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57% of genes in Cape Verdean population from Africa, 43% from Europe, according to Portuguese researcher 27 May 2010
“The Cape Verdean population is one of the most mixed in the world,” in which “57% of genes are of African origin and 43% of European origin.” This is the conclusion of the study “Genetic diversity in Cape Verde,” carried out by Jorge Rocha of the University of Porto’s Institute of Molecular Pathology and Immunology in Portugal.
<mime-attachment.jpg> The researcher presented the results of the project, developed in cooperation with the University of Cape Verde, to the public this week. The study was aimed at characterizing Cape Verde’s biological diversity. According to the web site Ciência Hoje, “the islands are a meeting point of populations coming from various different and very diversified regions.”
Considering the fact that the archipelago was uninhabited when discovered and was subsequently colonized by individuals of European origin and slave laborers from adjacent regions of the African continent, Cape Verde turned into a melting pot of populations which, under other conditions, were greatly differentiated.
This amalgamation is visible in the human species on various levels, ranging from the biological to the cultural. Given that “an enormous quantity of biodiversity was generated or that the existing diversity was reorganized, many characteristics that had been separate appear blended,” stressed the researcher.
Fogo shows highest levels of miscegenation
Jorge Rocha also explained that the distribution of miscegenation may be evaluated on an island-by-island basis. The most African is the island of Santiago, which was the first to be colonized and was where the largest portion of slaves disembarked, even after other islands were already populated with mixed-race populations. The island showing the highest levels of miscegenation is Fogo, the second to be colonized by families coming from the local mixed-race aristocracy.
Most of the Europeans who settled in Cape Verde were of Portuguese origin, while most of the Africans came, in historic terms, from West Africa. The largest portion of Africans likely came from Mandinga peoples, who constitute one of the largest ethnic groups in West Africa.
What’s more, miscegenation almost always occurred between European men and African women, explained by the absence of European women during the initial colonization of Cape Verde.
Skin and eye color
One of the most evident characteristics of this miscegenation is skin color, which constitutes an essential part of the study on Cape Verde’s genetic diversity. In the archipelago’s mixed populations, there is a series of combined features that are not found together in other African or European populations. This variation was studied in a quantified way by measuring pigmentation.”It is possible to elaborate a melanin index and study the distribution of melanin,” affirms the author of the study.
Discovering genes
The researchers involved in the project characterized 364 individuals from Cape Verde with approximately 1 million genetic markers each. “Individuals from the same island tended to be more genetically alike,” adds the study.
Miscegenation may also be evaluated on a genetic level. According to estimates by the researchers, “57% of the genes are of African origin and 43% are of European origin,” making Cape Verde one of the most mixed populations on Earth, “much more so even than in certain zones of Brazil.”
“We know that skin color is hereditary, but we’re not too sure which genes influence it,” said Jorge Rocha. As such, one of the central parts of the study was to use the Cape Verdean population to try to discover which genes affect skin and eye color.
According to the study, at least five genes are responsible for 40% of skin color variations in Cape Verde

Al Vicente
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alvicente@bellsouth.net