title: Ancient voyaging and Polynesian origins.
abstract: The "Polynesian motif" defines a lineage of human mtDNA that is restricted to Austronesian-speaking populations and is almost fixed in Polynesians. It is widely thought to support a rapid dispersal of maternal lineages from Taiwan ~4000 years ago (4 ka), but the chronological resolution of existing control-region data is poor, and an East Indonesian origin has also been proposed. By analyzing 157 complete mtDNA genomes, we show that the motif itself most likely originated >6 ka in the vicinity of the Bismarck Archipelago, and its immediate ancestor is >8 ka old and virtually restricted to Near Oceania. This indicates that Polynesian maternal lineages from Island Southeast Asia gained a foothold in Near Oceania much earlier than dispersal from either Taiwan or Indonesia 3-4 ka would predict. However, we find evidence in minor lineages for more recent two-way maternal gene flow between Island Southeast Asia and Near Oceania, likely reflecting movements along a "voyaging corridor" between them, as previously proposed on archaeological grounds. Small-scale mid-Holocene movements from Island Southeast Asia likely transmitted Austronesian languages to the long-established Southeast Asian colonies in the Bismarcks carrying the Polynesian motif, perhaps also providing the impetus for the expansion into Polynesia.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Integrative and Comparative Biology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK.
authors.forename: Pedro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Soares
authors.forename: Teresa
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Rito
authors.forename: Jean
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Trejaut
authors.forename: Maru
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mormina
authors.forename: Catherine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hill
authors.forename: Emma
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Tinkler-Hundal
authors.forename: Michelle
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Braid
authors.forename: Douglas J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Clarke
authors.forename: Jun-Hun
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Loo
authors.forename: Noel
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Thomson
authors.forename: Tim
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Denham
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Donohue
authors.forename: Vincent
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Macaulay
authors.forename: Marie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Oppenheimer
authors.forename: Martin B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Richards
mesh_terms: D001210:Asia, Southeastern; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial / Q000235:genetics*; D051456:Gene Flow; D005828:Genetics, Population; D006239:Haplotypes / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D007214:Indonesia; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic / Q000235:genetics*; D011114:Polynesia; D013624:Taiwan
chemical_list: D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial