--- title: Dogs Probably Came From Central Asia 15,000 Years Ago description: A study published Tuesday sampled the DNA of thousands of dogs to make the claim. canonical: https://time.com/4079485/dogs-origin-central-asia/ author: Tanya Basu article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-10-20T14:22:44.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T08:04:51.083Z article:section: Science og:title: Dogs' Origins Traced to Central Asia 15,000 Years Ago og:description: The study sampled the DNA of thousands of dogs around the world og:url: https://time.com/4079485/dogs-origin-central-asia/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9ccae5b81508587f/698869003c1639cf3e45a4cd/mongolia-dog.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2560 og:image:height: 1440 og:image:alt: Mongolian Nomad Travelling og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Dogs' Origins Traced to Central Asia 15,000 Years Ago twitter:description: The study sampled the DNA of thousands of dogs around the world twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9ccae5b81508587f/698869003c1639cf3e45a4cd/mongolia-dog.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Dogs May Have Come From Central Asia > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ## Video: How to Take Better Photos of Your Dog [Watch (HLS stream): How to Take Better Photos of Your Dog](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/RhpBI66N.m3u8) (2:45)  _Published 2015-10-12. Elias Weiss Freidman, a.k.a. The Dogist, has photographed more than 8,000 dogs_  by [Tanya Basu](https://time.com/author/tanya-basu/)  ## Tanya Basu Oct 20, 2015 2:22 PM UTC  A Mongolian woman with her caravan of animals about to travel to the Galshar Naadam, Khentii Province, Mongolia. A Mongolian woman with her caravan of animals about to travel to the Galshar Naadam, Khentii Province, Mongolia. Richard Manning—Getty Images  by [Tanya Basu](https://time.com/author/tanya-basu/)  ## Tanya Basu Oct 20, 2015 2:22 PM UTC Dogs haven’t always been man’s best friend, and the question of when they were first domesticated is surprisingly complex. A new study sheds some light on the issue, with an international team of scientists pointing to Central Asia as the the best candidate for the origin of today’s pups. The [study](http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2015/10/14/1516215112), published Tuesday in the journal _PNAS_, is the most expansive one to date, using three types of DNA gathered from 161 breeds of 4,500 dogs, along with 549 “village dogs”—street and feral dogs that make up an estimated 75% of the world’s total dog population—from 38 countries. While it’s long been known that dogs can trace their roots to gray wolves, the new analysis is the strongest indicator yet that modern dogs originated in what is now Nepal and Mongolia, developing into the canines they are today over the course of 15,000 years. The DNA of dogs in nearby areas like East Asia, India and Southwest Asia are extremely genetically diverse, giving scientists confidence to make the claim. But while the study is impressive for its sheer breadth, scientists are wary of making a definitive statement on dogs’ origins. Previous studies placed dogs’ ancestral tree in other regions like Siberia and Europe, said Adam Boyko of Cornell University and one of the study’s researchers, who called the origins of modern dogs “extremely messy.” Boyko [told the New York _Times_](http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/20/science/central-asia-could-be-birthplace-of-the-modern-dog.html?%5Fr=0) that it was very possible that dogs were domesticated elsewhere before arriving in Central Asia and diversifying into modern canines. Regardless, the study’s large population sample, including village and feral dogs, is remarkable, representing a clearer picture of dogs and where they come from. As Boyko quipped, “The great thing about working with dogs is that if you show up with food you don’t usually have trouble recruiting subjects. 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