Record

Sample details

Recorded details and available lineage markers.

Individual

Afanasievo individual, Russia

Sample ID: I3949

Date Range

2844 BCE - 2496 BCE

Cultural Period

The Ancient Eurasian Steppe

Biological Sex

Male

mtDNA Haplogroup

U5a1d2b*

Y-DNA Haplogroup

Q-FT380500

Social Role

Pastoralist (AI estimate, era-typical)

Geography

Location

Where this individual was discovered

Country Russia

Locality Altai Mountains. Yenisey River. left bank of Karasuk tributary. Karasuk III

A location map is not available for this record.

Chronology

Date range

When this individual lived in the broader context of human history

Afanasievo individual, Russia 2844 BCE - 2496 BCE

Context

Historical context

Background information associated with the reference record.

Overview

Afanasievo sites belong to early Bronze Age lifeways on the Eurasian steppe, notable for their graves and the durable material signatures they left behind. The archaeological record shows organized settlement and recurring patterns of craft and burial rather than a single, unified “empire.”

Region & Environment

The Afanasievo horizon is associated with steppe and meadow-steppe settings where seasonal movement and access to pasture would have been important. In such environments, water sources, grazing routes, and sheltered land for seasonal camps influence where people built settlements and buried their dead.

Historical Context

Chronologically, Afanasievo falls in the late 4th to early 3rd millennium BCE. It is part of broader steppe-era developments that included changing technologies, wider networks of exchange, and shifting social organization across grassland corridors.

Populations & Lifeways

Populations are commonly characterized as herders relying on domestic animals, with mobility likely varying by local ecology and family-scale planning. Evidence from settlements and burials indicates continuing occupation and social coordination, while craft activities suggest groups could concentrate labor and materials at particular times and places.

Archaeology & Material Culture

Afanasievo material culture is most clearly visible in mortuary practices and in portable goods. Graves often contain items such as stone tools, ceramics, and personal ornaments, alongside metal objects where preserved. Artifact styles and construction details help archaeologists link sites across wide distances.

Culture & Society

Repeated burial features and standardized artifact selections imply shared traditions, social roles, and mechanisms for transmitting identity across generations. Daily technologies—spinning, weaving, woodworking, and basic metalworking—would have supported herding economies and the maintenance of mobile households.

Legacy & Transition

As later steppe cultures emerged, Afanasievo practices did not simply “disappear”; rather, archaeological differences suggest changing traditions, new influences, and reorganization of networks. The transition is best observed through shifts in burial customs, artifact styles, and settlement patterns in the centuries that follow.

Analysis

Genetic comparisons

These comparisons show genetic similarity, not identity or origin. The populations listed are those whose genomes show statistical alignment to this ancient individual.

Similarity reflects shared history, not shared identity. These are analytical comparisons, not claims about who this person was.

Modern Genetic Admixture

This analysis compares the DNA profile with present-day reference populations, showing statistical similarity to modern reference populations from different regions. The excavation site records where this individual was found, not a fixed modern genetic identity.

Europe 67.1%

Northwestern European 35.1%

Finnish 18.8%

English 15.0%

Northwestern European 1.4%

Eastern European 32.0%

Asia 31.6%

Northern West Asian 21.2%

Caucasian 21.2%

Central Asian, Northern Indian & Pakistani 10.4%

Pakistan 6.6%

Indian 3.8%

America 1.3%

Native American 1.3%

Closest Modern Populations

These are the modern populations showing the closest statistical alignment to A man buried in Russia in the era, ranked by genetic distance. Lower distance values indicate closer statistical similarity. Cross-region similarity can reflect shared ancestry, population movement, continuity, or later admixture.

1

Turkish Deliorman

6.1672

2

Moksha

6.3135

3

Moldovan O

6.5138

4

Mordovian

6.6217

5

Moldovan

6.7357

6

Erzya

6.7420

7

Ukrainian Zakarpattia

6.8740

8

Tatar Mishar

6.9632

9

Hungarian

6.9819

10

Russian Ryazan

7.1541

Context

Related Samples

This individual exists within a broader network of ancient samples. No ancient genome stands alone.

Search related samples

Individual	Culture/Period	Date	Location	Action
Indo-European individual, Russia	Afanasievo Culture	2800 BCE	Altai Mountains. Yenisey River. left bank of Karasuk tributary. Karasuk III, Russia	View
Indo-European individual, Russia	Afanasievo Culture	2844 BCE	Altai Mountains. Yenisey River. left bank of Karasuk tributary. Karasuk III, Russia	View
Indo-European individual, Russia	Afanasievo Culture	2879 BCE	Altai Mountains. Yenisey River. left bank of Karasuk tributary. Karasuk III, Russia	View
Indo-European individual, Russia	Afanasievo Culture	2618 BCE	Altai Mountains. Yenisey River. left bank of Karasuk tributary. Karasuk III, Russia	View
Afanasievo individual, Russia		2800 BCE	Altai Mountains. Yenisey River. left bank of Karasuk tributary. Karasuk III, Russia	View
Afanasievo individual, Russia		2844 BCE	Altai Mountains. Yenisey River. left bank of Karasuk tributary. Karasuk III, Russia	View
Afanasievo individual, Russia		2879 BCE	Altai Mountains. Yenisey River. left bank of Karasuk tributary. Karasuk III, Russia	View
Afanasievo individual, Russia		2618 BCE	Altai Mountains. Yenisey River. left bank of Karasuk tributary. Karasuk III, Russia	View

Page 1