Haplogroup P (K2b2)
Possible time of origin	44,000 to 41,000 yearsBP
Possible place of origin	South Asia, orSoutheast Asia[1][2][3]
Ancestor	K2b[4]
Descendants	P-P295 (P1a, formerly P*) P-FT292000 (P1b, formerly P3) P-M45 (P1c, formerly P1, a.k.a. QR)
Defining mutations	P295/PF5866/S8, 92R7_1, 92R7_2, F91/PF5862/V231

Haplogroup P also known asP-F5850 orK2b2 is aY-chromosome DNA haplogroup inhuman genetics. P-F5850 is a branch ofK2b (previously Haplogroup MPS; P331), which is a branch ofHaplogroup K2 (K-M526).

The haplogroupK2b splits intoK2b1 (haplogroup MS*) andK2b2 (haplogroup P-F580, Y-DNA P*). Basal P* (P-PF5850*) is found in Southeast Asia.^[5][6] The primary branches (clades) of P-F580 are P-P295 (P1a, formerly P*) which is found among South and Southeast Asians as well as Oceanians, P-FT292000 (P1b, formerly P3) with unknown distribution, and P-M45 (P1c, formerlyP1) commonly found among Siberians and Central Asians.^[5][7] P-M45 (P1c) is, in turn, the parent node ofHaplogroup Q (Q-M242) andHaplogroup R (R-M207).

The major subclades of Haplogroups P-M45, Q and R now include most males amongEuropeans,Native Americans,South Asians,North Africans, andCentral Asians.

Karafet et al. 2015 suggests an origin and dispersal of haplogroup P and its ancestral clade K from eitherSouth Asia orSoutheast Asia as part of the early human dispersal, based on the distribution of subclades now classified as P-P295 (now P1a), and more ancient clades such as K1 and K2. However, Karafet, et al. mentions that this hypothesis is "parsimonious" and K may have alternatively originated elsewhere in Eurasia and later went extinct there.^[2][8][9] According to a geneticistSpencer Wells, haplogroup K, from which haplogroup P descended, originated most likely in theMiddle East orCentral Asia.^[10] According to Bergstorm et al (2016), haplogroupK2b1 (Y-haplogroup S/M) found inIndigenous Australians and ancestors of haplogroup R and Q (Y-haplogroup K2b2/root P) split inSoutheast Asia near Sahul.^[11]

The highest frequency and diversity of haplogroup P clades is observed inSoutheast Asia, specifically on theMalay Peninsula and thePhilippines.^[12][5] To date, the ancestral clade K2b has only been confirmed among the 39,000 year oldTianyuan man.^[13]

Thesubclades of Haplogroup P with their defining mutation:^[5][7]

• P (P-F5850)
  • P1 (P295/PF5866/S8, 92R7_1, 92R7_2, F91/PF5862/V231)
    • P1a (B253/Z33760/Z33761/Z33762/Z33763)
    • P1b (FT292000)
    • P1c (M45/PF5962)
      • Q (M242)
      • R (M207, P224, P227, P229, P232, P280, P285, L248.2, V45)

Because P1a, formerly P2 (P-B253) was discovered relatively recently, it is not always clear if older studies have screened for it. Therefore, cases of basal P1* (also known as P-P295*; K2b2*; PxM45, B253) reported in literature may include P1a (P2).

P1(xP1c) exists at low to moderate levels among various groups inIsland South East Asia, theSouth West Pacific andEast Asia.^[2]

P1* (perhaps P1a/P2) is found at its highest rate among members of theAeta (or Agta), a people indigenous toLuzon who formed from various ancient groups, such as Oceanians andAustronesian peoples from Taiwan.^[5] P1 is most common among individuals inSiberia andCentral Asia, as well as inSouthern Asian at lower frequency.^{[1][2][9][14]}

Root P* (P-PF5850*) was found among aJehai sample in Malaysia.^[15][5] Basal P1* was also found in one historical 19th-centuryAndaman islander.^[16]

Derived P1c (P-M45) has been found among theAncient North Eurasian Yana specimens, which carried around 29–47% ancestry from an East Eurasian source represented by the Tianyuan man.^[17][18]

Many modern ethnic groups with high frequencies of P1c, also known as P-M45 and K2b2a, are located inCentral Asia andSiberia: 35.4% amongTuvans, 28.3% amongAltai-Kizhi (PxQ-M3,R1),^[19] and 35% amongNivkh males.

§May include members of haplogroupR2.

Near universal in theKets (95%) of Siberia. Very common in pre-modernNative American populations andSelkups, except for theNa-Dene peoples, where it reaches 50-90%. Also common, at 25-50% in Siberian populations such as theSiberian Tatars,Nivkh,Tuvans,Chukchi,Siberian Eskimos, NorthernAltaians, and in 70% ofTurkmens.

The only discovered case of basal R* (i.e. one that does not belong to R1 or R2) is theMal'ta Boy in theUpper Paleolithic on the upperAngara River in the area west ofLake Baikal in theIrkutsk Oblast,Siberia,Russian Federation.