Faroese DNA
Genetic origins and closest populations · Faroe Islands · Northern Europe
The Faroe Islands lie in the North Atlantic between Shetland, Norway and Iceland. Norse farmers settled them in the Viking Age, and Faroese, a North Germanic language close to Icelandic, is still the everyday language of the islands. As in Iceland, the founding settlers were few, with both Scandinavian and British Isles roots. In our model, the Faroese average is 50.6% steppe-related, 35.2% Anatolian Neolithic farmer and 14.2% Western hunter-gatherer. The nearest modern average is not Scandinavian but Orcadian (distance 0.0083), another island population with a long Norse past, followed by Danes (0.0093), Icelanders and Norwegians. Among ancient groups, the closest is early medieval Anglo-Saxon England (0.0093), and High Medieval Faroe Islanders appear at 0.0107, which suggests a good deal of continuity on the islands over the last thousand years.
- Ancient components in our model: Steppe herders (Yamnaya) 50.6%, Anatolian Neolithic farmers 35.2%, Western hunter-gatherers 14.2%
- Closest modern population in our data: Orcadian, distance 0.0083
- Closest ancient group in our data: England Saxon, distance 0.0093
Faroese 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 Faroese individuals sampled in Faroe Islands. Like every population average, it smooths over a lot of variation between individuals.
Ancient make-up of the Faroese average
In a model built from deep ancestral reference populations, the largest share of the Faroese average, 50.6%, goes to Steppe herders (Yamnaya), ahead of Anatolian Neolithic farmers (35.2%) and Western hunter-gatherers (14.2%). The Steppe herders (Yamnaya) component 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 Anatolian Neolithic farmers share (35.2%) reflects the Neolithic farmers of Anatolia, who carried agriculture into Europe from about 6500 BC.
The fit is loose (fit distance 0.047), 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. The model draws on West Eurasian ancient genomes, with modern West African and East Asian stand-ins.
Nordsee – North Sea Germanic Ancestry Report
Closest modern populations to Faroese
Ranking every modern population by genetic distance puts Orcadian first for Faroese, at 0.008, then Danish and Icelandic. Even the tenth closest, Scottish (Shetland, Shetlandic), is only 0.014 away: Faroese belongs to a dense cluster of related populations, so small differences inside that cluster should not be over-interpreted.
Most of the closest populations that have their own atlas page (6 of 8) are also from Northern Europe, as geography would predict.
| # | Population | Distance | Closeness |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Orcadian | 0.0083 | Very close |
| 2 | Danish | 0.0093 | Very close |
| 3 | Icelandic | 0.0112 | Very close |
| 4 | Orcadian (other sample set) | 0.0115 | Very close |
| 5 | Norwegian | 0.0116 | Very close |
| 6 | Frisian | 0.0121 | Very close |
| 7 | Irish | 0.0124 | Very close |
| 8 | Dutch | 0.0135 | Very close |
| 9 | English | 0.0141 | Very close |
| 10 | Scottish (Shetland, Shetlandic) | 0.0144 | 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 Faroese
Looking back in time, the ancient sample that most resembles the Faroese average is England Saxon (Anglo-Saxon period, c. 450-1066 AD), at 0.009. Hungary Early Medieval Lombard Period (Northwest Euro Profile) and Germany Late Antiquity-Early Medieval Thuringian Obermollern (Northwest Euro Profile) come next. 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 | England Saxon | Anglo-Saxon period, c. 450-1066 AD | 0.0093 |
| 2 | Hungary Early Medieval Lombard Period (Northwest Euro Profile) | Early Medieval, c. 500-1000 AD | 0.0103 |
| 3 | Germany Late Antiquity-Early Medieval Thuringian Obermollern (Northwest Euro Profile) | Late Antiquity to Early Medieval, c. 250-1000 AD | 0.0104 |
| 4 | Faroes High Medieval | High Medieval, c. 1000-1300 AD | 0.0107 |
| 5 | Iceland Early-High Medieval Viking Age Hofstadir | Viking Age, c. 800-1050 AD | 0.0108 |
| 6 | Germany High Medieval Rathausmarkt | High Medieval, c. 1000-1300 AD | 0.0109 |
| 7 | Hungary Early Medieval Ostrogoth-Avar Period (Northwest Euro Profile) | Early Medieval, c. 500-1000 AD | 0.0113 |
| 8 | Netherlands Early Medieval Groningen | Early Medieval, c. 500-1000 AD | 0.0115 |
| 9 | Germany Late Antiquity-Early Medieval Thuringian Deersheim (Northwest Euro Profile) | Late Antiquity to Early Medieval, c. 250-1000 AD | 0.0116 |
| 10 | Denmark High Medieval-Early Modern Odense | Medieval to Early Modern, c. 500-1800 AD | 0.0117 |
Ancient DNA from Faroe Islands
Our database lists the ancient DNA studies linked to Faroe Islands below.
Ancient DNA studies on Faroe Islands
Compare yourself with Faroese
Paste your G25 coordinates (scaled, one line, with or without a name in front) and we compute your genetic distance to the Faroese average and to its closest neighbours, right in your browser. Nothing is uploaded or stored.
| # | Population | Your distance | Closeness |
|---|
This list only covers Faroese 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 Faroese. 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 Faroese average. Your own DNA has its own story: Nordsee – North Sea Germanic 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 North Sea Germanic ancestry: ancient regional core (native British/Dutch/Danish Iron Age, Roman Britain, Anglo-Saxon migration, Viking Age, Frisian Saxon, Anglo-Norman) versus non-regional outside admixture...
More populations from Northern Europe
Frequently asked questions
What is the ancient genetic make-up of Faroese?
Modelled with deep ancestral reference populations, the Faroese average is about 50.6% Steppe herders (Yamnaya), 35.2% Anatolian Neolithic farmers and 14.2% 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 Faroese?
In the G25 data, the closest modern populations to the Faroese average are Orcadian, Danish and Icelandic. The closest ancient matches are England Saxon, Hungary Early Medieval Lombard Period (Northwest Euro Profile) and Germany Late Antiquity-Early Medieval Thuringian Obermollern (Northwest Euro Profile).
Can a DNA test tell me if I am Faroese?
No DNA test can confirm an ethnicity or a nationality. What DNA can show is how similar your genome is to the sampled Faroese 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 Faroese ancestry?
For the Faroese average, the regional report to choose is Nordsee – North Sea Germanic 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.