26 Ancient Sub Saharan African Genomes

Sub-Saharan Africans represent one of the most genetically diverse populations in the world. This diversity stems from the fact that modern humans originated in Africa, and Sub-Saharan populations have had the longest continuous genetic history.. This region is home to several major language and ethnic groups, such as the Bantu, Nilotic, and Khoisan, each of which has its own unique genetic profile shaped by migration, isolation, and adaptation to different environments.

Within Africa, major events such as the Bantu expansion, which began around 3,000 years ago, reshaped the genetic landscape of Sub-Saharan populations. This migration of Bantu-speaking peoples spread agriculture and ironworking across central, eastern, and southern Africa, significantly influencing the genetic makeup of populations throughout these regions.

West Africans are most similar to Central Africans and Southern East Africans, and least similar to Khoi San people, out of all Sub Saharan African populations. In fact, the San Hunter Gatherers are very distant genetically from all other african and human groups due to extreme genetic drift.

For this video, I gathered the raw DNA data of 26 academic ancient sub saharan african samples, including samples from South Africa, West Africa, Central Africa, and East Africa. I ran the samples through my trait predictor tool for DNA analysis, link to purchase which will be in the description of the video.