Ukrainian DNA
Genetic origins and closest populations · Ukraine · Eastern Europe
Much of Ukraine lies on the western part of the Pontic-Caspian steppe, the homeland of the Yamnaya herders whose Bronze Age expansion carried steppe-related ancestry across much of Europe and into parts of Asia. The region was also home to early farming cultures such as Cucuteni-Trypillia, known for its very large settlements. In our model, the Ukrainian average is 43.2% steppe, 35.2% Anatolian Neolithic farmer, 11.7% Western hunter-gatherer and 10.0% Eastern hunter-gatherer. The fit (0.063) is rougher than for most populations, as is usual for East Slavs with these sources, so read the percentages as an approximate sketch. The closest ancient groups are High Medieval people with a Balto-Slavic profile from Korolivka and Pidhirtsi in Ukraine, followed by medieval Elbe Slavs. The closest modern averages are Ukrainians from Sumy and Zhytomyr, followed by Poles from Krakow and Russians from Voronezh, Orel and Belgorod.
- Largest ancient components in our model: Steppe herders (Yamnaya) 43.2%, Anatolian Neolithic farmers 35.2%, Western hunter-gatherers 11.7%
- Closest modern population in our data: Ukrainian (Sumy), distance 0.0083
- Closest ancient group in our data: Ukraine High Medieval Kievan Rus'-Golden Horde Korolivka (Balto-Slavic Profile), distance 0.0101
Ukrainian 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 Ukrainian individuals sampled in Ukraine. Like every population average, it smooths over a lot of variation between individuals.
Ancient make-up of the Ukrainian average
Modelled as a mix of deep ancestral reference populations, the Ukrainian average comes out as 43.2% Steppe herders (Yamnaya), 35.2% Anatolian Neolithic farmers and 11.7% Western hunter-gatherers. The Steppe herders (Yamnaya) component 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 Anatolian Neolithic farmers share (35.2%) reflects the Neolithic farmers of Anatolia, who carried agriculture into Europe from about 6500 BC.
The fit is loose (fit distance 0.063), 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. The model draws on West Eurasian ancient genomes, with modern West African and East Asian stand-ins.
Sarmatia – Balto-Slavic Ancestry Report
Closest modern populations to Ukrainian
Ranking every modern population by genetic distance puts Ukrainian (Sumy) first for Ukrainian, at 0.008, then Ukrainian (Zhytomyr) and Polish (Malopolska Krakow). Leaving aside the other regional samples listed under the same name in the G25 sheet, the nearest other populations are Polish (Malopolska Krakow) (0.011), Russian (Voronez) (0.011) and Russian (Orel) (0.011). Even the tenth closest, Belarusian, is only 0.017 away: Ukrainian belongs to a dense cluster of related populations, so small differences inside that cluster should not be over-interpreted.
| # | Population | Distance | Closeness |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ukrainian (Sumy) | 0.0083 | Very close |
| 2 | Ukrainian (Zhytomyr) | 0.0088 | Very close |
| 3 | Polish (Malopolska Krakow) | 0.0106 | Very close |
| 4 | Russian (Voronez) | 0.0108 | Very close |
| 5 | Russian (Orel) | 0.0108 | Very close |
| 6 | Russian (Belgorod) | 0.0111 | Very close |
| 7 | Polish (Mazovia Warsaw) | 0.0122 | Very close |
| 8 | Polish (Pomerania Gdansk) | 0.0146 | Very close |
| 9 | Cossack (Ukrainian) | 0.0166 | Very close |
| 10 | Belarusian | 0.0173 | 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 Ukrainian
Among ancient genomes, the closest match to the modern Ukrainian average is Ukraine High Medieval Kievan Rus'-Golden Horde Korolivka (Balto-Slavic Profile) (High Medieval, c. 1000-1300 AD), at 0.010, followed by Ukraine High Medieval Kievan Rus'-Golden Horde Pidhirtsi (Balto-Slavic Profile) and Germany High Medieval Elbe Slav Niederwunsch. 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 | Ukraine High Medieval Kievan Rus'-Golden Horde Korolivka (Balto-Slavic Profile) | High Medieval, c. 1000-1300 AD | 0.0101 |
| 2 | Ukraine High Medieval Kievan Rus'-Golden Horde Pidhirtsi (Balto-Slavic Profile) | High Medieval, c. 1000-1300 AD | 0.0113 |
| 3 | Germany High Medieval Elbe Slav Niederwunsch | High Medieval, c. 1000-1300 AD | 0.0140 |
| 4 | Germany Early-High Medieval Elbe Slav Obermollern | Early to High Medieval, c. 500-1300 AD | 0.0152 |
| 5 | Germany Early-High Medieval Elbe Slav Steuden | Early to High Medieval, c. 500-1300 AD | 0.0154 |
| 6 | Germany High-Late Medieval Krakauer Berg (Balto-Slavic Profile) | High to Late Medieval, c. 1000-1500 AD | 0.0169 |
| 7 | Ukraine High Medieval Kievan Rus' Pidhirtsi (Balto-Slavic Profile) | High Medieval, c. 1000-1300 AD | 0.0177 |
| 8 | Poland High Medieval Grodek (Balto-Slavic Profile) | High Medieval, c. 1000-1300 AD | 0.0193 |
| 9 | Ukraine High Medieval Kievan Rus'-Golden Horde Lutsk (Balto-Slavic Profile) | High Medieval, c. 1000-1300 AD | 0.0201 |
| 10 | Russia Vladimir High Medieval Viking Age (Slavic Profile) | Viking Age, c. 800-1050 AD | 0.0205 |
Ancient DNA from Ukraine
Our ancient DNA database holds 533 individuals excavated in present-day Ukraine, dated from about 34,841 BC to 1700 AD. The most frequent Y-DNA haplogroups among them are I2a (70), R1b (49) and R1a (48), and the most frequent mtDNA haplogroups are U5 (110), U4 (63) and T2 (31). These are people who lived on the same land in the past, not necessarily ancestors of today's Ukrainian population.
Most frequent Y-DNA haplogroups
Browse them in our ancient DNA database: 533 from Ukraine.
Compare yourself with Ukrainian
Paste your G25 coordinates (scaled, one line, with or without a name in front) and we compute your genetic distance to the Ukrainian average and to its closest neighbours, right in your browser. Nothing is uploaded or stored.
| # | Population | Your distance | Closeness |
|---|
This list only covers Ukrainian 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 Ukrainian individuals who were sampled, not every person who identifies as Ukrainian. 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 Ukrainian average. Your own DNA has its own story: Sarmatia – Balto-Slavic 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 from Eastern and Central-Eastern Europe of Balto-Slavic ancestry: ancient regional core (Corded Ware, Bronze Age cultures, Scythian, Sarmatian and Baltic Iron Age, Przeworsk, Wielbark and Chernyakhiv, Early Slavs...
More populations from Eastern Europe
Frequently asked questions
What is the ancient genetic make-up of Ukrainian?
Modelled with deep ancestral reference populations, the Ukrainian average is about 43.2% Steppe herders (Yamnaya), 35.2% Anatolian Neolithic farmers and 11.7% 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 Ukrainian?
Leaving aside other regional samples listed under the same name in the G25 sheet (such as Ukrainian (Sumy)), the closest modern populations to the Ukrainian average are Polish (Malopolska Krakow), Russian (Voronez) and Russian (Orel). The closest ancient matches are Ukraine High Medieval Kievan Rus'-Golden Horde Korolivka (Balto-Slavic Profile), Ukraine High Medieval Kievan Rus'-Golden Horde Pidhirtsi (Balto-Slavic Profile) and Germany High Medieval Elbe Slav Niederwunsch.
Can a DNA test tell me if I am Ukrainian?
No DNA test can confirm an ethnicity or a nationality. What DNA can show is how similar your genome is to the sampled Ukrainian 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 Ukrainian ancestry?
For the Ukrainian average, the regional report to choose is Sarmatia – Balto-Slavic 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.