Who were our ancestors? From where did we originate?
If we came out of Africa, what factors governed our routes? And when?
Now finally this interactive map, created collaboratively with Professor Stephen Oppenheimer, based on his book 'Out of Eden' / 'The Real Eve', reveals an exciting journey of opportunity and survival, confirmed by genetic science and documented by ancient rock art, we look in depth at the Journey of Mankind and investigate how modern science has helped shed light on this monumental exodus.
Stephen Oppenheimer is a world-recognised expert in the synthesis of DNA studies with archaeological and other evidence to track ancient migrations. He is a member of Green College, Oxford University.
While working in New Guinea in the early 1980’s he was the first to notice anti-malarial protection conferred by -thalassaemia, a mild inherited blood disorder. This genetic disorder shadowed the spread of Polynesians out to the Pacific. That research subsequently led to his focus on the use of genetic markers to track migrations.
His first book Eden in the East The Drowned Continent of Southeast Asia challenged the orthodox view of the origins of Polynesians as rice farmers from Taiwan and was widely acclaimed. Oppenheimer’s paradigm change, using a synthesis of genetics, archaeology, geology and linguistics, has since been endorsed by reviewers in Science. Out of Eden has been the subject of a Channel 4 programme of the same name and a Discovery Channel film ‘The Real Eve’.
Stephen Oppenheimer’s work forms the basis of the Journey of Mankind genetic map that can be viewed on this website.
Anyone interested in knowing the identity and distribution of their male founding cluster as described in Stephen Oppenheimer's book The Origins of the British may use the following link to have their Y chromosome tested for this.
'A wonderful, very readable book, written by an expert: Stephen Oppenheimer explains how our genes hold clues to the origin of our species, and tell the story of how our ancestors colonised the world.'
Dr Alice Roberts, University of Bristol,
Author of "The Incredible Human Journey".'
Professor Stephen Oppenheimer
