The Population History of the Philippines: A Genetic Overview

Abstract

This professorial address synthesizes the findings of several studies on the genetics of Philippine population groups and presents them in a manner accessible to nonspecialists. These studies examined different types of DNA (Y-chromosome, mitochondrial, and autosomal) samples contributed by participants in twelve regional centers and nineteen ethnolinguistic groups. The data reveal (a) genetic affinities with different groups in the Asia-Pacific region, (b) genetic signals of ancient demographic events, (c) an ancient genetic history of about 5,000–50,000 years ago, and (d) a complex population genetic structure. This genetic overview has implications for the study of human history, forensics, and medicine.

Keywords: DNA • genetics • history • demography •population structure