Our Common Human Ancestors

Scientists studying the passage of genes from parent to offspring say they have uncovered the footprint of human migration throughout our distant past. One research method follows mitochondrial DNA, a type of DNA passed only from a mother to her children. Another looks at DNA on the Y chromosome, passed only from fathers to sons.

Data gleaned from individual genomes—in effect, human DNA archives—pinpoint regions in Africa where our common ancestors lived many thousands of years ago. Tracing the path of human DNA evolution also reveals how people dispersed from these geographic roots and eventually populated the globe.

Genetic evidence points to Africa as the location of our common human ancestors. By following the paths of genes from parents to offspring, researchers mapped the dispersal of the early settlers who populated the globe. These routes show the movement of mitochondrial DNA, passed only from a mother to her children, and the Y chromosome, passed only from fathers to sons.