Ancient genomes reveal the origin and kinship burial patterns of human remains during the 11th to 13th centuries in northern China

Bibliographic Data

ID4721044
AuthorsFan Zhang (0000-0002-3643-018X, Center for Archaeological Science Sichuan University Chengdu China), Yan Liu (0000-0002-1612-779X, Shanxi Provincial Institute of Archaeology Taiyuan China), Chao Ning (0000-0002-8848-3961, School of Archaeology and Museology Peking University Beijing China), Jiashuo Zhang (0000-0002-0738-7653, Ancient DNA Laboratory Research Center for Chinese Frontier Archaeology of Jilin University Changchun China), Pengcheng Ma (0009-0004-0350-5511, Institutes of Biomedical Sciences Inner Mongolia University Hohhot China), Ruojing Zhang (0000-0003-2635-3405, Center for Archaeological Science Sichuan University Chengdu China), Zerong Yun (Shanxi Provincial Institute of Archaeology Taiyuan China), Chen Duan (School of Archaeology and Museology Peking University Beijing China), Dawei Cai (0000-0001-6650-0217, Ancient DNA Laboratory Research Center for Chinese Frontier Archaeology of Jilin University Changchun China), Haomiao Yuan (0000-0002-3155-6760, Center for Archaeological Science Sichuan University Chengdu China, corresponding author)
Year2024
Volume34
Issue1
Publication date2024-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueInternational Journal of Osteoarchaeology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1047-482X • E-ISSN: 1099-1212
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1002/oa.3274
OpenAlexW4390233043
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited30

The analysis of familial relationships among individuals co-buried in a shared tomb is crucial for understanding burial practices and the underlying social organization of ancient human society. However, archaeological interpretation of these relationships has traditionally relied on conjecture and circumstantial evidence. The development of next-generation sequencing technologies makes it possible to obtain genomic data from ancient individuals and thus can further estimate the genetic relatedness among these individuals in an accurate manner. In this study, we obtained the genomes of four individuals excavated from a single tomb in northern China. We found that three out of the four individuals were from a nuclear family, including the parents and their son, while the remaining female individual was genetically unrelated to the others. Our study not only shows that the burial custom was organized based on both biological relatedness and social kinship ties but also suggests the presence of likely female exogamy in ancient China. Finally, we find the genetic profile of these individuals carried a majority ancestry from the sedentary agriculturalists from the Central Plains of China and subtle ancestry that derived a gene pool associated with nomadic pastoralism, implying a long-standing genetic continuity among ancient populations in northern China, but with genetic and cultural connections with nomadic groups during the 11th to 13th centuries

Ancestor · Ancient DNA · Archaeology · Biology · China · Evolutionary biology · Exogamy · Genealogy · Genetic genealogy · Geography · Human migration · Kinship · Livestock · Pastoralism · Population · Sociology · Anthropology · Demography · Forensic and Genetic Research · Forensic Anthropology and Bioarchaeology Studies · History · Race, Genetics, and Society · Ecology

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