Biologists have recently shown that several nationalities in the Middle East are related genetically through the male or Y chromosome. Similar Y chromosome patterns are found in the Arab and Jewish populations distinctive from the genetic patterns of males in Europe and in Africa. Even though they are separated politically and religiously, it seems that Jews, Palestinians, Lebanese and Syrians are related to one another, at least distantly.

This analysis and study by Dr. Michael F. Hammer of the University of Arizona is based upon the comparison of the male sex chromosome. When genes are passed on from the parents to the children, a daughter will receive two X-chromosomes while a son will get an X chromosome from his mother and a Y chromosome from his father. Its genetic coding is passed unchanged from father to son so it is an ideal gene to use as a marker of people that originated from the same area. Following this line of thinking, all the world’s men should carry the same Y chromosome coding; however, this is not the case. An occasional genetic variation that comes from a “spelling” error in transcription results in the variations seen in different populations around the world.

One of the more interesting findings in Dr. Hammer’s study concerned the Jews that came from Eastern Europe, the Ashkenazi. First, he found Roman Jews to be the ancestors of the Ashkenazi. Secondly, Dr. Hammer concluded that even though their presence in Europe spans over many generations, the genetic coding on the Y chromosome has remained as its own distinctive pattern, separate from the non-Jewish Europeans. This is an amazing feat when considering that the Ashkenazi population was founded over eighty generations ago. Dr. Hammer offered a simple explanation for this occurrence, ”It could be that wherever Jews were, they were very much isolated."

REFERENCE:

Wade, Nicholas. “Y Chromosome Bears Witness to Story of Jewish Diaspora.”
The New York Times; May 9, 2000.a

VOCABULARY:

Ashkenazi - A member of the branch of European Jews, historically Yiddish-speaking, who settled in central and northern Europe.