Finno-Ugrian suicide hypothesis

The Finno-Ugrian suicide hypothesis proposes to link genetic ties originating among Finno-Ugric peoples to high rate of suicide, claiming an allele common among them is responsible.

Mari and Udmurts have been found to have a three times higher suicide rate than Finns and Hungarians. It has been thus theorized that such a possible allele may have arisen in those populations.^{[citation needed]}

However, contrary to the hypothesis, available contemporary (1990–1994) suicide rates in the United States were uniformly negatively associated with the proportion of the population comprising people of self-reported Hungarian, Lithuanian, Polish, Russian, Slovakian, or Ukrainian descent. The findings of this first test outside Europe are therefore conflicting. A proposal based on the geographical study approach is offered to further the progress of investigations into the genetics of suicide.^[2]

• Human genetic variation
• Finnish heritage disease
• Gloomy Sunday
• List of countries by suicide rate

• Voracek M, Loibl LM, Kandrychyn S (June 2007). "Testing the Finno-Ugrian suicide hypothesis: replication and refinement with regional suicide data from eastern Europe". Perceptual and Motor Skills. 104 (3 Pt 1): 985–94. doi:10.2466/PMS.104.3.985-994. PMID 17688155. S2CID 19673570.
• Voracek M, Fisher ML, Marusic A (October 2003). "The Finno-Ugrian suicide hypothesis: variation in European suicide rates by latitude and longitude". Perceptual and Motor Skills. 97 (2): 401–6. doi:10.2466/pms.2003.97.2.401. PMID 14620226. S2CID 35277725.