The map above shows the distribution of J2 in Europe and North Africa.
Haplogroup J (Y-DNA)
"J is a Middle Eastern haplogroup, divided into the northern J2 and the southern J1. J2 is by far the most common variety in Europe."
Haplogroup J2
"J2 originated in northern Mesopotamia, and spread westward to Anatolia and southern Europe, and eastward to Persia and India. J2 is related to the Ancient Etruscans, (Minoan) Greeks, southern Anatolians, Phoenicians, Assyrians and Babylonians."
"In Europe, J2 reaches its highest frequency in Greece (especially in Crete, Peloponese and Thrace), southern and central Italy, southern France, and southern Spain. The ancient Greeks and Phoenicians were the main driving forces behind the spread J2 around the western and southern Mediterranean."
"J2 is thought to have arrived in Greece from Anatolia in the early Neolithic, or possibly even earlier. J2b perhaps originated in Greece (or in Anatolia ?), like haplogroup E-V13 (see below) to which it is closely linked. The propagation of J2b and E-V13 (as well as a minority of T) follows the diffusion of agriculture across the Balkans, the Danube basin, and until the north of France to the west, and Moldova to the east. Apart from south-east Europe, J2b is also found all around India, but only at moderate levels in between Europe and India."
"The world's maximum concentrations of J2a is in Crete (32% of the population). The subclade J2a8 appears to be native to Crete. J2a also reaches high frequencies in Anatolia and the southern Caucasus. A likely place of origin is northern Mesopotamia."
"Interestingly, J2a* is found as far as India and is largely confined to the upper castes. The Brahmin (priest) caste is made up almost exclusively of haplogroups R1a1, R2, and J2a (although R1a1 makes up two thirds of the lineages). These 3 haplogroups have Bronze Age coalescence time and are thought to represent the gene flow of the Indo-Aryan invasion of the Indian subcontinent about 3,500 years ago."
Haplogroup J1
"J1 is a typically Semitic haplogroup, making up most of the population of the Arabian peninsula. Its highest density is observed in Yemen (72%), which could be its native place. The Muslim conquest of the Middle East, North Africa, and to a lower extent also to Sicily and southern Spain, spread J1 far beyond Arabia, creating a new Arabic world."
"A considerable part of Jewish people belong to J1 and J2, although J2 is more common. J1 is the Cohen Modal Haplotype, meaning that about three quarters of the people called Cohen, Kohen, or a variant belong to a specific J1 haplotype. In the Hebrew Bible the common ancestor of all Cohens is identified as Aaron, the brother of Moses."