Alsatian DNA
Genetic origins and closest populations · France · Western Europe
Alsace lies on the left bank of the Rhine, between the Vosges mountains and the Black Forest, and its traditional language, Alsatian, is an Alemannic German dialect. The region changed hands between France and Germany several times between 1871 and 1945, and its genetic profile sits, fittingly, between the two. In our model, Alsatians are 46.5% Anatolian Neolithic farmer, 42.4% steppe and 11.1% Western hunter-gatherer: more steppe than the French average (39.7%), less than the German average (46.6%). The closest modern averages confirm this bridge position: French samples from the Nord, Germans from Baden-Wurttemberg just across the Rhine (distance 0.0081), Belgians, people from the Moselle and Swiss Germans. The closest ancient groups are medieval people from Sint-Truiden in Belgium, from the Merovingian period to the Holy Roman Empire, at a very close distance of 0.0100, a good match for the Frankish and Alemannic world of early medieval Alsace.
- Ancient components in our model: Anatolian Neolithic farmers 46.5%, Steppe herders (Yamnaya) 42.4%, Western hunter-gatherers 11.1%
- Closest modern population in our data: French (Nord), distance 0.0071
- Closest ancient group in our data: Belgium Early Medieval Merovingian-Holy Roman Empire Sint-Truiden (Western Euro Profile), distance 0.0100
Alsatian is one of the 335 modern populations in our population genetics atlas. The numbers on this page describe the average Global25 (G25) genome of the Alsatian individuals sampled in France, listed in the G25 sheet as "French_Alsace". Like every population average, it smooths over a lot of variation between individuals.
Ancient make-up of the Alsatian average
Modelled as a mix of deep ancestral reference populations, the Alsatian average comes out as 46.5% Anatolian Neolithic farmers, 42.4% Steppe herders (Yamnaya) and 11.1% Western hunter-gatherers. The Anatolian Neolithic farmers component reflects the Neolithic farmers of Anatolia, who carried agriculture into Europe from about 6500 BC. The Steppe herders (Yamnaya) share (42.4%) reflects the Bronze Age herders of the Pontic-Caspian steppe (Yamnaya and related groups), whose ancestry spread across Europe and into Asia from about 3000 BC.
The fit is acceptable (fit distance 0.032): treat the proportions as a good approximation rather than exact values. The model draws on West Eurasian ancient genomes, with modern West African and East Asian stand-ins.
France Profonde – French Regional Ancestry Report
Closest modern populations to Alsatian
Genetically, the Alsatian average sits nearest to French (Nord) at 0.007, German (Baden-Wurttemberg Ellwangen) at 0.008 and Belgian at 0.010. On our scale, a distance of 0.007 counts as very close. Leaving aside the other regional samples listed under the same name in the G25 sheet, the nearest other populations are German (Baden-Wurttemberg Ellwangen) (0.008), Belgian (0.010) and Belgian (group C) (0.011). Even the tenth closest, Belgian (group A), is only 0.016 away: Alsatian belongs to a dense cluster of related populations, so small differences inside that cluster should not be over-interpreted.
| # | Population | Distance | Closeness |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French (Nord) | 0.0071 | Very close |
| 2 | German (Baden-Wurttemberg Ellwangen) | 0.0081 | Very close |
| 3 | Belgian | 0.0097 | Very close |
| 4 | French Oïl (Grand Est Moselle) | 0.0106 | Very close |
| 5 | Belgian (group C) | 0.0110 | Very close |
| 6 | Swiss German | 0.0113 | Very close |
| 7 | Belgian (group B) | 0.0115 | Very close |
| 8 | French | 0.0137 | Very close |
| 9 | German (Russia Volga) | 0.0155 | Very close |
| 10 | Belgian (group A) | 0.0159 | Very close |
Distances are Euclidean distances between averaged G25 coordinates. On our scale, below 0.025 is very close, below 0.050 close, below 0.080 moderate, and beyond that distant.
Closest ancient populations to Alsatian
Among ancient genomes, the closest match to the modern Alsatian average is Belgium Early Medieval Merovingian-Holy Roman Empire Sint-Truiden (Western Euro Profile) (Early Medieval, c. 500-1000 AD), at 0.010, followed by Belgium Late Medieval Holy Roman Empire Sint-Truiden (Western Euro Profile) and Belgium Early-High Medieval Merovingian-Holy Roman Empire Sint-Truiden (Western Euro Profile). That is a very close match, which suggests strong genetic continuity between those ancient people (or close relatives of theirs) and the modern population. A close ancient match is not proof of direct descent: it means those individuals carried a similar overall mix of ancestry.
| # | Ancient sample or group | Period | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Belgium Early Medieval Merovingian-Holy Roman Empire Sint-Truiden (Western Euro Profile) | Early Medieval, c. 500-1000 AD | 0.0100 |
| 2 | Belgium Late Medieval Holy Roman Empire Sint-Truiden (Western Euro Profile) | Late Medieval, c. 1300-1500 AD | 0.0104 |
| 3 | Belgium Early-High Medieval Merovingian-Holy Roman Empire Sint-Truiden (Western Euro Profile) | Early to High Medieval, c. 500-1300 AD | 0.0105 |
| 4 | Belgium High Medieval Holy Roman Empire Sint-Truiden (Western Euro Profile) | High Medieval, c. 1000-1300 AD | 0.0106 |
| 5 | Belgium Early-Late Modern Sint-Truiden (Western Euro Profile) | Modern era, c. 1500-1950 AD | 0.0115 |
| 6 | Italy Piedmont Early Medieval Lombard Period Collegno (Western Euro Profile) | Early Medieval, c. 500-1000 AD | 0.0120 |
| 7 | Hungary Late Antiquity-Early Medieval Avar Period (Western Euro Profile) | Late Antiquity to Early Medieval, c. 250-1000 AD | 0.0126 |
| 8 | Belgium Early Medieval Merovingian-Carolingian Sint-Truiden (Western Euro Profile) | Early Medieval, c. 500-1000 AD | 0.0134 |
| 9 | Belgium Late Medieval-Early Modern Holy Roman Empire Sint-Truiden (Western Euro Profile) | Late Medieval to Early Modern, c. 1300-1800 AD | 0.0148 |
| 10 | Hungary Early Medieval Avar Period Late (Central Euro Profile) | Early Medieval, c. 500-1000 AD | 0.0154 |
Ancient DNA from France
Our ancient DNA database holds 1,113 individuals excavated in present-day France, dated from about 52,000 BC to 1821 AD. The most frequent Y-DNA haplogroups among them are R1b (163), I2a (144) and G2a (142), and the most frequent mtDNA haplogroups are K1 (131), U5 (116) and H1 (104). These are people who lived on the same land in the past, not necessarily ancestors of today's Alsatian population.
Most frequent Y-DNA haplogroups
Most frequent mtDNA haplogroups
Ancient DNA studies on France
- Ancient DNA Reveals Limited Hunter-Gatherer Ancestry in the Cerny Culture (Middle Neolithic, France) Despite Hunting-Associated Practices (2026)
- Population discontinuity in the Paris Basin linked to evidence of the Neolithic decline (2026)
- L’apport de la paléogénétique à la compréhension des populations de la fin de l’Antiquité et du début du Moyen Âge. L’exemple de la nécropole de la gare Saint-Laud à Angers (2025)
- Ancient DNA sheds light on the funerary practices of late Neolithic collective burial in southern France (2025)
- How local reference panels improve imputation in French populations (2024)
- Genomic ancestry and social dynamics of the last hunter-gatherers of Atlantic France (2024)
- Earliest evidence of human occupations and technological complexity above the 45th North parallel in Western Europe. The site of Lunery-Rosieres la-Terre-des-Sablons (France, 1.1 Ma) (2024)
- Late Neolithic collective burial reveals admixture dynamics during the third millennium BCE and the shaping of the European genome (2024)
Browse them in our ancient DNA database: 1,113 from France.
Compare yourself with Alsatian
Paste your G25 coordinates (scaled, one line, with or without a name in front) and we compute your genetic distance to the Alsatian average and to its closest neighbours, right in your browser. Nothing is uploaded or stored.
| # | Population | Your distance | Closeness |
|---|
This list only covers Alsatian and its neighbours. To find out which of our reports actually fits your DNA, run the free Report Finder: it runs the same fit test that every report uses before an order.
No G25 coordinates yet? Get a free simulated G25 from your raw DNA file, or order G25 coordinates.
About these numbers
Keep in mind that a population average is a statistical summary of a limited number of sampled individuals. Real people inside any group vary, some carry more of one ancestry and some less, and no genetic profile decides who is or is not Alsatian. Use these numbers as a map of deep ancestry, not as a label.
Method: averaged G25 coordinates, Euclidean distances to other modern and ancient averages, and a non-negative least-squares model against deep ancestral reference populations (data generated 2026-10-01). Read the full method.
Go deeper than the average
This page describes the Alsatian average. Your own DNA has its own story: France Profonde – French Regional Ancestry Report (15€) models your genome against the ancient sources and modern communities of the region, era by era, in a personal PDF report.
A report built for people of French ancestry: ancient regional core (Gaulish, Frankish, Gallo-Roman, Norse Norman) versus non-regional outside admixture, across France's 20 historic regions (Alsace, Brittany, Normandy, Provence, Auvergne...
More populations from Western Europe
Frequently asked questions
What is the ancient genetic make-up of Alsatian?
Modelled with deep ancestral reference populations, the Alsatian average is about 46.5% Anatolian Neolithic farmers, 42.4% Steppe herders (Yamnaya) and 11.1% Western hunter-gatherers. These proportions are model estimates for a group average, not exact values for any one person.
Which populations are genetically closest to Alsatian?
Leaving aside other regional samples listed under the same name in the G25 sheet (such as French (Nord)), the closest modern populations to the Alsatian average are German (Baden-Wurttemberg Ellwangen), Belgian and Belgian (group C). The closest ancient matches are Belgium Early Medieval Merovingian-Holy Roman Empire Sint-Truiden (Western Euro Profile), Belgium Late Medieval Holy Roman Empire Sint-Truiden (Western Euro Profile) and Belgium Early-High Medieval Merovingian-Holy Roman Empire Sint-Truiden (Western Euro Profile).
Can a DNA test tell me if I am Alsatian?
No DNA test can confirm an ethnicity or a nationality. What DNA can show is how similar your genome is to the sampled Alsatian average and to its neighbours. If you have G25 coordinates, paste them in the comparison box on this page to check that for free.
Which ExploreYourDNA report suits Alsatian ancestry?
For the Alsatian average, the regional report to choose is France Profonde – French Regional Ancestry Report, which our fit test rates as an excellent match. Your own DNA may differ from the average, so the free Report Finder checks every report against your file before you buy.
Where does the data on this page come from?
From the averaged Global25 (G25) coordinates of the sampled individuals: genetic distances to other modern and ancient population averages, and a non-negative least-squares model against deep ancestral reference populations. The full method is described at https://www.exploreyourdna.com/populations#method.