Objective To investigate cytochrome P450 1A2~* 1C gene polymorphism in Dai and Han nationality volunteers from Dehong autonomous prefecture in Yunnan province. Methods One hundred and seventeen Dai and 112 Han nationality volunteers from Dehong autonomous prefecture in Yunnan province were enrolled in this study. Polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) was employed in genotyping analysis. Results There were 45 wild-type homozygotes (G/G), 63 heterozygotes (G/A) and 9 homozygotes among 117 Dai nationality volunteers, while 63 wild-type homozygotes (G/G), 44 heterozygotes (G/A) and 5 homozygots among 112 Han nationality volunteers. There was significant difference in the incidences of the genotypes between the two populations (P<0.05). The distribution of the genotypes of either population was in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. The frequency of the allele A in the 1ocus-2964 of CYP1 A2 was 35% (95% CI30%-40%) and 24% (95% CI 20%-30%) respectively in Dai and Han nationality volunteers. There was significant difference in the frequency between two populations (P<0.05). There was also significant difference in the frequency between Dai nationality volunteers and the populations of other regions. Conclusion CYP1A2~*1C gene polymorphism is one of factors of producing individual and racial variation in pharmacology in Dai and Han people from Dehong autonomous prefecture in Yunnan province.