Native Hawaiian DNA
Genetic origins and closest populations · United States (Hawaii) · Oceania
Hawaii was among the last places on earth reached by people: Polynesian voyagers from eastern Polynesia settled the islands roughly 800 to 1,000 years ago. The islands were united as a kingdom under Kamehameha I in 1810, and the monarchy was overthrown in 1893, before annexation by the United States in 1898. In our model, the Native Hawaiian average is 95.6% Southern Chinese Neolithic farmer and only 4.4% Papuan and Near Oceanian, a much smaller Papuan-related share than in the Tahitian (19.7%) or Samoan (18.0%) averages. Its closest modern averages are Visayans (0.0308) and other Filipino samples rather than other Polynesians. This probably reflects the more recent history of the islands, where many Native Hawaiian families also have ancestry from the workers who came to the plantations from the Philippines, China and Japan from the 19th century. The closest ancient groups are Early Modern people from Malaysia (0.0427) and Lapita-era Vanuatu and Tonga, about 2,900 and 2,500 years ago.
- Ancient components in our model: Southern Chinese Neolithic farmers 95.6%, Papuan and Near Oceanian 4.4%
- Closest modern population in our data: Visayan, distance 0.0308
- Closest ancient group in our data: Malaysia Early Modern, distance 0.0427
Where does Native Hawaiian DNA sit on the genetic map of the world? To answer, we take the averaged Global25 (G25) coordinates of the Native Hawaiian individuals sampled in United States (Hawaii), listed in the G25 sheet as "Hawaiian" and compare them with deep ancestral reference populations, with other modern groups and with ancient genomes. It is one of 335 populations in our atlas.
Ancient make-up of the Native Hawaiian average
Modelled with deep ancestral reference populations, the Native Hawaiian average is explained almost entirely by Southern Chinese Neolithic farmers (95.6%). The Southern Chinese Neolithic farmers component reflects the Neolithic rice and millet farmers of southern China, whose descendants spread into Southeast Asia. That does not make the population uniform: the model simply has no finer reference population for this part of the world, and the closest populations below show the detail it cannot.
Smaller traces of Papuan and Near Oceanian (under 5%) also appear. At that level they can reflect real minor ancestry, but also simple model noise, so they should not be over-read. The fit is loose (fit distance 0.042), 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.
Lapita – Austronesian & Pacific Report
Closest modern populations to Native Hawaiian
Among the modern populations in the G25 data, the closest to the Native Hawaiian average is Visayan, at a distance of 0.031 (close). Next come Filipino at 0.032 and Vizayan at 0.038. By the tenth closest (Nias (Gomo)) the distance grows to 0.054, a common pattern for a population that shares ancestry with its neighbours while keeping a profile of its own.
| # | Population | Distance | Closeness |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Visayan | 0.0308 | Close |
| 2 | Filipino | 0.0320 | Close |
| 3 | Vizayan | 0.0379 | Close |
| 4 | Filipino (Luzon) | 0.0384 | Close |
| 5 | Luzon | 0.0432 | Close |
| 6 | Filipino (Tagalog) | 0.0506 | Moderate |
| 7 | Dusun (Malaysia) | 0.0510 | Moderate |
| 8 | Mandar | 0.0518 | Moderate |
| 9 | Nias (Hilitobara) | 0.0533 | Moderate |
| 10 | Nias (Gomo) | 0.0543 | Moderate |
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 Native Hawaiian
Looking back in time, the ancient sample that most resembles the Native Hawaiian average is Malaysia Early Modern (Early Modern, c. 1500-1800 AD), at 0.043. Vanuatu 2900BP and Tonga 2500BP come next. That is a close match: much of the modern profile was already present then, while later movements of people added further 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 | Malaysia Early Modern | Early Modern, c. 1500-1800 AD | 0.0427 |
| 2 | Vanuatu 2900BP | c. 950 BC | 0.0461 |
| 3 | Tonga 2500BP | c. 550 BC | 0.0462 |
| 4 | Guam Unai Late Ritidian | Unai period, before c. 900 AD | 0.0485 |
| 5 | Guam Unai Naton | Unai period, before c. 900 AD | 0.0527 |
| 6 | Guam Latte Haputo | Latte period, c. 900-1700 AD | 0.0560 |
| 7 | Northern Mariana Islands Saipan Latte Anaguan | Latte period, c. 900-1700 AD | 0.0563 |
| 8 | Guam Latte Naton | Latte period, c. 900-1700 AD | 0.0571 |
| 9 | Guam Unai Late Naton | Unai period, before c. 900 AD | 0.0580 |
| 10 | Indonesia Sulawesi Early-Late Modern Topogaro | Modern era, c. 1500-1950 AD | 0.0714 |
Ancient DNA from USA
Our ancient DNA database holds 421 individuals excavated in present-day USA, dated from about 10,762 BC to 1850 AD. The most frequent Y-DNA haplogroups among them are Q1b (78), O2a (64) and E1b (28), and the most frequent mtDNA haplogroups are E2 (115), A2 (72) and L3 (28). These are people who lived on the same land in the past, not necessarily ancestors of today's Native Hawaiian population.
Most frequent Y-DNA haplogroups
Ancient DNA studies on USA
- The genetic legacy of the 17th-century colonial capital of St. Mary’s City (2026)
- Picuris Pueblo oral history and genomics reveal continuity in US Southwest (2025)
- The genome of a Late Pleistocene human from a Clovis burial site in western Montana (2014)
Browse them in our ancient DNA database: 421 from USA.
Compare yourself with Native Hawaiian
Paste your G25 coordinates (scaled, one line, with or without a name in front) and we compute your genetic distance to the Native Hawaiian average and to its closest neighbours, right in your browser. Nothing is uploaded or stored.
| # | Population | Your distance | Closeness |
|---|
This list only covers Native Hawaiian 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
A word of caution: these figures describe the average of the Native Hawaiian individuals who were sampled, not every person who identifies as Native Hawaiian. Individuals vary around that average, and identity is about history, language and family, not about a genetic score. Read this page as a map of deep ancestry, not as a definition.
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 Native Hawaiian average. Your own DNA has its own story: Lapita – Austronesian & Pacific 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 Austronesian / Indo-Pacific ancestry: ancient regional core (the Taiwan Neolithic homeland, the Lapita culture, Guam Unai and Latte periods, the Medieval voyage to Madagascar) versus non-regional outside...
Frequently asked questions
What is the ancient genetic make-up of Native Hawaiian?
Modelled with deep ancestral reference populations, the Native Hawaiian average is about 95.6% Southern Chinese Neolithic farmers and 4.4% Papuan and Near Oceanian. These proportions are model estimates for a group average, not exact values for any one person.
Which populations are genetically closest to Native Hawaiian?
In the G25 data, the closest modern populations to the Native Hawaiian average are Visayan, Filipino and Vizayan. The closest ancient matches are Malaysia Early Modern, Vanuatu 2900BP and Tonga 2500BP.
Can a DNA test tell me if I am Native Hawaiian?
No DNA test can confirm an ethnicity or a nationality. What DNA can show is how similar your genome is to the sampled Native Hawaiian 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 Native Hawaiian ancestry?
For the Native Hawaiian average, the regional report to choose is Lapita – Austronesian & Pacific 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.