What is Mongolia & Central Asia-North DNA Ethnicity on Ancestry?

The results of our AncestryDNA tests may sometimes be what we expect or on occasion may be a big surprise. Either way, often we need a little more information regarding some of the regions that arise in our ethnicity estimates.

One such region is the Mongolia & Central Asia - North DNA region. Those who still live in this region already understand all about its history and culture. There are others, however, who may never have even visited or in fact been aware that they have ancestors from that area.

In this post we will go into more detail with regards to the history, geography and culture of the Mongolia & Central Asia - North DNA region. We will also discuss what it means to be from this region and how easy or difficult it might be to trace our roots in Mongolia & Central Asia - North DNA Region.

What Is the Mongolia & Central Asia - North DNA Region of Ancestry?

The Mongolia & Central Asia – North DNA region on AncestryDNA is interesting in that although it is a single region it is broken into two different geographical areas that are not connected. Principally the region covers the large Asian nations of Mongolia and Kazakhstan.

Mongolia and Kazakhstan do not share a border as they are actually separated by a finger of territory that comprises a border region between Russia in the north and China in the south. In terms of the region in Mongolia you see some bleed over into both Russia and China on their respective borders with the nation.

The same can be said of Kazakhstan but to a lesser degree with China. There is however bleed through to Kazakhstan’s southern neighbors which include Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. This makes the Mongolia and Central Asia North region two large regions that exhibit a common DNA but do not share a land border.

Mongolia History

The Khoit Tsenkher Cave rock paintings show an indication in Mongolia of human habitation 20,000 years ago. Paintings of mammoths, lynx, camels and ostriches show an insight into the creatures these early people of Mongolia saw daily and likely hunted.

These early Mongolians were interested in artistic creation which is evidenced by the famous Venus figurines of Mal’ta which date back 21,000 years. They stand as an example of paleolithic art that was found in northern Mongolia.

Mal’ta is now actually part of Russia But historically around 5500 – 3500 BC this was also home to some early Mongolian settlements. They focused on agriculture as at this stage they had yet to develop their famed horse riding skills. The nomadic horsemen we think of when we think of ancient Mongolia actually arose between 3500 – 2500 BC.

Once they became more nomadic, agriculture decreased to be placed with domestic animals or pastoral farming. They lived nomadically, taking their livestock with them. During the Copper Age the population of what we today call Mongolia was mainly Mongoloid in the east and Europoid in the west.

Nomadic Horsemen

Since the general shift to a nomadic lifestyle on horseback the region we know as Mongolia saw intermittent periods of tribes banding together to form confederations which would rise as regional powers. These confederations created common institutions such as the office of Khan, or the supreme council known as Kurultai.

The first such empire to arise was the Xiongnu. These peoples seemingly came from the Eurasian Steppe around the 3^rd to late 1^st centuries. This empire was brought together by Modu Shanyu in 209 BC and quickly became a real threat to the Qin dynasty of China. It was this Mongol empire that would force the building of the famous Great Wall of China.

Lasting until 93 AD the Xiongnu were eventually replaced by the Xianbei empire who would rule the region until 234 AD. The Xianbei Empire at their peak would rule over lands covering the entirety of modern day Mongolia and beyond.

A succession of empires would rise and fall in Mongolia all the way up until the late 12^th century at which point the chieftain Temujin finally managed to unite all of the Mongol tribes. Spanning from Manchuria to the Altai Mountains.

Genghis Khan

In 1206 AD the famed Genghis Khan waged a series of brutal military campaigns that would sweep through much of Asia forming the most prolific and famous Mongol Empire of them all. This would prove to be the largest contiguous land empire in world history spreading as far as Poland under his successors and all the way west to Mongolia & Central Asia - North.

Genghis' empire would cover some 13,000,000 square miles roughly 22% of the planet's land mass. This empire had a population of over 100 million. Under this one empire trade significantly boomed throughout their held lands.

Upon the death of Genghis the empire was divided into four kingdoms known as Khanates which later became quasi-independent as Genghis descendants fought amongst themselves for control. This would prove to be the end of the once great empire and it would eventually shrink back to the Mongol homeland that we know today.

Kazakhstan History

The Botai culture of Kazakhstan from around 3700 – 3100 BC has been credited with the first domestication of horses. They were a deeply European group that likely originated among ancient North Eurasians. Having settled in what is modern Kazakhstan these peoples also developed an east Asian heritage.

The pastoralism and nomadic horsemanship that arose among the Botai would be passed on to the Mongolians. The Europoid peoples of western Mongolia likely came from this population from Kazakhstan.

With the growth of Mongolian empire the region we know as Kazakhstan would have been a large part of it and see a great deal of Mongolian influences.

Does Mongolia & Central Asia - North Region Have Sub-Regions?

Many of the large regions that AncestryDNA covers have multiple sub-regions. But Mongolia & Central Asia - North is one region found in two separate geographical areas. This divide geographically is significant but it indicates that an ancient connection existed between the regions.

How Did You Get Mongolia & Central Asia - North Region DNA?

If you already know that you had a family who came from Mongolia & Central Asia - North then you know why you have Mongolia & Central Asia - North DNA. If this result came as a surprise you may not know how exactly you came by DNA from this region.

If you have a sizable percentage of DNA from this region then it is likely you have an ancestor who was born somewhere in the region be that Mongolia or Kazakhstan.

Mongolia & Central Asia - North Migration

During the 13^th century the Mongol Empire spanned almost a quarter of the planet's population so on an ancient DNA level millions potentially billions may have some Mongol region DNA. Spreading into western Europe as far as Poland, that great empire would certainly have left its mark.

Immigration into the United States by Mongolian citizens has been historically rare and only really began to take off in the 1990s. There had been small-scale migrations due to conflicts in Russia and Europe with nomadic groups such as the Kalmyks becoming displaced and stateless.

In the 1990s however the Mongolian communist party moved toward a more democratic format which opened up avenues for immigration. This allowed for Mongolian immigrant communities to develop in several major US cities such as Chicago and Denver.

Final Thoughts

The Mongolian Empire at one time was the most vast single empire on the planet and stands to this day as the record holder. Based from a nomadic horse riding peoples the Mongolians were feared in Asia and Europe. Today they are found in a much smaller range but their DNA is far more widespread.

Neil Edwards

Genealogist and family-tree research specialist

Neil was born in Shropshire, England surrounded by centuries of living history. His interest in the past has been a lifelong passion leading to undergraduate degrees in both Economic History & Geography and History & Politics.

This interest in history quickly translated to family history when he moved to the U.S. in 2010. It was here that he began working on his own family tree as well as that of his American wife. That research allowed him to gain a wealth of experience working with both U.S. and European genealogical documents and studying their best uses in researching family history.

Following 9 years of honing his genealogical research skills, Neil was proud to have earned a certificate in Genealogical Research from Boston University in late 2019. Neil also took part in the research process for a Duke University study into the families of 19th Century UK Members of Parliament.

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