Occitan (Southern France) DNA
Genetic origins and closest populations · France · Western Europe
Occitan, the langue d'oc of the medieval troubadours, is the Romance language traditionally spoken across southern France, from Gascony and Languedoc to Provence and the Alpine valleys. This page uses the Occitanie average. In our model, the ancestry is 50.6% Anatolian Neolithic farmer, 36.4% steppe and 13.1% Western hunter-gatherer. That places southern France between its neighbours: a little more early farmer ancestry and less steppe than the French average (48.7% and 39.7%), but more steppe than the Catalans across the Pyrenees (30.0%). The closest ancient groups are Iron Age people of the Hallstatt period from Bourgogne-Franche-Comte in eastern France (distance 0.0100) and Late Iron Age La Tene people from Cornaux in Switzerland, a sign that much of this profile was already in place in Iron Age Gaul, long before the Roman conquest. The closest modern averages are other French samples, from Poitou-Charentes and the Puy-de-Dome, then the French average, Belgians and the French-speaking Swiss.
- Ancient components in our model: Anatolian Neolithic farmers 50.6%, Steppe herders (Yamnaya) 36.4%, Western hunter-gatherers 13.1%
- Closest modern population in our data: France (Poitou-Charentes, N=10), distance 0.0077
- Closest ancient group in our data: France IA1 Hallstatt Bourgogne-Franche-Comte, distance 0.0100
Occitan (Southern France) 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 Occitan (Southern France) individuals sampled in France, listed in the G25 sheet as "French_Occitanie". Like every population average, it smooths over a lot of variation between individuals.
Ancient make-up of the Occitan (Southern France) average
In a model built from deep ancestral reference populations, the largest share of the Occitan (Southern France) average, 50.6%, goes to Anatolian Neolithic farmers, ahead of Steppe herders (Yamnaya) (36.4%) and Western hunter-gatherers (13.1%). 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 (36.4%) 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 fit is acceptable (fit distance 0.032): treat the proportions as a good approximation rather than exact values. The model draws on West Eurasian ancient genomes, with modern West African and East Asian stand-ins.
France Profonde – French Regional Ancestry Report
Closest modern populations to Occitan (Southern France)
Ranking every modern population by genetic distance puts France (Poitou-Charentes, N=10) first for Occitan (Southern France), at 0.008, then French Occitan (Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes Puy-de-Dome) and French. Leaving aside the other regional samples listed under the same name in the G25 sheet, the nearest other populations are French (0.011), Belgian (group C) (0.017) and Swiss (French) (0.018). Even the tenth closest, Alsatian, is only 0.021 away: Occitan (Southern France) belongs to a dense cluster of related populations, so small differences inside that cluster should not be over-interpreted.
| # | Population | Distance | Closeness |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | France (Poitou-Charentes, N=10) | 0.0077 | Very close |
| 2 | French Occitan (Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes Puy-de-Dome) | 0.0078 | Very close |
| 3 | French | 0.0109 | Very close |
| 4 | Belgian (group C) | 0.0166 | Very close |
| 5 | Swiss (French) | 0.0177 | Very close |
| 6 | Swiss German | 0.0182 | Very close |
| 7 | Spanish (Catalonia Girona, Catalan) | 0.0198 | Very close |
| 8 | Spanish (Catalonia Penedes, Catalan) | 0.0203 | Very close |
| 9 | Spanish (Catalonia, Catalan) | 0.0205 | Very close |
| 10 | Alsatian | 0.0210 | 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 Occitan (Southern France)
Looking back in time, the ancient sample that most resembles the Occitan (Southern France) average is France IA1 Hallstatt Bourgogne-Franche-Comte (Iron Age), at 0.010. France IA1 Hallstatt C-Early La Tene Bourgogne-Franche-Comte and Switzerland LIA La Tene Cornaux 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 | France IA1 Hallstatt Bourgogne-Franche-Comte | Iron Age | 0.0100 |
| 2 | France IA1 Hallstatt C-Early La Tene Bourgogne-Franche-Comte | Copper Age (Chalcolithic) | 0.0106 |
| 3 | Switzerland LIA La Tene Cornaux | Late Iron Age | 0.0112 |
| 4 | Germany LIA-Early Medieval Hassleben (Western Euro Profile) | Early Medieval, c. 500-1000 AD | 0.0129 |
| 5 | Italy Lazio Roman Empire Rome (Gallic Profile) | Roman era, c. 1-400 AD | 0.0147 |
| 6 | Slovakia LIA La Tene | Late Iron Age | 0.0150 |
| 7 | Germany Hassleben Germanic | 0.0153 | |
| 8 | France IA2 La Tene Bourgogne-Franche-Comte (Intermediate Profile) | Iron Age | 0.0153 |
| 9 | Czechia IA La Tene (Intermediate Profile) | Iron Age | 0.0158 |
| 10 | Germany EIA Hallstatt D Magdalenenberg | Early Iron Age | 0.0171 |
Ancient DNA from France
Our ancient DNA database holds 1,113 individuals excavated in present-day France, dated from about 52,000 BC to 1821 AD. The most frequent Y-DNA haplogroups among them are R1b (163), I2a (144) and G2a (142), and the most frequent mtDNA haplogroups are K1 (131), U5 (116) and H1 (104). These are people who lived on the same land in the past, not necessarily ancestors of today's Occitan (Southern France) population.
Most frequent Y-DNA haplogroups
Most frequent mtDNA haplogroups
Ancient DNA studies on France
- Ancient DNA Reveals Limited Hunter-Gatherer Ancestry in the Cerny Culture (Middle Neolithic, France) Despite Hunting-Associated Practices (2026)
- Population discontinuity in the Paris Basin linked to evidence of the Neolithic decline (2026)
- L’apport de la paléogénétique à la compréhension des populations de la fin de l’Antiquité et du début du Moyen Âge. L’exemple de la nécropole de la gare Saint-Laud à Angers (2025)
- Ancient DNA sheds light on the funerary practices of late Neolithic collective burial in southern France (2025)
- How local reference panels improve imputation in French populations (2024)
- Genomic ancestry and social dynamics of the last hunter-gatherers of Atlantic France (2024)
- Earliest evidence of human occupations and technological complexity above the 45th North parallel in Western Europe. The site of Lunery-Rosieres la-Terre-des-Sablons (France, 1.1 Ma) (2024)
- Late Neolithic collective burial reveals admixture dynamics during the third millennium BCE and the shaping of the European genome (2024)
Browse them in our ancient DNA database: 1,113 from France.
Compare yourself with Occitan (Southern France)
Paste your G25 coordinates (scaled, one line, with or without a name in front) and we compute your genetic distance to the Occitan (Southern France) average and to its closest neighbours, right in your browser. Nothing is uploaded or stored.
| # | Population | Your distance | Closeness |
|---|
This list only covers Occitan (Southern France) 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 Occitan (Southern France). 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 Occitan (Southern France) average. Your own DNA has its own story: France Profonde – French Regional 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 French ancestry: ancient regional core (Gaulish, Frankish, Gallo-Roman, Norse Norman) versus non-regional outside admixture, across France's 20 historic regions (Alsace, Brittany, Normandy, Provence, Auvergne...
More populations from Western Europe
Frequently asked questions
What is the ancient genetic make-up of Occitan (Southern France)?
Modelled with deep ancestral reference populations, the Occitan (Southern France) average is about 50.6% Anatolian Neolithic farmers, 36.4% Steppe herders (Yamnaya) and 13.1% 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 Occitan (Southern France)?
Leaving aside other regional samples listed under the same name in the G25 sheet (such as France (Poitou-Charentes, N=10)), the closest modern populations to the Occitan (Southern France) average are French, Belgian (group C) and Swiss (French). The closest ancient matches are France IA1 Hallstatt Bourgogne-Franche-Comte, France IA1 Hallstatt C-Early La Tene Bourgogne-Franche-Comte and Switzerland LIA La Tene Cornaux.
Can a DNA test tell me if I am Occitan (Southern France)?
No DNA test can confirm an ethnicity or a nationality. What DNA can show is how similar your genome is to the sampled Occitan (Southern France) 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 Occitan (Southern France) ancestry?
For the Occitan (Southern France) average, the regional report to choose is France Profonde – French Regional 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.