Ashkenazi DNA Under the Microscope: Debunking the Europe–Levant Intermediate Myth

Ashkenazi DNA Under the Microscope: Debunking the Europe-Levant Intermediate Myth examines how reference population selection influences interpretations of Ashkenazi Jewish genetic origins. The manuscript evaluates Y-DNA, autosomal FST, qpAdm, Global25, PCA, and comparative population genetic evidence from published studies and original analyses. Particular attention is given to the historical exclusion of Southern Italian, Sicilian, Maltese, Aegean Greek, and Italkim Jewish populations from many commonly cited models of Ashkenazi ancestry. The study argues that the widespread characterization of Ashkenazi Jews as a simple Europe-Levant intermediate population is strongly affected by reference population design and comparator choice. Included in this Zenodo record are the manuscript PDF, editable DOCX source file, and supplementary materials PDF containing Tables S1-S12.