Steppe ancestry map
Steppe herders (Yamnaya, Samara) · Pontic-Caspian steppe, about 3300 to 2600 BC
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.
Steppe herders (Yamnaya, Samara)
Pontic-Caspian steppe, about 3300 to 2600 BC
Faded dots are populations the model fits less well: read their values with care. Click the map to zoom with your mouse wheel.
Who were the Yamnaya?
The Yamnaya culture flourished on the grasslands north of the Black and Caspian Seas from about 3300 to 2600 BC. Its people were mobile herders of cattle and sheep who used wheeled wagons, and they buried important dead under earth mounds called kurgans. The genomes used here come from Yamnaya burials in the Samara region, on the middle Volga in Russia.
They show a population formed from two older groups: the hunter-gatherers of eastern Europe, and people related to the hunter-gatherers and early farmers of the Caucasus and Iran. From about 3000 BC, closely related groups such as the Corded Ware culture carried this steppe ancestry deep into Europe, and later movements took it east into Central Asia and South Asia. Many researchers link these migrations with the spread of Indo-European languages.
Today steppe ancestry is found in most Europeans and in many peoples of Central and South Asia.
In our model, steppe ancestry peaks today in Udmurt (Russia), at 57.7%, followed by Lithuanian PZ (56.2%) and Estonian (56.0%). The ten highest values come from Russia, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia and other countries. It reaches at least 5% in 1,100 of the 1,998 populations on the map, and at least 20% in 623 of them. On the world scale the colours run from 0 to 53.6%, the level reached by the top 2% of populations, so the deepest red marks the real hot spots.
Where steppe ancestry peaks today
| # | Population | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Udmurt Russia | 57.7% |
| 2 | Lithuanian PZ Lithuania | 56.2% |
| 3 | Estonian Estonia | 56.0% |
| 4 | Latvian Latvia | 56.0% |
| 5 | Votian Russia | 55.7% |
| 6 | Besermyan Russia | 55.6% |
| 7 | Polish Mazovia Poland | 55.3% |
| 8 | Russian Arkhangelsk Leshukonsky Russia | 55.2% |
| 9 | Lithuanian South Zemaitija Lithuania | 55.1% |
| 10 | Lithuanian North Zemaitija Lithuania | 55.0% |
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
What is steppe ancestry?
Steppe ancestry is the genetic legacy of Bronze Age herders of the Pontic-Caspian steppe, best known from the Yamnaya culture (about 3300 to 2600 BC). It spread into Europe and Asia with related groups such as the Corded Ware culture and is found today in most Europeans and in many Central and South Asians.
Where is steppe ancestry highest today?
In our model it is highest in Udmurt (Russia) (57.7%), Lithuanian PZ (56.2%) and Estonian (56.0%). 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.