ABSTRACT
A comparison of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) haplogroup distributions among populations in different regions can reveal similarities that reflect ancestral relationships; however, such similarities can also be misleading. Directly testing various migration scenarios through ancient DNA (aDNA) research presents an even more powerful method of determining population prehistory, as ancient demographic events such as migration and intermarriage, genetic drift or admixture may be obscured by recent population history. Comparative analysis of haplogroup and haplotype frequencies and distributions between the hypothesized regions of origin and particular California ethno linguistic groupings were used to test ancestral relationships. Recently, complete mitochondrial genomes have been collected for California Indian descendants, but the number of samples analyzed thus far is still too small for useful comparative analysis. Also, given the problems of degradation and contamination of DNA molecules in ancient bone, it is practical and cost-effective to obtain Hyper variable Segment I (HVSI) sequences than to attain complete genome results.
