Genetics of the modern heirs of the Inkas shed new lights about their origins and lineages

[Judi Lynn]

A MULTINATIONAL SOUTH AMERICAN TEAM FROM PERU, BRASIL AND BOLIVIA LED BY THE UNIVERSIDAD DE SAN MARTIN DE PORRES AT LIMA, PERU, PUBLISHED THE FIRST GENETIC STUDY ON THE MODERN DESCENDANTS OF THE IMPERIAL INKA LINEAGES IN THE JOURNAL MOLECULAR GENETICS AND GENOMICS. THIS WORK SUPPORTED BY FUNDS FROM THE GENOGRAPHIC PROJECT (GENO 2.0), SHOWS NEW INSIGHTS ABOUT THE INKAS ORIGINS AND LINEAGES.

The Inka people arrived to Cusco valley and in a few centuries they built the Tawantinsuyu, the largest empire in the Americas. The Tawantinsuyu was the cultural climax of 6,000 years of Central Andes civilizations overlapping modern countries of Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, the South of Colombia and the North of Argentina and Chile. In contrast with the richness of archeological and cultural evidence, pre Columbian history vanishes in time as it intermingles with myths due to the lack of writing systems before the arrival of the European chroniclers.

Very little is known about the Inka origins and some genetic information could help reconstruct part of their history. Unfortunately the mummies and bodily remains of the Inka emperors, worshiped as gods, were burnt and buried in unknown locations due to religious and political persecution by the Christian Conquistadors and Inquisitors, so no direct material remain to study their DNA. “Thus for now, only the genetic analysis of modern families of Inka descent could provide some clues about their ancestors” remarks geneticist Jose Sandoval, first author, working at Universidad de San Martin de Porres at Lima, Peru.

There were two foundational myths for the origin of the Inkas before they established in Cusco valley to build their capital city. One is that Manco Capac and Mama Ocllo, considered children of the Sun God and founder parents of the civilization, came from Lake Titicaca about 500 km southwards from the border of North Bolivia and South Peru, more or less the same region where Tiwanaku empire existed a few centuries before.

More:
https://www.heritagedaily.com/2018/04/genetics-of-the-modern-heirs-of-the-inkas-shed-new-lights-about-their-origins-and-lineages/118733