Abstract
The coefficient of kinship between two diploid organisms describes their overall genetic similarity to each other relative to some base population. For example, kinship between parent and offspring of 1/4 describes gene sharing in excess of random sharing in a random mating population. In a subdivided population the statistic F st describes gene sharing within subdivisions in the same way. Since F st among human populations on a world scale is reliably 10 to 15%, kinship between two individuals of the same human population is equivalent to kinship between grandparent and grandchild or between half siblings. The widespread assertion that this is small and insignificant should be reexamined.
Similar content being viewed by others
REFERENCES
Bulmer, M. (1994). Theoretical Evolutionary Ecology. Sunderland, Massachusetts: Sinauer.
Cavalli-Sforza, L. L. (1966). Population structure and human evolution. Proceedings of the Royal Society Series B, 164, 362-379.
Hamilton, W. D. (1964). The genetic evolution of social behavior, parts 1 and 2. Journal of Theoretical Biology, 7, 1-51.
Harpending, H. (1979). The population genetics of interactions. American Naturalist, 113, 622-630.
Klein, J., & Takahata, N. (2002). Where Do We Come From: The Molecular Evidence For Human Descent. Berlin: Springer.
Lewontin, R. C. (1972). The apportionment of human diversity. Evolutionary Biology, 6, 381-398.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Harpending, H. Kinship and Population Subdivision. Population and Environment 24, 141–147 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1020815420693
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1020815420693