The Extinct Maternal Haplogroup U11 (Formerly U10)

 This is a comprehensive update to the previously proposed extinct maternal haplogroup U10. This lineage is now being officially renamed U11 to avoid confusion with the new, living U10 haplogroup (defined by FTDNA) recently assigned to a minor branch from the South Caucasus. https://discover.familytreedna.com/mtdna/U10/scientific?section=variants

1. Phylogenetic Position and Defining MarkersThe U11 haplogroup represents a distinct, extinct maternal lineage found across Paleolithic and Mesolithic Western Eurasia.

Parent Clade: U2'3'4'7'8'9a

Derivation: U11 is derived from the lineage that shares the defining marker T5999C with the U4'9'10 branches. The macro-clade uniting these is now referred to as U4'9'10'11.

Distinction from FTDNA's U10: Crucially, U11 does not share the G499A marker that defines the U4'9'10 branch leading to the FTDNA-classified U10 (the minor, living branch).

Core Defining Markers of U11: The proposed U11 clade is defined by the unique presence of these four markers: 10020C, 15466A, 6152C, 16297C.

2. Evidence from Ancient Genomes: More than 10 fossils with Western Paleo-Eurasian traits have been found that belong to this maternal haplogroup, which is derived from U2'3'4'7'8'9 and runs parallel to U4'9, sharing the 5999C marker.The analysis of suspicious ancient mitochondrial sequences suggests that 15466A and 6152C are the common ancestral features to all samples of U11.The oldest known sample of this maternal lineage was found in the Malalmuerzo Cave (Granada, Andalusia, Spain, ca. 23,000 BP) and was published in 2023 as two samples from the same individual (MLZ003 and MLZ005). Recently, the complete genome of the child from Grotta delle Mura (Apulia, Italy, ca. 17,000 BP) was published in 2024, confirming the core markers of U11. The markers shared by Malalmuerzo and Grotta delle Mura that define the U11 haplogroup are the four core markers listed above. These four variants are also shared with the nearly contemporaneous sample LMA001 from La Marche (France, 16,200 BP).The systematic renaming to U11 clarifies the distinction between this extinct Western Eurasian Paleolithic/Mesolithic lineage and the recently defined living U10 branch.

3. Key Ancient Samples Confirmed as U11: The following table summarizes confirmed ancient samples belonging to the proposed U11 haplogroup lineage, spanning from the Late Paleolithic through the Mesolithic

Sample ID,Site Location,Approximate Age (cal BP),Key Context & Defining Markers,Parent Clade

MLZ003/005,"Malalmuerzo Cave, Spain","ca. 23,000 BP (Gravettian)",Oldest known sample of the clade. Core U11 markers confirmed.,U4'9'10'11 (5999C)

Mura1,"Grotta delle Mura, Italy","ca. 17,000 BP","Complete genome, confirming core U11 markers (10020C, 15466A, 6152C, 16297C).",U4'9'10'11 (5999C)

LMA001,"La Marche, France","16,273–15,958 BP (Magdalenian)","Core U11 markers + Extras (150T, 152C, 310C, 6498A, 14152G, 16274A, 16519C).",U4'9'10'11 (5999C)

RIP001,"Riparo Tagliente, Italy","15,026–14,560 BP",Core U11 markers + Extras (13183G). Includes the 14152G extra marker reported in other samples.,U4'9'10'11 (5999C)

MAZ003,"Maszycka, Poland","13,804–13,407 BP","Core U11 markers + Extras (14152G, 13183G).",U4'9'10'11 (5999C)

STO001,"San Teodoro, Italy (Sicily)","11,627–11,397 BP",Core U11 markers + 16297C marker is missing.,U4'9'10'11 (5999C)

BAL003,"Balma Guilanyà, Spain","10,727–9,272 BP (Mesolithic)","Shows long-term Iberian presence. Core U11 markers, but 6152C and 16297C are missing.",U4'9'10'11 (5999C)

UZZ096,"Grotta dell'Uzzo, Italy (Sicily)","8,800–7,800 BCE (Mesolithic)","Core U11 markers, but 16297C is missing.",U4'9'10'11 (5999C)

NEO694,"Santa Maira, Spain","7,648–7,496 BP",Core U11 markers + Extras (12245C).,U4'9'10'11 (5999C)

I2158,"Grotta d'Oriente, Italy (Sicily)","ca. 12,350–7,750 BCE",Core U11 markers confirmed.,U4'9'10'11 (5999C)

Recently, more ancient samples of this extinct haplogroup have been found in El Mirón Cave (Asturias, Spain) and Romito (Italy), making it the second most common haplogroup in the Western Mediterranean Arc during the Magdalenian period, second only to U5b.