Genetic Study Confirms: First Dogs Came from East Asia

KTH Royal Institute of Technology ^ | November 23, 2011 | Katarina Ahlfort

[decimon]

Researchers at KTH say they have found further proof that the wolf ancestors of today’s domesticated dogs can be traced to southern East Asia — findings that run counter to theories placing the cradle of the canine line in the Middle East.

Dr Peter Savolainen, KTH researcher in evolutionary genetics, says a new study released Nov. 23 confirms that an Asian region south of the Yangtze River was the principal and probably sole region where wolves were domesticated by humans.

Data on genetics, morphology and behaviour show clearly that dogs are descended from wolves, but there’s never been scientific consensus on where in the world the domestication process began. “Our analysis of Y-chromosomal DNA now confirms that wolves were first domesticated in Asia south of Yangtze River — we call it the ASY region — in southern China or Southeast Asia”, Savolainen says.

The Y data supports previous evidence from mitochondrial DNA. “Taken together, the two studies provide very strong evidence that dogs originated in the ASY region”, Savolainen says.

[wildbill]

Just goes to show how smart dogs really are. They fled from a part of the world where they eat dogs to lands where the people loved them.

[SunkenCiv]

What really happened, some family was visiting Asia on vacation, left the dog behind because they had to make the boat, and it took years, but the dog followed them all the way back to the Americas. And brought all the rest with him.