilotic ancestry peaks today
| # | Population | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shilluk South Sudan | 97.3% |
| 2 | Dinka South Sudan | 97.0% |
| 3 | South Sudanese South Sudan | 96.5% |
| 4 | Nuer South Sudan | 95.9% |
| 5 | Nuba Sudan | 95.3% |
| 6 | Nuba Koalib Sudan | 95.3% |
| 7 | Daju Nyala (Gemar) Sudan | 92.2% |
| 8 | Anuak Ethiopia Ethiopia | 89.4% |
| 9 | Daju Sudan Sudan | 87.5% |
| 10 | Sudanese Sudan | 86.8% |
Averages of modern populations, modelled with 17 reference sources. Tap a name to find it on the map.
The 17 ancestral sources
About these numbers
These maps show model estimates for population averages, not ethnic labels and not the result of any one person. Each source stands in for a wider ancestral population, and ancestries that have no source of their own in this set, such as Oceanian or Khoe-San ancestry, are absorbed by their closest relatives among the 17. Populations the model fits less well are shown with faded dots and count less in the colour surface.
Method: Each population average (Global25 coordinates) is modelled as a mix of 17 ancient and modern reference groups with non-negative least squares, shares adding up to 100%. Fit is the distance between the population and its best mix: the lower the better, above 0.06 the mix explains the population poorly. Top lists leave out the few populations these 17 groups cannot model at all (fit above 0.15). Data generated 1 October 2026, 1,998 populations on the map.
Keep exploring
For the full picture of one population, the Population Genetics Atlas has a page for each of hundreds of modern populations, with its ancient make-up and its closest modern and ancient neighbours.
Curious about your own DNA? The free Report Finder tests which of our reports fits your G25 coordinates, before you order anything.
Frequently asked questions
Where is Nilotic ancestry found besides South Sudan?
Ancient DNA shows that Nilotic-related ancestry spread with herders into Kenya and Tanzania within the last few thousand years. Today it is common in South Sudan, Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania, for example among the Maasai, with smaller shares in Ethiopia and Sudan.
Where is Nilotic ancestry highest today?
In our model it is highest in Shilluk (South Sudan) (97.3%), Dinka (South Sudan) (97.0%) and South Sudanese (96.5%). These are averages of modern populations modelled with 17 reference sources, so individuals within each population can differ.
How are these ancient ancestry maps made?
Each modern population average, taken from published G25 coordinates, is modelled as a mix of the same 17 ancient and modern reference sources with a non-negative least-squares fit, the same family of method our reports use. The map then interpolates the share of the selected source between the sampled places and leaves areas with no nearby samples blank.
Does a high value mean direct descent from these people?
No. Each source stands in for a broader ancestral population, and the 17 sources are fitted together, so closely related sources can trade shares between them. Read a value as how much of this kind of ancestry the model needs to describe a population average, not as a family tree.
Why are some areas of the map blank?
The colour surface is only drawn within a few hundred kilometres of real samples. Oceans and regions without data stay empty instead of showing invented values. Each dot on the map is a real population average.