Maltese DNA
Genetic origins and closest populations · Malta · Southern Europe
Malta, a small archipelago between Sicily and North Africa, speaks the only Semitic language that is an official language of the European Union. Maltese grew from the Arabic of the medieval period, when the islands were under Arab rule from 870, and took in much Sicilian and Italian vocabulary after the Norman conquest of 1091. In our model, the Maltese average is 53.6% Anatolian Neolithic farmer, 24.7% steppe, 10.0% Natufian, 7.3% Iranian Neolithic, 2.6% North African and 1.8% Caucasus hunter-gatherer. The nearest modern averages are western Sicilians from Trapani and nearby (distance 0.0169), a sign that the genetic link runs north to Sicily rather than south, despite the Arabic-derived language. Ashkenazi Jewish samples also appear close (0.0180), as both populations combine southern European and eastern Mediterranean ancestry in similar proportions. The closest ancient groups are High Medieval people with an East Mediterranean profile from Foggia in Apulia (0.0200) and the medieval Jewish community of Norwich.
- Largest ancient components in our model: Anatolian Neolithic farmers 53.6%, Steppe herders (Yamnaya) 24.7%, Natufian hunter-gatherers (Levant) 10.0%
- Closest modern population in our data: Italian (Sicily West, Sicilian), distance 0.0169
- Closest ancient group in our data: Italy Apulia High Medieval Foggia (East Med Profile), distance 0.0200
Maltese 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 Maltese individuals sampled in Malta. Like every population average, it smooths over a lot of variation between individuals.
Ancient make-up of the Maltese average
In a model built from deep ancestral reference populations, the largest share of the Maltese average, 53.6%, goes to Anatolian Neolithic farmers, ahead of Steppe herders (Yamnaya) (24.7%) and Natufian hunter-gatherers (Levant) (10.0%). 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 (24.7%) 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.
Smaller traces of North African hunter-gatherers (Iberomaurusian) and Caucasus hunter-gatherers (under 5% each) also appear. At that level they can reflect real minor ancestry, but also simple model noise, so they should not be over-read. The model fits well (fit distance 0.016), so these proportions are a reasonable summary. The model draws on West Eurasian ancient genomes, with modern West African and East Asian stand-ins.
Thalassa – Mediterranean Islander Report
Closest modern populations to Maltese
Ranking every modern population by genetic distance puts Italian (Sicily West, Sicilian) first for Maltese, at 0.017, then Italian (Sicily Trapani, Sicilian) and Ashkenazi Jew (Germany). Even the tenth closest, Sicilian (West), is only 0.021 away: Maltese belongs to a dense cluster of related populations, so small differences inside that cluster should not be over-interpreted.
| # | Population | Distance | Closeness |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Italian (Sicily West, Sicilian) | 0.0169 | Very close |
| 2 | Italian (Sicily Trapani, Sicilian) | 0.0171 | Very close |
| 3 | Ashkenazi Jew (Germany) | 0.0180 | Very close |
| 4 | Ashkenazi Jewish | 0.0192 | Very close |
| 5 | Ashkenazi Jew (France) | 0.0194 | Very close |
| 6 | Italian (Sicily Syracuse, Sicilian) | 0.0196 | Very close |
| 7 | Ashkenazi (Romania) | 0.0204 | Very close |
| 8 | Sicilian (East) | 0.0207 | Very close |
| 9 | Calabrian | 0.0211 | Very close |
| 10 | Sicilian (West) | 0.0214 | 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 Maltese
Looking back in time, the ancient sample that most resembles the Maltese average is Italy Apulia High Medieval Foggia (East Med Profile) (High Medieval, c. 1000-1300 AD), at 0.020. England High Medieval Tzarfati Jew Norwich and Italy Basilicata Early Medieval Venosa (East Med 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 | Italy Apulia High Medieval Foggia (East Med Profile) | High Medieval, c. 1000-1300 AD | 0.0200 |
| 2 | England High Medieval Tzarfati Jew Norwich | High Medieval, c. 1000-1300 AD | 0.0207 |
| 3 | Italy Basilicata Early Medieval Venosa (East Med Profile) | Early Medieval, c. 500-1000 AD | 0.0207 |
| 4 | Germany Late Medieval Ashkenazi Jew Erfurt (Mixed Western-Eastern Profile) | Late Medieval, c. 1300-1500 AD | 0.0210 |
| 5 | Spain Catalonia Late Medieval Sephardic Jew Tarrega | Late Medieval, c. 1300-1500 AD | 0.0218 |
| 6 | Belgium Late Medieval-Early Modern Holy Roman Empire St. Rombout's (East Med Profile) | Late Medieval to Early Modern, c. 1300-1800 AD | 0.0232 |
| 7 | Germany Late Medieval Ashkenazi Jew Erfurt (Western Profile) | Late Medieval, c. 1300-1500 AD | 0.0250 |
| 8 | Croatia Early Medieval Old Croat Velim (East Med Profile) | Early Medieval, c. 500-1000 AD | 0.0255 |
| 9 | Italy Lazio Late Medieval Rome (East Med Profile) | Late Medieval, c. 1300-1500 AD | 0.0260 |
| 10 | Croatia Late Antiquity-Early Medieval Trogir (East Med Profile) | Late Antiquity to Early Medieval, c. 250-1000 AD | 0.0260 |
Ancient DNA from Malta
Our ancient DNA database holds 3 individuals excavated in present-day Malta, dated from about 2,775 BC to 2,450 BC. The most frequent Y-DNA haplogroups among them are G2a (1) and H2b (1), and the most frequent mtDNA haplogroups are G2 (1) and H2 (1). These are people who lived on the same land in the past, not necessarily ancestors of today's Maltese population.
Browse them in our ancient DNA database: 3 from Malta.
Compare yourself with Maltese
Paste your G25 coordinates (scaled, one line, with or without a name in front) and we compute your genetic distance to the Maltese average and to its closest neighbours, right in your browser. Nothing is uploaded or stored.
| # | Population | Your distance | Closeness |
|---|
This list only covers Maltese 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 Maltese. 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 Maltese average. Your own DNA has its own story: Thalassa – Mediterranean Islander 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 Mediterranean-island ancestry: ancient regional core (Minoan, Mycenaean, Nuragic Sardinian, Phoenician, Sicani, Daunian) versus non-regional outside admixture, across 9 communities (Sicilian, Sardinian, Maltese...
More populations from Southern Europe
Frequently asked questions
What is the ancient genetic make-up of Maltese?
Modelled with deep ancestral reference populations, the Maltese average is about 53.6% Anatolian Neolithic farmers, 24.7% Steppe herders (Yamnaya) and 10.0% Natufian hunter-gatherers (Levant). These proportions are model estimates for a group average, not exact values for any one person.
Which populations are genetically closest to Maltese?
In the G25 data, the closest modern populations to the Maltese average are Italian (Sicily West, Sicilian), Italian (Sicily Trapani, Sicilian) and Ashkenazi Jew (Germany). The closest ancient matches are Italy Apulia High Medieval Foggia (East Med Profile), England High Medieval Tzarfati Jew Norwich and Italy Basilicata Early Medieval Venosa (East Med Profile).
Can a DNA test tell me if I am Maltese?
No DNA test can confirm an ethnicity or a nationality. What DNA can show is how similar your genome is to the sampled Maltese 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 Maltese ancestry?
For the Maltese average, the regional report to choose is Thalassa – Mediterranean Islander 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.