Editing Göktürks (section)

==Genetics==
{{See also|Karluks#Genetics|Kara-Khanid Khanate#Genetics|Kimek tribe#Genetics|Kipchaks#Genetics|Golden Horde#Genetics}}
[[File:Maya Cave 224, mourners of the Buddha.jpg|thumb|A Turk (center) mourning the [[Buddha]], surrounded by [[Tocharians]]. [[Kizil Caves]], Mingoi, Maya cave, 550–600 CE.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Yatsenko |first1=Sergey A. |title=Early Turks: Male Costume in the Chinese Art Second half of the 6th – first half of the 8th cc. (Images of 'Others') |journal=Transoxiana |date=2009 |volume=14 |page=Fig.16 |url=http://www.transoxiana.com.ar/14/yatsenko_turk_costume_chinese_art.html}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Grünwedel |first1=Albert |title=Altbuddhistische Kultstätten Chinesisch Turkistan |date=1912 |page=180 |url=https://archive.org/details/AltbuddhistischeKultstattenChinesischTurkistan1912/page/n92/mode/1up}}</ref>]]

A genetic study published in ''[[Nature (journal)|Nature]]'' in May 2018 examined the remains of four elite Türk soldiers buried between ca. 300 AD and 700 AD.{{sfn|Damgaard et al.|2018|loc=Supplementary Table 2, Rows 60, 62, 127, 130}} 50% of the samples of [[Y-DNA]] belonged to the West Eurasian [[haplogroup R1]], while the other 50% belonged to East Eurasian haplogroups [[Haplogroup Q-M242|Q]] and [[Haplogroup O-M175|O]].{{sfn|Damgaard et al.|2018|loc=Supplementary Table 9, Rows 44, 87, 88}} The extracted samples of [[mtDNA]] belonged mainly to East Eurasian haplogroups [[Haplogroup C (mtDNA)|C4b1]], [[Haplogroup A (mtDNA)|A14]] and [[Haplogroup A (mtDNA)|A15c]], while one specimen carried the West Eurasian haplogroup [[Haplogroup H (mtDNA)|H2a]].{{sfn|Damgaard et al.|2018|loc=Supplementary Table 8, Rows 128, 130, 70, 73}} The authors suggested that central Asian nomadic populations may have been Turkicized by an East Asian minority elite, resulting in a small but detectable increase in East Asian ancestry. However, these authors also found that Türkic period individuals were extremely genetically diverse, with some individuals being of complete West Eurasian descent. To explain this diversity of ancestry, they propose that there were also incoming West Eurasians moving eastward on the Eurasian steppe during the Türkic period, resulting in admixture.<ref>{{cite journal | last1=Damgaard | first1=Peter de Barros | last2=Marchi | first2=Nina | title=137 ancient human genomes from across the Eurasian steppes | journal=Nature | publisher=Springer Science and Business Media LLC | volume=557 | issue=7705 | year=2018 | issn=0028-0836 | doi=10.1038/s41586-018-0094-2 | pages=369–374| pmid=29743675 | bibcode=2018Natur.557..369D | hdl=1887/3202709 | s2cid=256769352 | hdl-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Damgaard|Marchi|2018|p=372|ps=: "These results suggest that Turk cultural customs were imposed by an East Asian minority elite onto central steppe nomad populations, resulting in a small detectable increase in East Asian ancestry. However, we also find that steppe nomad ancestry in this period was extremely heterogeneous with several individuals being genetically distributed at the extremes of the first principal component (Figure 2) separating Eastern and Western descent. Based on this notable heterogeneity, we interpret that during Medieval times, the steppe populations were exposed to gradual admixture from the East, while interacting with incoming west Eurasians.  The strong variation is a direct window into ongoing admixture processes and to the multi-ethnic cultural organization of this period."}}</ref>

A 2020 study analyzed genetic data from 7 early medieval Türk skeletal remains from [[First Turkic Khaganate|Turkic Khaganate]] burial sites in Mongolia.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Jeong |first1=Choongwon |title=A Dynamic 6,000-Year Genetic History of Eurasia's Eastern Steppe |journal=Cell |date=12 November 2020 |volume=183 |issue=4 |pages=890–904.e29 |doi=10.1016/j.cell.2020.10.015 |pmid=33157037 |pmc=7664836 |language=en |issn=0092-8674|hdl=21.11116/0000-0007-77BF-D |hdl-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Jeong|2020|ps=: "Türk (550-750 CE). Göktürkic tribes of the Altai Mountains established a political structure across Eurasia beginning in 552 CE, with an empire that ruled over Mongolia from 581-742 CE (Golden, 1992). A brief period of disunion occurred between 659-682 CE, during which the Chinese Tang dynasty laid claim over Mongolia...We analyzed individuals from 5 Türk sites in this study: Nomgonii Khundii (NOM), Shoroon Bumbagar (Türkic mausoleum; TUM), Zaan-Khoshuu (ZAA), Uliastai River Lower Terrace (ULI), and Umuumur uul (UGU)."}}</ref> The authors described the Türk samples as highly diverse, carrying on average 40% West Eurasian, and 60% East Eurasian ancestry. West Eurasian ancestry in the Türks combined [[Sarmatian]]-related and [[Bactria-Margiana Archaeological Complex|BMAC]] ancestry, while the East Eurasian ancestry was related to [[Ancient Northeast Asians]]. The authors also observed that the [[Western Steppe Herders|Western Steppe Herder]] ancestry in the Türks was largely inherited from male ancestors, which also corresponds with the marked increase of paternal haplogroups such as [[haplogroup R (Y-DNA)|R]] and [[haplogroup J (Y-DNA)|J]] during the Türkic period in Mongolia.<ref>{{harvnb|Jeong|2020|ps=: "We observe a clear signal of male-biased WSH admixture among the EIA Sagly/Uyuk and during the Türkic period (i.e., more positive Z scores; Figure 5B), which also corresponds to the decline in the Y chromosome lineage Q1a and the concomitant rise of the western Eurasian lineages such as R and J (Figure S2A)."}}</ref> Admixture between East and West Eurasian ancestors of the Türkic samples was dated to 500 AD, which is 8 generations prior.<ref>{{harvnb|Jeong|2020|ps=: "The admixture dates estimated for the ancient Türkic and Uyghur individuals in this study correspond to ca. 500 CE: 8 ± 2 generations before the Türkic individuals and 12 ± 2 generations before the Uyghur individuals (represented by ZAA001 and Olon Dov individuals)."}}</ref> Three of the Türkic-affiliated males carried the [[Y-DNA haplogroup|paternal haplogroups]] J2a and [[Haplogroup J (Y-DNA)|J1a]], two carried haplogroup [[Haplogroup C (Y-DNA)|C-F3830]], and one carried [[Haplogroup R1a (Y-DNA)|R1a-Z93]]. The analyzed [[mtDNA haplogroup|maternal haplogroups]] were identified as [[Haplogroup D (mtDNA)|D4]], [[Haplogroup D (mtDNA)|D2]], [[Haplogroup B (mtDNA)|B4]], [[Haplogroup C (mtDNA)|C4]], [[Haplogroup H (mtDNA)|H1]] and [[Haplogroup U (mtDNA)|U7]].<ref>{{harvnb|Jeong|2020|ps=: "Table S2, S2C_SexHaplogroups, Supplementary Materials GUID: E914F9CE-9ED4-4E0F-9172-5A54A08E9F6B}}</ref>
[[File:Map_of_the_Ancient_Northeast_Asians.png|thumb|[[Empress Ashina]] (551–582), a royal Göktürk and immediate descendant of the Göktürk khagans, belonged genetically to the [[Ancient Northeast Asians]] (ANA, <small>{{Colorsample|#FFD700|0.6}}</small> yellow area), supporting the Northeast Asian origin of the Ashina tribe and the Gökturks.<ref name="Yang 2023 3–43">{{harvnb|Yang|Meng|Zhang|2023|pp=3–4}}</ref>{{sfn|Jeong|2020|loc=Figure S4A}}]]
A 2023 study published in the [[Journal of Systematics and Evolution]] analyzed the DNA of [[Empress Ashina]] (551–582), a royal Göktürk and immediate descendant of the first Khagans, whose remains were recovered from a mausoleum in [[Xianyang]], [[China]].<ref name="Yang2023">{{cite journal |last1=Yang |first1=Xiao-Min |last2=Meng |first2=Hai-Liang |last3=Zhang |first3=Jian-Lin |title=Ancient genome of Empress Ashina reveals the Northeast Asian origin of Göktürk Khanate |journal=Journal of Systematics and Evolution |date=17 January 2023 |volume=61 |issue=6 |pages=1056–1064 |doi=10.1111/jse.12938 |bibcode=2023JSyEv..61.1056Y |s2cid=255690237 |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/jse.12938 |language=en |issn=1674-4918}}</ref> The authors determined that Empress Ashina belonged to the North-East Asian [[mtDNA]] haplogroup [[Haplogroup F (mtDNA)|F1d]]. Approximately 96-98% of her autosomal ancestry was of [[Ancient Northeast Asian]] origin, while roughly 2-4% was of West Eurasian origin, indicating ancient admixture, and no Chinese ("Yellow River") admixture.<ref name="Yang 2023 3–43"/> The results are consistent with a [[Ancient Northeast Asian|North-East Asian origin]] of the royal Ashina family and the [[Göktürk Khaganate]].<ref name="Yang2023"/> However, the Ashina did not show close genetic affinity with central-steppe Türks and early medieval Türks, who exhibit a high (but variable) degree of West Eurasian ancestry, which indicates that there was genetic sub-structure within the Türkic empire. For example, the ancestry of early medieval Turks was derived from Ancient Northeast Asians for about 62% of their genome, while the remaining 38% was derived from West Eurasians ([[Bactria–Margiana Archaeological Complex|BMAC]] and [[Afanasievo]]), with the admixture occurring around the year 500 CE.<ref>{{harvnb|Jeong|2020|p=897|ps=: See figure 4, B for admixture proportions in earlyMed_Turk. "...it is clear that these individuals have genetic profiles that differ from the preceding Xiongnu period, suggesting new sources of gene flow into Mongolia at this time that displace them along PC3 (Figure 2)...The admixture dates estimated for the ancient Türkic and Uyghur individuals in this study correspond to ca. 500 CE: 8 ± 2 generations before the Türkic individuals and 12 ± 2 generations before the Uyghur individuals (represented by ZAA001 and Olon Dov individuals)."}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Yang|Meng|Zhang|2023|p=4|ps=: "The early Medieval Türk (earlyMed_Turk) derived the major ancestry from ANA at a proportion of 62.2%, the remainder from BMAC (10.7%) and Western Steppe Afanasievo nomad (27.1%) (Figs. 1C, 1D; Table S2E)."}}</ref>

The Ashina was found to share genetic affinities to post-Iron Age Tungusic and Mongolic pastoralists, and was genetically closer to East Asians, while having heterogeneous relationships towards various Turkic-speaking groups in central Asia, suggesting genetic heterogeneity and multiple sources of origin for the population of the Turkic empire. This shows that the Ashina lineage had a dominating contribution on Mongolic and Tungusic speakers but limited contribution on Turkic-speaking populations. According to the authors, these findings "once again validates a cultural diffusion model over a demic diffusion model for the spread of Turkic languages" and refutes "the western Eurasian origin and multiple origin hypotheses" in favor of an East Asian origin for the royal Ashina family.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Meng |first=Hailiang |title=Ancient Genome of Empress Ashina reveals the Northeast Asian origin of Göktürk Khanate |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/366965287 |journal=Journal of Systematics and Evolution |quote="Ashina individual clustered with ancient populations from Northeast Asia and eastern Mongolia Plateau, and especially with the Northeast Asian hunter‐gatherers."}}</ref>

Two Turkic-period remains (GD1-1 and GD2-4) excavated from present-day eastern Mongolia analysed in a 2024 paper, were found to display only little to no West Eurasian ancestry. One of the remains (GD1-1) was derived entirely from an Ancient Northeast Asian source (represented by [[Slab-grave culture|SlabGrave1]] or Khovsgol_LBA and Xianbei_Mogushan_IA), while the other (GD2-4) displayed an "admixed profile" deriving c. 48−50% ancestry from Ancient Northeast Asians, c. 47% ancestry from an ancestry maximised in [[Han Chinese]] (represented by Han_2000BP), and 3−5% ancestry from a West Eurasian source (represented by [[Sarmatians]]). The GD2-4 belonged to the paternal [[haplogroup D-M174]]. The authors argue that these findings are "providing a new piece of information on this understudied period".<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Lee |first1=Juhyeon |last2=Sato |first2=Takehiro |last3=Tajima |first3=Atsushi |last4=Amgalantugs |first4=Tsend |last5=Tsogtbaatar |first5=Batmunkh |last6=Nakagome |first6=Shigeki |last7=Miyake |first7=Toshihiko |last8=Shiraishi |first8=Noriyuki |last9=Jeong |first9=Choongwon |last10=Gakuhari |first10=Takashi |date=1 March 2024 |title=Medieval genomes from eastern Mongolia share a stable genetic profile over a millennium |url=https://www.pivotscipub.com/hpgg/4/1/0004 |journal=Human Population Genetics and Genomics |language=en |volume=4 |issue=1 |pages=1–11 |doi=10.47248/hpgg2404010004 |issn=2770-5005|doi-access=free }}</ref>