Mongoloid/Asian genes in Russian people.

[Ilya.S]

Many people think that Russians have a lot of Mongoloid/Asian genes, but I wouldn't agree with that.
For example Balanovskaja(Балановская), Russian anthropologist and Genetist writes that the amount of East-Eurasian genes in Russians is only 2 percent while Poles have 1,5 percent, Norwegians 0,6 percent, Karelians 4,8 percent and Icelanders 0,7 percent ...
The average percentage of these genes among Europeans is 3,6 percent, so the Russian average is even lower than the European average.

For people who understand Russian this could be interesting to read, maybe it's also possible to find it in English but I don't know where:
http://img215.imageshack.us/i/russianstatars1.jpg/
http://img338.imageshack.us/i/russianstatars2.jpg/
http://img534.imageshack.us/i/russianstatars3.jpg/
http://img534.imageshack.us/i/russianstatars4.jpg/
Е. В. Балановская, О. П. Балановский. Русский генофонд на Русской равнине.
E. V. Balanovskaja, O.P. Balanovskij. Russian gene pool on Russian plain.

[Cato]

Some Russians may have Asiatic genes from Kipchaks, Mongols, or whomever.

Some Americans may have Amerindian genes from Amerindian tribes- myself possibly, from the Cayuga and Seneca tribes of Iroquois Confederacy. I don't know if it's true or just a romanticized, familial yarn. If it is, cool, but it doesn't make me an Iroquois (I'm not trying to preserve what Amerindian I may have in my blood and only spme jackass thinks that he's 100% pure anyways); if not, no worries. I am what I am.

Russia is so vast, with so many different groups, who's to really say who has who as an ancestor. As I understand it, Temujin has many millions of offspring- even as far west as Eastern Europe.

[The Khagan]

Some Russians may have Asiatic genes from Kipchaks, Mongols, or whomever.

Some Americans may have Amerindian genes from Amerindian tribes- myself possibly, from the Cayuga and Seneca tribes of Iroquois Confederacy. I don't know if it's true or just a romanticized, familial yarn. If it is, cool, but it doesn't make me an Iroquois (I'm not trying to preserve what Amerindian I may have in my blood and only spme jackass thinks that he's 100% pure anyways); if not, no worries. I am what I am.

Russia is so vast, with so many different groups, who's to really say who has who as an ancestor. As I understand it, Temujin has many millions of offspring- even as far west as Eastern Europe.

[Osweo]

WE ARE NOT ASIATICS... ALAS...

The proportion of east-Eurasian haplogroups in the Russian population constitutes only 2% (see part 6.2). In other words, of very minor scale, and almost as small as in the Polish genepool (1.5%) or in northern Europe where a 'Tataro-Mongol imprint' is definitely ruled out (Norwegians at 0.6%, Icelanders 0.7%, Karelians 4.8% and so on). The average 'background' frequency of east-Eurasian haplogroups in Europe is around 3.6%. I.e. the proportion in the Russian genepool (2%) is even less than the 'European average', and so the Mongol component among Russians turns out not simply to be zero, but even of a negative value. We therefore see no impact of the Mongol invasion on the Russian genepool, or else we would have to admit its presence among Poles, Norwegians, Karelians and other genepools of Europe.

It's not a very 'scientific' article, being more concerned with the historical side of the question and the refutation of old myths current among the Russian lay community. It seems restricted to Y and Mitochondrial data. It remarks upon the minimal Far Eastern component even among the Kazan Tatars, and puts the 'Asian' influences above down predominantly to Uralic causes.

Is that a fair summary, Илья? I only skimmed it really, trying to find the most important stuff.

[Arsenij]

Some Russians may have Asiatic genes from Kipchaks, Mongols, or whomever

Genetics and anthropology fortunately/unfortunately dont confirm it.

It remarks upon the minimal Far Eastern component even among the Kazan Tatars, and puts the 'Asian' influences above down predominantly to Uralic causes.

From a part I can agree with you, anthropologically little asiatic/uralic influence marked by anthropologists only in south-eastern russian Volga populations, ut it's very little considering it in a context of all Russian population.

[Laudanum]

Genetics and anthropology fortunately/unfortunately dont confirm it.

I believe he just meant that some Russians (especially those in the east) might have some mongoloid blood, not Russians in general.

[Cato]

I believe he just meant that some Russians (especially those in the east) might have some mongoloid blood, not Russians in general.

That's what I said exactly: some Russians, not Russians as a whole.

[hajduk]

some

Yep. The Russian empire covered vast expanses of geographic territory and encompassed many different ethnic groups: jews, mongols, cossacks, finns, estonians, uzbeks, tatars etc.. Surely russians interbred with all of these ethnic groups.

[Agrippa]

The only final proof can come from genetic studies, simple as that.

Here is a new one which compared Latin American with European populations, you can see a slight Mongoloid or Negroid admixture can occur and individually vary among most Europeans, but on average, even if its still very low, there seem to be regional differences:



http://dienekes.blogspot.com/

That moderate amount comes as no surprise.

[Ilya.S]

Yep. The Russian empire covered vast expanses of geographic territory and encompassed many different ethnic groups: jews, mongols, cossacks, finns, estonians, uzbeks, tatars etc.. Surely russians interbred with all of these ethnic groups.

I don't know, for example cossacks aren't even an ethnic group, they are a millitary community.
There might have been some interbreeding but surely not on a large scale.
The group that had the biggest influence on Russian genetics I think are Finno-Ugric peoples not mongols or jews...