CONSANGUINITY ON ROBINSON CRUSOE ISLAND, AN ISOLATED CHILEAN POPULATION

Abstract

SummaryThe population of Robinson Crusoe Island is estimated at 633 inhabitants. The current population has a common origin from the first eight families who colonized the island at the end of the 19th century. The objective of this study was to determine the rates of consanguinity, the average coefficients of inbreeding, the types of consanguineous marriages and the inbreeding evolution between 1900 and 2000 on the island. All marriages registered on the island, from the last colonization until 2000 (417 in total), were included in the analysis. In addition, extended genealogies were obtained. The consanguinity rate was 14.9% and the average coefficient of inbreeding (α) 54.05×10–4. The most frequent type of consanguineous marriages was between second cousins, followed by first cousins. The average value of the first/second cousin ratio was 1.11. The population of Robinson Crusoe Island has a high rate of inbreeding. The unique characteristic of the island – its small current population, originating from just a few families, with small rate of gene flow – could explain the observed high and increasing consanguinity.