Research has uncovered an intriguing discovery regarding an unusually high prevalence of a specific set of genes in China. This research suggests that approximately 1.5 million Chinese men are direct descendants of Giocangga, the grandfather of the founder of the Qing dynasty.

Giocangga’s remarkable number of descendants, primarily located in north-east China and Mongolia, is believed to be a result of the numerous wives and concubines his offspring had. Dr. Chris Tyler-Smith, a geneticist at Britain’s Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, made this finding based on a study of genes on the male Y chromosome.

In an interview with the BBC World Service’s Science In Action program, Dr. Tyler-Smith explained that these genes provide a genetic surname for each man’s family. By analyzing around 1,000 men from the region, researchers identified two types of Y chromosomes that were unusually common, with one type making up approximately 3% of the sample.

Further investigation revealed that this genetic code originated in north-east China around 500 years ago, just before the rise of the Qing dynasty in 1616. Dr. Tyler-Smith noted that the Qing imperial nobility, who ruled China for several hundred years, had multiple wives and concubines, leading to a high number of offspring with a good chance of survival.

This research sheds light on a significant historical event during the establishment of the Qing dynasty and provides insight into the genetic legacy of Giocangga and his descendants in China.