Southern Italian DNA
Genetic origins and closest populations · Italy · Southern Europe
Southern Italy was the Magna Graecia of antiquity, where Greek colonists founded cities such as Taranto and Metaponto from the 8th century BC, and it later spent long periods under Byzantine, Norman and Spanish rule. This page uses the Basilicata average, the ancient Lucania. In our model, it is 56.7% Anatolian Neolithic farmer, 24.8% steppe, 7.2% Natufian, 6.7% Iranian Neolithic and 4.8% Caucasus hunter-gatherer. These last three shares, together a clear eastern Mediterranean signal, are much larger than in the north, where Piedmont shows only 1.4% Natufian, while the steppe share is lower than in Piedmont (36.3%). The nearest modern averages are Apulians (distance 0.0076) and Campanians, then the Greek-speaking communities of Apulia (0.0097), Calabrians and Greeks from the Deep Mani. The closest ancient groups are Late Antique people with an East Mediterranean profile, from Roman Pannonia in present-day Hungary (0.0132) and from the island of Hvar in Croatia.
- Largest ancient components in our model: Anatolian Neolithic farmers 56.7%, Steppe herders (Yamnaya) 24.8%, Natufian hunter-gatherers (Levant) 7.2%
- Closest modern population in our data: Apulian, distance 0.0076
- Closest ancient group in our data: Hungary Late Antiquity Roman (East Med Profile), distance 0.0132
Where does Southern Italian DNA sit on the genetic map of the world? To answer, we take the averaged Global25 (G25) coordinates of the Southern Italian individuals sampled in Italy, listed in the G25 sheet as "Italian_Basilicata" 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 Southern Italian average
The ancient make-up of the Southern Italian average is led by Anatolian Neolithic farmers (56.7%), followed by Steppe herders (Yamnaya) (24.8%) and Natufian hunter-gatherers (Levant) (7.2%). 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 (24.8%) 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 Caucasus hunter-gatherers (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 model fits well (fit distance 0.015), 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 Southern Italian
Among the modern populations in the G25 data, the closest to the Southern Italian average is Apulian, at a distance of 0.008 (very close). Next come Italian (Apulia, Apulian) at 0.008 and Italian (Campania, Campanian) at 0.008. Leaving aside the other regional samples listed under the same name in the G25 sheet, the nearest other populations are Apulian (0.008), Greek (Italy Apulia) (0.010) and Calabrian (0.013). Even the tenth closest, Turkish (Crete), is only 0.018 away: Southern Italian belongs to a dense cluster of related populations, so small differences inside that cluster should not be over-interpreted.
| # | Population | Distance | Closeness |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Apulian | 0.0076 | Very close |
| 2 | Italian (Apulia, Apulian) | 0.0077 | Very close |
| 3 | Italian (Campania, Campanian) | 0.0083 | Very close |
| 4 | Greek (Italy Apulia) | 0.0097 | Very close |
| 5 | Calabrian | 0.0130 | Very close |
| 6 | Greek (Deep Mani) | 0.0137 | Very close |
| 7 | Greek (South Tsakonia) | 0.0158 | Very close |
| 8 | Arbereshe | 0.0169 | Very close |
| 9 | Sicilian (East) | 0.0172 | Very close |
| 10 | Turkish (Crete) | 0.0179 | 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 Southern Italian
If we search ancient DNA for the best match to Southern Italian, Hungary Late Antiquity Roman (East Med Profile) (Late Antiquity, c. 250-600 AD) comes first, at 0.013, with Croatia Late Antiquity Hvar Radosevic (East Med Profile) 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 | Hungary Late Antiquity Roman (East Med Profile) | Late Antiquity, c. 250-600 AD | 0.0132 |
| 2 | Croatia Late Antiquity Hvar Radosevic (East Med Profile) | Late Antiquity, c. 250-600 AD | 0.0138 |
| 3 | Italy Lazio Late Antiquity San Ercolano (East Med Profile) | Late Antiquity, c. 250-600 AD | 0.0143 |
| 4 | Croatia Late Antiquity-Early Medieval Trogir (East Med Profile) | Late Antiquity to Early Medieval, c. 250-1000 AD | 0.0146 |
| 5 | Italy Apulia High Medieval Foggia (East Med Profile) | High Medieval, c. 1000-1300 AD | 0.0151 |
| 6 | Italy Lazio Late Medieval Villa Magna (East Med Profile) | Late Medieval, c. 1300-1500 AD | 0.0156 |
| 7 | Italy Piedmont Early Medieval Lombard Period Collegno (East Med Profile) | Early Medieval, c. 500-1000 AD | 0.0163 |
| 8 | Italy Lazio High Medieval Villa Magna (East Med Profile) | High Medieval, c. 1000-1300 AD | 0.0169 |
| 9 | Hungary Late Antiquity-Early Medieval Avar Period (East Med Profile) | Late Antiquity to Early Medieval, c. 250-1000 AD | 0.0169 |
| 10 | Croatia Roman Empire Trogir (East Med Profile) | Roman era, c. 1-400 AD | 0.0170 |
Ancient DNA from Italy
Our ancient DNA database holds 1,616 individuals excavated in present-day Italy, dated from about 37,855 BC to 1750 AD. The most frequent Y-DNA haplogroups among them are R1b (216), G2a (154) and I2a (59), and the most frequent mtDNA haplogroups are T2 (156), H1 (128) and U5 (121). These are people who lived on the same land in the past, not necessarily ancestors of today's Southern Italian population.
Most frequent Y-DNA haplogroups
Ancient DNA studies on Italy
- LAYERED GENOMIC COMPOSITION AND LINGUISTIC CONTINUITY IN GRECÌA SALENTINA (2026)
- From prehistory to present-day: How isolation shaped the distinct genomic makeup of Italian Alpine valleys (2026)
- DNA signatures preserved in the official 1978 sample collection of the Shroud of Turin (2026)
- Ancient DNA analyses of remains of the Medici family (16th century) provide insights into the genetic variation of Plasmodium falciparum (2026)
- The Etruscans of Felsina: Reconstruction of the Genetic Profile and Biological Connections with Italic and Transalpine Populations from the Villanovan Period to the Roman period. (2026)
- DNA Traces on the Shroud of Turin: Metagenomics of the 1978 Official Sample Collection (2026)
- Ancient genomes from the siege and destruction of Middle Bronze Age Roca Vecchia (Apulia, Italy) shed light on Aegean contacts and conflicts (2025)
- The shifting dynamics of ancestry and culture at a post-Roman crossroads (2025)
Browse them in our ancient DNA database: 1,616 from Italy.
Compare yourself with Southern Italian
Paste your G25 coordinates (scaled, one line, with or without a name in front) and we compute your genetic distance to the Southern Italian average and to its closest neighbours, right in your browser. Nothing is uploaded or stored.
| # | Population | Your distance | Closeness |
|---|
This list only covers Southern Italian 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 Southern Italian. 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 Southern Italian 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 Southern Italian?
Modelled with deep ancestral reference populations, the Southern Italian average is about 56.7% Anatolian Neolithic farmers, 24.8% Steppe herders (Yamnaya) and 7.2% 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 Southern Italian?
Leaving aside other regional samples listed under the same name in the G25 sheet (such as Italian (Apulia, Apulian)), the closest modern populations to the Southern Italian average are Apulian, Greek (Italy Apulia) and Calabrian. The closest ancient matches are Hungary Late Antiquity Roman (East Med Profile), Croatia Late Antiquity Hvar Radosevic (East Med Profile) and Italy Lazio Late Antiquity San Ercolano (East Med Profile).
Can a DNA test tell me if I am Southern Italian?
No DNA test can confirm an ethnicity or a nationality. What DNA can show is how similar your genome is to the sampled Southern Italian 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 Southern Italian ancestry?
For the Southern Italian 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.