Kikuyu People - Genetics

Genetics

According to a Y DNA study by Wood et al. (2005), about 73% of Gĩkũyũs and their Bantu kinsmen the Kamba belong to the common Sub-Saharan paternal haplogroup E1b1a. The remainder carry other clades: 19% E1b1b, 2% A, and 2% B.

In terms of maternal lineages, Gĩkũyũs closely cluster with other Eastern Bantu groups like the Sukuma. Most belong to various Sub-Saharan mtDNA L haplogroups such as L0f, L3x, L4g and L5 per Castrì et al. (2009). According to Salas et al. (2002), other Gĩkũyũs largely carry the L1a clade, which is a signature of the Bantu expansion from West Africa.