Bengali Brahmin Surname: Y-DNA Haplogroup
Published genetics research or a documented case study links the surname Bengali Brahmin to a specific Y-DNA paternal-line haplogroup.
R1a1* (up to 72.22% frequency, the highest of any Brahmin population sampled)
Clade R1a
Also spelled: Bangali Brahmin; Bengali Brahman
Large-scale study (621 Y-chromosomes) screening Brahmins and scheduled castes/tribals nationwide; West Bengal Brahmins showed the single highest R1a1 frequency recorded in the dataset.
Source: Sharma S, Rai E, Sharma P, et al. (2009). "The Indian origin of paternal haplogroup R1a1* substantiates the autochthonous origin of Brahmins and the caste system." Journal of Human Genetics, 54:47-55.
How to read this. A surname match means some people with that surname, in a specific study or family record, were found to share a haplogroup, most likely due to a shared patrilineal ancestor generations back. It is not proof that you personally carry that haplogroup: surnames change through adoption, remarriage, non-paternity events, and independent origin of the same name in different families. For your own confirmed haplogroup, test your DNA with our HaploAI Y-DNA/mtDNA predictor.
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