page_title: Genetic studies on Moroccans
section_title: Berber Genetic Identity of Moroccans
hierarchical_section_title: Genetic studies on Moroccans / Berber Genetic Identity of Moroccans
caption_attribution_description: Photo taken near the Atlas Mountain Range, Morocco
context_page_description: Moroccan genetics encompasses the genetic history of the people of Morocco, and the genetic influence of this ancestry on world populations. It has been heavily influenced by geography.
  In prehistoric times, the Sahara desert to the south and the Mediterranean Sea to the north were important geographical barriers. West Asia and Northeast Africa form a single land mass at the Suez. The Maghreb and Southwest Europe are separated by only 15 km at the Straits of Gibraltar, and a similar distance separates the Horn of Africa from the Arabian peninsula at the Bab el-Mandeb strait. At periods of low sea-levels, such as during a glacial maximum, islands that are currently submerged in the Mediterranean, and possibly in between the Gibraltar straits, would have been habitable. These may have encouraged bidirectional demic diffusion between Africa and Europe. During wetter phases of the Sahara, some populations in central Africa would have moved north into southern parts of North Africa. West Asian populations would have also been attracted to a wet Sahara, arriving either through the Suez, the Bab el-Mandeb or the Mediterranean.
context_section_description: The prehistoric populations of Morocco, who were ancestral to Berbers, were related to the wider group of Paleo-Mediterranean peoples.
  The Afroasiatic family probably originated during the Mesolithic period, perhaps in the context of the Capsian culture. DNA analysis has found commonalities between Berber Moroccan populations and those of the Sami people of Scandinavia showing a link dating from around 9,000 years ago.
  Around 5000 BC, the populations of North Africa were primarily descended from the makers of the Iberomaurusian and Capsian cultures, with a more recent intrusion associated with the Neolithic revolution. The proto-Berber tribes evolved from these prehistoric communities during the Late Bronze to Early Iron Age.
caption: Berber children in Morocco.
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