biostudies-literatureChaubey GEuropean Research Council1404-12https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC4231405biostudies-literatureUnknown22(12)The northern region of the Indian subcontinent is a vast landscape interlaced by diverse ecologies, for example, the Gangetic Plain and the Himalayas. A great number of ethnic groups are found there, displaying a multitude of languages and cultures. The Tharu is one of the largest and most linguistically diverse of such groups, scattered across the Tarai region of Nepal and bordering Indian states. Their origins are uncertain. Hypotheses have been advanced postulating shared ancestry with Austroasiatic, or Tibeto-Burman-speaking populations as well as aboriginal roots in the Tarai. Several Tharu groups speak a variety of Indo-Aryan languages, but have traditionally been described by ethnographers as representing East Asian phenotype. Their ancestry and intra-population diversity has previoEuropean journal of human genetics : EJHGUnravelling the distinct strains of Tharu ancestry.PMC4231405261213Sharma VKPande VLahr MMVillems RPremkumar KVerma AShah AMReddy AGSingh KVishnupriya SSingh LSingh MRai NLi BSingh VKKushniarevich APhillip APrank ETamang RThangaraj KMetspalu MNandan AIlumae AMKarmin MEndicott PCrivellaro FSelvi Rani DKivisild TSharma VPathak AKDubey PKParik JRootsi SChaubey GGovindaraj PChaubey AKvan Driem GfalseUnravelling the distinct strains of Tharu ancestry.The northern region of the Indian subcontinent is a vast landscape interlaced by diverse ecologies, for example, the Gangetic Plain and the Himalayas. A great number of ethnic groups are found there, displaying a multitude of languages and cultures. The Tharu is one of the largest and most linguistically diverse of such groups, scattered across the Tarai region of Nepal and bordering Indian states. Their origins are uncertain. Hypotheses have been advanced postulating shared ancestry with Austroasiatic, or Tibeto-Burman-speaking populations as well as aboriginal roots in the Tarai. Several Tharu groups speak a variety of Indo-Aryan languages, but have traditionally been described by ethnographers as representing East Asian phenotype. Their ancestry and intra-population diversity has previo2014-01-01T00:00:00Z2014 Dec2025-05-29T16:23:14.043Z2025-05-29T16:23:14.043ZS-EPMC42314052466778910.1038/ejhg.2014.36