Haplogroup A

What is Maternal Haplogroup A?

Haplogroup A is a genealogical group of lineages defined by unique genetic markers present in your mitochondrial DNA, which is transmitted from your mother. Your maternal haplogroup paints a picture of your ancient origins and the migrations of your ancestors. Although your maternal haplogroup reflects just one of your many ancestral lineages, it carries information about that lineage over tens of thousands of years.

Among 23andMe research participants, haplogroup A is commonly found among populations in the United Kingdom and China.

It's important to note that your haplogroup doesn't define your current ethnic identity; rather, it provides an insight into your deep ancestry on the maternal side.

Maternal Haplogroup Origins A

Top Surnames with Haplogroup A

For surnames with sufficient representation in the data, these percentages represent the frequency with which each surname is found in individuals exhibiting this genetic marker.

Last Name	Frequency
wang	2.70%
zhang	2.40%
lee	2.00%
li	1.80%
kim	1.50%
chen	1.50%
liu	1.40%
wu	1.20%
yang	1.10%
huang	0.90%
xu	0.70%
nguyen	0.60%
zhao	0.60%
chan	0.50%
wong	0.50%
yu	0.50%
sun	0.50%
chang	0.50%
zheng	0.40%
gonzalez	0.40%

Haplogroup A is linked to the builders of the Terracotta Army

Qin Shi Huang, who unified warring states to become the First Emperor of China and founded the Qin Dynasty, ruled the Chinese state of Qin from 247 BC to 210 BC. In addition to his political feats, his reign is known for the massive construction projects, including his mausoleum in the Shaanxi province of central China, which began construction in 246 BC. To aid him in the afterlife, 8,000 perfectly life-like soldiers were crafted out of molds and clay and placed at guard over his tomb: his own Terracotta Army.An estimated 700,000 workers were involved in the mausoleum construction alone, and in 2003, hundreds of skeletal remains were unearthed near the mausoleum. Curious about the ethnic origins of these men, a group of Chinese scientists decided to examine their maternal haplogroups. They found that some of these workers belonged to haplogroup A, and that the group had come from a variety of places across East Asia.

Qin Shi Huang's Terracotta Warriors