Karitiana DNA
Genetic origins and closest populations · Brazil · Americas
The Karitiana are a small Indigenous people of Rondônia, in the Brazilian Amazon, who speak a Tupian language of the Arikem branch. They are one of the Amazonian groups included in the Human Genome Diversity Project, a widely used global reference panel. In our model, the Karitiana average is 100.0% Native American (Paleo-American), but the fit is rough (0.0621), the loosest of our Native American pages. That is a familiar result for small, long-isolated groups: strong genetic drift gives them a distinctive profile that no single early reference captures. Studies of Amazonian groups such as the Karitiana and Surui have also reported a faint extra signal shared with Australasian populations, still debated. The closest modern averages are the Wayuu of the Guajira peninsula (0.0187) and the Surui, their Rondônia neighbours (0.0192). The closest ancient groups are Andean, from Aconcagua in Argentina about 500 years ago (0.0272) and Laramate in Peru (0.0291).
- Ancient components in our model: Native American (Paleo-American) 100.0%
- Closest modern population in our data: Wayuu, distance 0.0187
- Closest ancient group in our data: Argentina Aconcagua 500BP, distance 0.0272
This page sums up what the DNA of the Karitiana sample tells us about deep origins. It is built from the averaged Global25 (G25) coordinates of individuals sampled in Brazil, and it is one of 335 populations in our atlas. An average describes the group as a whole, not any single person in it.
Ancient make-up of the Karitiana average
Modelled with deep ancestral reference populations, the Karitiana average is explained almost entirely by Native American (Paleo-American) (100.0%). The Native American (Paleo-American) component reflects the ancestry of the Indigenous peoples of the Americas. 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.
The fit is loose (fit distance 0.062), 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.
Raíces – Latin American Bloodline
Closest modern populations to Karitiana
Ranking every modern population by genetic distance puts Wayuu first for Karitiana, at 0.019, then Surui and Cashibo. By the tenth closest (Amerindian (Panama)) the distance grows to 0.036, a common pattern for a population that shares ancestry with its neighbours while keeping a profile of its own.
| # | Population | Distance | Closeness |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wayuu | 0.0187 | Very close |
| 2 | Surui | 0.0192 | Very close |
| 3 | Cashibo | 0.0263 | Close |
| 4 | Wichí | 0.0269 | Close |
| 5 | Shipibo | 0.0289 | Close |
| 6 | Piapoco | 0.0291 | Close |
| 7 | Huambisa | 0.0302 | Close |
| 8 | Ashaninka | 0.0333 | Close |
| 9 | Yukpa | 0.0356 | Close |
| 10 | Amerindian (Panama) | 0.0357 | 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 Karitiana
Among ancient genomes, the closest match to the modern Karitiana average is Argentina Aconcagua 500BP (c. 1450 AD), at 0.027, followed by Peru Laramate 900BP and Peru Chinchawas LIP Chimu. 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 | Argentina Aconcagua 500BP | c. 1450 AD | 0.0272 |
| 2 | Peru Laramate 900BP | c. 1050 AD | 0.0291 |
| 3 | Peru Chinchawas LIP Chimu | Late Intermediate Period, c. 1000-1470 AD | 0.0312 |
| 4 | Peru Laramate LIP 600BP | c. 1350 AD | 0.0317 |
| 5 | Peru Titicaca 1310-1424 CE | c. 1310-1424 AD | 0.0317 |
| 6 | Peru Lima LIP 650BP | c. 1300 AD | 0.0318 |
| 7 | Peru Cotahuasi Tiwanaku | Tiwanaku era, c. 500-1000 AD | 0.0321 |
| 8 | Peru Ollantaytambo LIP | Late Intermediate Period, c. 1000-1470 AD | 0.0323 |
| 9 | Peru Cuzco Kusicancha LH | Late Horizon, c. 1400-1532 AD | 0.0325 |
| 10 | Peru Kanamarka LH | Late Horizon, c. 1400-1532 AD | 0.0332 |
Ancient DNA from Brazil
Our ancient DNA database holds 67 individuals excavated in present-day Brazil, dated from about 8,450 BC to 1869 AD. The most frequent Y-DNA haplogroups among them are Q1b (32), C1b (1) and C2a (1), and the most frequent mtDNA haplogroups are C1 (27), A2 (11) and D1 (10). These are people who lived on the same land in the past, not necessarily ancestors of today's Karitiana population.
Most frequent Y-DNA haplogroups
| Haplogroup | Individuals | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Q1b | 32 | Sumidouro2 CAP007 Sumidouro5 |
| C1b | 1 | Botocudo15 |
| C2a | 1 | Lapa01 |
Most frequent mtDNA haplogroups
| Haplogroup | Individuals | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| C1 | 27 | CAP007 Lapa01 TDA002 |
| A2 | 11 | GA141mtDNA Lapa15 Lapa05 |
| D1 | 10 | Sumidouro7 Sumidouro4 Sumidouro6 |
| B2 | 9 | Lapa25 GA145mtDNA Lapa24 |
| D4 | 7 | Sumidouro2 Sumidouro5 Sumidouro8 |
| B4 | 1 | Botocudo15 |
| C4 | 1 | PAI001 |
Ancient DNA studies on Brazil
- Genomic insights into ancestry and infectious disease in 17th-century colonial Brazil (2025)
- The Brazilian Initiative on Precision Medicine (BIPMed): fostering genomic data-sharing of underrepresented populations (2025)
- Mitochondrial ancestry from complete mitogenomes highlights a lack of characterization of indigenous haplogroups in Brazilian Amazon population (2025)
- Admixture’s impact on Brazilian population evolution and health (2025)
- Redefining the treponemal history through pre-Columbian genomes from Brazil (2024)
- Genomic history of coastal societies from eastern South America (2023)
Browse them in our ancient DNA database: 67 from Brazil.
Compare yourself with Karitiana
Paste your G25 coordinates (scaled, one line, with or without a name in front) and we compute your genetic distance to the Karitiana average and to its closest neighbours, right in your browser. Nothing is uploaded or stored.
| # | Population | Your distance | Closeness |
|---|
This list only covers Karitiana 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 Karitiana individuals who were sampled, not every person who identifies as Karitiana. 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 Karitiana average. Your own DNA has its own story: Raíces – Latin American Bloodline (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 only for Latinos: pick your country and we model your DNA against its indigenous peoples plus every Old-World source of Latin American history, on an interactive map.
More populations from Americas
Frequently asked questions
What is the ancient genetic make-up of Karitiana?
Modelled with deep ancestral reference populations, the Karitiana average is about 100.0% Native American (Paleo-American). These proportions are model estimates for a group average, not exact values for any one person.
Which populations are genetically closest to Karitiana?
In the G25 data, the closest modern populations to the Karitiana average are Wayuu, Surui and Cashibo. The closest ancient matches are Argentina Aconcagua 500BP, Peru Laramate 900BP and Peru Chinchawas LIP Chimu.
Can a DNA test tell me if I am Karitiana?
No DNA test can confirm an ethnicity or a nationality. What DNA can show is how similar your genome is to the sampled Karitiana 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 Karitiana ancestry?
Raíces – Latin American Bloodline is the report built for this heritage, and its reference panel fits the Karitiana average closely. 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.