W1e1 (Mitochondrial DNA)

Haplogroup W is particularly common in the eastern half of Europe, in the North Caucasus, in Central Asia, in Iran and in the north-west of the Indian subcontinent. In Europe, the maximum frequencies of W are observed in Finland (9.5%), Hungary (5%), Latvia (4%), Macedonia (4%) and Belarus (3.5%, but over 5% if we exclude the south). Haplogroup W is also well represented among some ethnicities of the North Caucasus, such as the Karachay-Balkars (8%), Avars (8%), Svans (8%) and Adyghe-Kabardin (5%).

In Asia, haplogroup W is most common among the northern Pakistani (8%), Tajiks (6%), northwest Indians (5%) and Iranians (3.5%), but is also found around 1.5% among the Uzbeks, Turkmens and Kazakhs, and at trace frequencies (< 0.5%) among many North Asian ethnic groups (Tuva, Yakuts, Buryats, Mongolians, Koreans, Japanese).

Origins & History
Haplogroup W is descended from haplogroup N2. It is defined by 11 new mutation thought to have arisen during the Late Glacial period, probably somewhere around the Caspian Sea some time between 16,000 and 20,000 years ago. The oldest branch to develop was W1, which emerged about 15,000 years ago, followed by W3 and W6. The mutations for W4, W5 and W7 might be as recent as 9,000 or 10,000 years before present.

The geographic distribution of haplogroup W suggests at a strong correlation with the historical population movements of Y-haplogroup R1a, the Balto-Slavic and Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European speakers.

Neolithic propagation of W1 in Europe
Haplogroup W has never been found in ancient DNA samples in Europe before the Neolithic. The oldest known samples are a W1c from Çatalhöyük in central Anatolia (6450–6380 BCE) and a W1 (with the T119C mutation) in Barcin (6500-6200 BCE) in north-western Anatolia, both dating from the Early Neolithic. W1 has been found in many Neolithic European cultures, such as the Linear Pottery culture (LBK), the Lengyel culture, the Stroked Pottery culture and the Funnel Beaker culture.

Indo-European migrations
The Bronze Age marks the arrival of most W subclades in Europe, starting with the Corded Ware culture (2900-2400 BCE) in central and northern Europe, who is associated with Y-haplogroup R1a. Ancient samples identified from this period include W5a and W6 from Germany. One W3a1 sample appears a few centuries later in the Unetice culture, also in Germany.

Mitonchondrial DNA samples from the Yamna culture, the presumed homeland of Proto-Indo-European speakers, yielded one W3a1a, one W6c (Haak 2015)) and another W6 (Wilde 2014)), all from the Middle Volga region - an indubitable evidence that haplogroup W was indeed found among the original Proto-Indo-Europeans.

The expansion of Proto-Indo-European tribes propagated W subclades in opposite directions from the Pontic-Caspian Steppe, a western branch colonising Central Europe and the Baltic region, while the eastern branch expanded over Central Asia, settling particularly in the historical region of Bactria ( northern Afghanistan, eastern Uzkbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan), then invaded the Indian subcontinent, Iran and the Near East. Many W subclades show just that geographical dispersion, including W1c, W1g, W3, W4 and W6.

In India, haplogroup W is considerably more common among the upper castes and among Indo-European speakers according to Metspalu et al. (2004).
The W1a and W1b subclades are typically found in Finland, where they may have been introduced by the Corded Ware expansion as well. The high frequency of W1 observed in Finland today would have resulted from a founder effect in the Corded Ware settlers.

Blond hair is thought to have originated within the R1a branch of the Indo-Europeans, and would have been propagated by women belonging to haplogroup W, among others.

The absence of haplogroup W among the Basques, the Sardinians and Maghrebians correspond to the absence of Y-haplogroup R1a and of Northeast European admixture in these populations.

Subclades
W1: found in most of Europe, Central Asia, Iran, Pakistan and northwest India / found in Neolithic Anatolia and Europe
W1a : found mostly in Finland, but also in Scandinavia, Germany, France, Britain and Ireland
W1b (formerly W2): found in Finland / found among the Tian Shan Huns
W1b1 : found almost exclusively in Finland
W1c : found in the British Isles, France, Scandinavia, Germany, Poland, Greece, Bulgaria, Turkey, Georgia, Iran (Persians), Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Pakistan and India / found in Early Neolithic Anatolia (Çatalhöyük), in Bronze Age Poland and Russia (Fatyanovo culture) and among the Caucasian Alans
W1c1 : found in the British Isles, France, and Finland
W1d: found mostly in Iran and Iraq, but also among Algerian Jews
W1e: found mostly in northern and central Europe and in Central Asia, but also in Spain and Portugal
W1f: found in central Europe and Italy
W1g: found mostly in western and central Europe, but also in Ukraine, Pakistan and India (Punjab, Gujarat)
W1h: found mostly in Baltic and East Slavic countries, but also in Norway, Denmark, Italy, Pakistan, India (Punjab, Gujarat), Saudi Arabia and among Ashkenazi Jews
W3
W3a
W3a1 : found especially in central and eastern Europe and in the Indian subcontinent / found in Bell Beaker Germany and in Bronze Age Poland
W3a1a: found in central and northern Europe
W3a1b: found in India and Pakistan
W3a1c: found in Britain
W3a2 : found in England, France, Slovakia, Romania, Poland, Ukraine and Tajikistan
W3b : found in Britian, central and eastern Europe, Bulgaria, Turkey, Armenia and India / found in Iron Age Tian Shan
W3b1 : found in Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Poland, Lithuania and Romania
W4: found from the British Isles to Russia, as well as in Turkey, Central Asia and northern India
W4a: found in the British Isles, the Benelux, Sweden, Finland, Germany, Poland, Iran (Kurdish) and Afghanistan
W5: found mostly in Germany, the Benelux and the British Isles, but also in Norway and Poland / found in Bell Beaker Germany
W5a : found in Ireland, Britain, Denmark, Germany and Russia
W5a1 : found in Ireland, Britain, the Benelux, Scandinavia, Poland, Germany, Austria, and Portugal
W5a1a: found mostly in Germany, the Benelux and the British Isles
W5a1a1 : found in Britain, France, the Netherlands, Sweden, Germany and Poland
W5a2 : found in Britain, France and Germany
W5b: found in Ireland, Britain, France, Germany and Portugal / found in Neolithic Alsace (Michelsberg culture)
W6: found in most of Europe, the Near East, the Caucasus, Iran, Pakistan (Sindhi, Pathan), Central Asia and India / found in Bronze Age Russia (Fatyanovo culture)
W6a: found in Russia, Lithuania, Poland and Slovakia / found in Bronze Age Poland
W6b: found in Britain, Germany, Turkey, Israel and Iran
W6c: found in Greece, Turkey, Iran and Russia
W7: found in Armenia, Turkey, Italy, Germany and Poland