Munda Speakers are the Oldest Population in India

Abstract

The Munda live in North India among varying populations and linguistic groups. Researchers have assumed that the Munda represented the earliest Indian population. This theory has been recently disputed by researchers who claim a S.E. Asian origin for the Munda speakers. The S.E. Asian origin hypothesis is not supported by Munda mtDNA phylogeny, archaeology and linguistics. This evidence suggest an ancient presence of Munda speakers in India before the Dravidian and Indo-Aryan speaking populations.