Evenk DNA
Genetic origins and closest populations · Russia and China · Siberia
The Evenks are one of the most widely spread peoples of Siberia, living in small communities from the Yenisei to the Sea of Okhotsk, with further groups in northern China and Mongolia. They speak a Tungusic language and traditionally hunted and herded reindeer across the taiga; the word shaman itself comes from Evenki. In our model, the Evenk average is 73.8% Arctic Siberian (Nganasan-related) and 26.2% Ancient Northeast Asian, with a fit of 0.0442. Their profile sits between the Nganasan of the Arctic and the Ancient Northeast Asians of the Russian Far East, much like that of the closely related Even. Yet in our data, after another Evenk sample, the closest modern averages are the Yukaghirs (0.0504 and 0.0608), ahead of the Even themselves (0.0721) and the Nganasan (0.0777). The closest ancient groups are Late Neolithic people of the Ymyyakhtakh culture in Yakutia (0.0677 to 0.075), which spread across northeastern Siberia around 4,000 years ago.
- Ancient components in our model: Arctic Siberian (Nganasan-related) 73.8%, Ancient Northeast Asians 26.2%
- Closest other population in our data: Yukagir, distance 0.0504
- Closest ancient group in our data: Sakha LN Ymyyakhtakh Chuiya, distance 0.0677
Evenk 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 Evenk individuals sampled in Russia and China. Like every population average, it smooths over a lot of variation between individuals.
Ancient make-up of the Evenk average
In a model built from deep ancestral reference populations, the largest share of the Evenk average, 73.8%, goes to Arctic Siberian (Nganasan-related), ahead of Ancient Northeast Asians (26.2%). The Arctic Siberian (Nganasan-related) component reflects the ancestry of the peoples of northern Siberia. The Ancient Northeast Asians share (26.2%) reflects ancestry most common today in East Asia. With well over half of the total, this single source dominates the profile.
The fit is loose (fit distance 0.044), which usually means that none of the available reference populations is a close stand-in for part of this ancestry, so read the percentages as rough. This population was modelled with a global set of reference populations (ancient genomes, plus modern stand-ins where no suitable ancient genome exists), because West Eurasian sources alone cannot describe it.
Closest modern populations to Evenk
Ranking every modern population by genetic distance puts Evenk (Zabaykalsky) first for Evenk, at 0.032, then Yukagir and Yukaghir. Leaving aside the other regional samples listed under the same name in the G25 sheet, the nearest other populations are Yukagir (0.050), Yukaghir (0.061) and Yukagir (Tundra) (0.065). By the tenth closest (Todzin) the distance grows to 0.117, a common pattern for a population that shares ancestry with its neighbours while keeping a profile of its own.
| # | Population | Distance | Closeness |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Evenk (Zabaykalsky) | 0.0316 | Close |
| 2 | Yukagir | 0.0504 | Moderate |
| 3 | Yukaghir | 0.0608 | Moderate |
| 4 | Yukagir (Tundra) | 0.0651 | Moderate |
| 5 | Even | 0.0721 | Moderate |
| 6 | Nganasan | 0.0777 | Moderate |
| 7 | Nganassan | 0.0808 | Distant |
| 8 | Dolgan | 0.1029 | Distant |
| 9 | Tofalar | 0.1088 | Distant |
| 10 | Todzin | 0.1170 | Distant |
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 Evenk
Among ancient genomes, the closest match to the modern Evenk average is Sakha LN Ymyyakhtakh Chuiya (Late Neolithic), at 0.068, followed by Sakha LN Ymyyakhtakh Kyordyughen and Sakha LN Ymyyakhtakh Kamenka. That is only a moderate match: part of the modern profile was already present then, but later movements of people added substantial layers. 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 | Sakha LN Ymyyakhtakh Chuiya | Late Neolithic | 0.0677 |
| 2 | Sakha LN Ymyyakhtakh Kyordyughen | Late Neolithic | 0.0691 |
| 3 | Sakha LN Ymyyakhtakh Kamenka | Late Neolithic | 0.0701 |
| 4 | Sakha LN Ymyyakhtakh Pomazkino | Late Neolithic | 0.0750 |
| 5 | Krasnoyarsk BA Nefteprovod | Bronze Age | 0.0968 |
| 6 | Krasnoyarsk EMBA Samus Tatarka | Early to Middle Bronze Age | 0.0969 |
| 7 | Irkutsk EBA Glazkovo Sosnovyi Mys | Early Bronze Age | 0.1048 |
| 8 | Mongolia LBA-EIA Shiveet Tolgoi | Early Iron Age | 0.1139 |
| 9 | Irkutsk EN Kitoi Popovskij | Early Neolithic | 0.1177 |
| 10 | Sakha MN Belkachi Ogonyok | Middle Neolithic | 0.1180 |
Ancient DNA from Russia and China
Our ancient DNA database holds 5,803 individuals excavated in present-day Russia and China, dated from about 208,050 BC to 1918 AD. The most frequent Y-DNA haplogroups among them are R1a (426), R1b (352) and N1a (258), and the most frequent mtDNA haplogroups are U5 (416), D4 (321) and U4 (252). These are people who lived on the same land in the past, not necessarily ancestors of today's Evenk population.
Most frequent Y-DNA haplogroups
| Haplogroup | Individuals | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| R1a | 426 | PES001 NEO202 MN2002 |
| R1b | 352 | MIN5 MN2003 NEO536 |
| N1a | 258 | Popovskij-1 irk007 Yumin |
| Q1b | 201 | NEO100 NEO72 I6910 |
| O2a | 169 | Dushan4_1 BLG-M13-20 BLG-M13-67 |
| C2a | 119 | NE56 NE34 NE-5 |
| Q1a | 110 | AfontovaGora2 Kolyma1 I11745 |
| C2b | 75 | MZGM10-1 MZGM16 JZ24089566-C8-28 |
Ancient DNA studies on Russia and China
- Ancient DNA unveils distinctive ancestries in the Bronze and Iron Ages of East Tianshan (2026)
- Ancient DNA unveils distinctive ancestries in the Bronze and Iron Ages of East Tianshan (2026)
- Genomic characterization of historical Jinlingnan individuals: insights into genetic continuity and trans-Eurasian signals in eastern China (2026)
- Go north: Isotope and aDNA analysis reconstructing the life history of a first-generation immigrant in the early Western Zhou Yan state (2026)
- The Yeniseian and Andronovo Substrates in the Gene Pools of the Indigenous Southern Siberian Populations Analyzed by Q and R1a Y-Haplogroups (2026)
- Ancient genomics study reveals low HLA diversity in eastern hunter-gatherers (2026)
- Comparison of Illumina NovaSeq 6000, GeneMind SURFSeq 5000, Salus Evo, and MGI DNBSEQ-G400 for Ancient DNA Whole-Genome Sequencing (2026)
- A prehistoric East-Asian Yersinia pestis genome and a ~5.3 ka trans-Eurasian expansion of plague (2026)
Browse them in our ancient DNA database: 2,938 from Russia, 2,865 from China.
Compare yourself with Evenk
Paste your G25 coordinates (scaled, one line, with or without a name in front) and we compute your genetic distance to the Evenk average and to its closest neighbours, right in your browser. Nothing is uploaded or stored.
| # | Population | Your distance | Closeness |
|---|
This list only covers Evenk 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 Evenk. 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 Evenk average. For your own DNA, Advanced Ancestry Report (16€) gives a full ancestry breakdown with no regional focus, in a personal PDF report.
Comprehensive DNA analysis comparing your genetics to over 2,000 modern reference populations.
More populations from Siberia
Frequently asked questions
What is the ancient genetic make-up of Evenk?
Modelled with deep ancestral reference populations, the Evenk average is about 73.8% Arctic Siberian (Nganasan-related) and 26.2% Ancient Northeast Asians. These proportions are model estimates for a group average, not exact values for any one person.
Which populations are genetically closest to Evenk?
Leaving aside other regional samples listed under the same name in the G25 sheet (such as Evenk (Zabaykalsky)), the closest modern populations to the Evenk average are Yukagir, Yukaghir and Yukagir (Tundra). The closest ancient matches are Sakha LN Ymyyakhtakh Chuiya, Sakha LN Ymyyakhtakh Kyordyughen and Sakha LN Ymyyakhtakh Kamenka.
Can a DNA test tell me if I am Evenk?
No DNA test can confirm an ethnicity or a nationality. What DNA can show is how similar your genome is to the sampled Evenk 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 Evenk ancestry?
Our regional report for this part of the world does not fit the Evenk average closely, so the full Advanced Ancestry Report (no regional focus) is the better choice. The DNA Mega-Analysis adds Neanderthal %, traits and closest ancient populations. The free Report Finder checks every report against your own DNA first.
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.