Haplogroup W gets little respect in the scientific literature. Although one of the primordial 'out of Africa' haplogroups, its descent was considered uncertain enough not to be considered one of the 'seven daughters of Eve' and given a snappy, attention-getting female name. Therefore we have selected Wilma Flintstone as an extremely appropriate mother-of-all-W's.

The lack of definition is shown in the way the popular sources weasel-word W. Family Tree DNA muddles the situation: "...haplogroup W dates to approximately 25,000 years ago, and it is mainly found distributed in west Eurasia or Europe....future work...will further refine the historical distribution of this haplogroup..." National Geographic Genographic notes obscurely that the greater diversity of haplogroup W members in south Asia indicates it may have originated there, then spread north (with an unuseful map showing poor Wilma's tribe charging straight from the Caucasus to the Arctic).

Well, poppycock! Information can be mined out of the W mtdna sequences available through mitosearch.org. These, and published data, can be used to show the distribution of W's throughout the world, a W descent tree can be constructed, and specific mutations can be identified that match broad geographic areas. So let's go, fearlessly, where scientists fear to tread. After all , the certainties proclaimed on the pop science web sites equate to only the 'latest guess'. Anthropology is one field where whatever today's conventional wisdom is, you can bet it will be something different in twenty years. In any case, in the year since this page was first posted, more sequences have been published, providing a real basis for firm conclusions.

The Basics

• What is Haplogroup W? - how the testers put you in haplogroup W
• W Haplogroup Clades and Subclades
• Updated! Wilma's Handy SubClade Finder! - improved more than you ever thought possible!
• The W Migration - when did Ws split from the N haplogroup? How and when did they reach Europe?
• W's Geographically Viewed
• Where do Wilma's descendents come from? - geographical distribution of haplogroup W.
• Your mtdna test results explained - with no scientific jargon!
• Join the Haplogroup W Discussion Group

Rants and Raves
• Wilma's Analaysis of the Genographic Results
• National Geographic is misleading - if you're a W, your are not descended from Ashkenazi!
• How to use your results to find your ancestors - using your result to help you in your genealogical search.
• The French W Haplotype - mtdna results link up the descendents in America of Marie Marguerie, an immigrant of 1641...
• Haplogroup W FAQs

The author of these pages is a haplogroup W who coincidentally has a degree in physical anthropology, including training in human genetics, statistics, and so on. But that was a long time ago, before there were even human DNA sequences. These pages and their findings have not been peer-reviewed. They merely represent my best shot at understanding my matrilineal heritage. Comments and corrections from knowledgeable academicians are welcomed!