This research examined the occipitoparietal deformations of the Early Bronze Age skulls from the ... more This research examined the occipitoparietal deformations of the Early Bronze Age skulls from the southern European part of Russia and the similarities between those deformations and head modifications among the population of the Okunev culture in Southern Siberia. The study objects used were 3D models of neurocrania from 41 individuals retrieved from Early Bronze Age graves in the northwestern Caspian Sea region and 64 individuals from the Okunev graves. Analyses, of the skull shape variations, included geometric morphometrics, generalized Procrustes analysis, and principal component analysis with visualization of morphological changes as heat maps. Statistically significant differences between the subgroups were tested by performing dispersion analysis (ANOVA) using the Geomorph package. The samples of Early Bronze Age skulls from the southern European part of Russia showed differences between deformed and non-deformed skulls, as well as differences in the location of the deformed regions in both males and females. The differences between chronological groups turned out to be stronger than the difference between undeformed and deformed skulls in the Okunev samples. The next analysis focused only on the Okunev deformed skulls involving a study and assessment of the differences in the types of deformation between the early and late subgroups. The final analysis demonstrated similarities between the Bronze Age male deformed neurocrania from the northwestern Caspian Sea region and those from the early Okunev culture. The study confirmed the occipitoparietal flattening on the Bronze Age skulls from the southern European part of Russia using geometric morphometrics. This skull deformation finds analogies among deformed male neurocrania from the early chronological horizons of the Okunev culture. The similarity of head modifications in populations from different geographical regions indicates contact between these populations. This is confirmed by archaeological data and nonmetric cranial traits.
Archaeology, Ethnology and Anthropology of Eurasia (Russian-language)
Изучение искусственно деформированных черепов осложнено неудобством анализа криволинейных форм бе... more Изучение искусственно деформированных черепов осложнено неудобством анализа криволинейных форм без надежных ориентиров для измерения. Методы геометрической морфометрии позволяют решить эту проблему. В статье анализируются 3D-модели деформированных черепов из погребений разных хронологических горизонтов окуневской археологической культуры (XXVI-XVIII вв. до н.э., Южная Сибирь): 26 мужских и 19 женских из памятников Верхний Аскиз I, Уйбат III, V, Уйбат-Чарков, Итколь I, II. С помощью программы Landmark IDAV каждая модель была преобразована в комплекс координат из шести точек, соответствующих классическим краниометрическим, и 450 полуточек, расположенных равномерно по всей поверхности мозгового отдела черепа. Для дальнейшей обработки материалов с помощью прокрустова анализа и метода главных компонент были привлечены отдельные функции нескольких пакетов программ — Morpho, Geomorph и Arothron — в рамках программной среды R. В результате установлено, что черепа из ранних погребений окунев...
Громов А.В., Казарницкий А.А. Искусственная деформация головы у ранних окуневцев // Археологические вести, 2022. Вып. 34. С. 266-274., 2022
Методами двухмерной геометрической морфометрии изучены сагиттальные контуры искусственно деформир... more Методами двухмерной геометрической морфометрии изучены сагиттальные контуры искусственно деформированных черепов представителей окуневской культуры и эпохи ранней бронзы Калмыкии. Установлено, что наиболее ранние окуневские черепа (уйбатский хронологический горизонт) отличаются от поздних характером деформации. У первых больший акцент деформирующего воздействия приходится на затылочную область мозговой коробки, у вторых — на теменную. Морфология искусственно деформированных черепов эпохи ранней бронзы Калмыкии сходна с таковой ранних окуневских черепов.
Пугачева Е.В., Учанева Е.Н., Казарницкий А.А., Громов А.В. Анализ 3D-моделей черепов с искусственной деформацией методами геометрической морфометрии // Археология, этнография и антропология Евразии, № 3 (50), 2022, с. 140-147., 2022
Изучение искусственно деформированных черепов осложнено неудобством анализа криволинейных форм бе... more Изучение искусственно деформированных черепов осложнено неудобством анализа криволинейных форм без надежных ориентиров для измерения. Методы геометрической морфометрии позволяют решить эту проблему. В статье анализируются 3D-модели деформированных черепов из погребений разных хронологических горизонтов окуневской археологической культуры (XXVI–XVIII вв. до н.э., Южная Сибирь): 26 мужских и 19 женских из памятников Верхний Аскиз I, Уйбат III, V, Уйбат-Чарков, Итколь I, II. С помощью программы Landmark IDAV каждая модель была преобразована в комплекс координат из шести точек, соответствующих классическим краниометрическим, и 450 полуточек, расположенных равномерно по всей поверхности мозгового отдела черепа. Для дальнейшей обработки материалов с помощью прокрустова анализа и метода главных компонент были привлечены отдельные функции нескольких пакетов программ – Morpho, Geomorph и Arothron – в рамках программной среды R. В результате установлено, что черепа из ранних погребений окуневской культуры имеют небольшой деформированный участок в области краниометрической точки лямбда, охватывающий заднюю часть теменных костей и верхнюю часть чешуи затылочной кости. Для черепов из более поздних погребений характерно усиление деформации в теменной области, в результате чего снижалась высота мозгового отдела из-за уменьшения высоты изгиба теменного сегмента, увеличивалась выпуклость боковых стенок черепа, чешуи лобной кости и нижней части чешуи затылочной кости.
Pugacheva E.V., Uchaneva E.N., Kazarnitsky A.A., Gromov A.V. Analysis of 3D-Models of Artificially Deformed Crania, Using Geometric Morphometry // Archaeology, Ethnology & Anthropology of Eurasia, 50/3, (2022), 140–147., 2022
The study of artifi cially deformed crania is complicated by diffi culties in analyzing curviline... more The study of artifi cially deformed crania is complicated by diffi culties in analyzing curvilinear shapes without reliable reference points for measurement. Methods of geometric morphometrics (GM) help to solve this problem. We generated 3D-models of deformed crania (26 male and 19 female) from burials of different chronological periods of the Okunev archaeological culture (Verkhniy Askiz I, Uybat III and V, Uybat-Charkov, Itkol I and II), Southern Siberia (2600–1700 BC). Using the Landmark IDAV software, each model was transformed into a set of six traditional craniometric landmarks and 450 semi-landmarks regularly distributed over the entire surface of the braincase. For further processing with the Procrustes and principal component analysis, functions of several R-packages (Morpho, Geomorph, and Arothron) were employed. Crania from early Okunev burials were found to have a small deformed area around lambda, spanning the posterior parts of parietal bones and the upper part of the occipital squama. In crania from later Okunev burials, the deformation extends on the parietal area, causing the reduction of cranial height owing to a lesser curvature of the parietal segment. The lateral walls of the braincase, the frontal squama, and the lower part of the occipital squama in such crania are more convex.
Kazarnitsky, A. A., Gromov, A. V., Uchaneva, E. N., Pugacheva, E. V. (2023). Cranial deformation in the northwestern Caspian Sea region in the Bronze Age: Siberian parallels. International Journal of Osteoarchaeology, 33(1), 26–38, 2023
This research examined the occipitoparietal deformations of the Early Bronze Age skulls from the ... more This research examined the occipitoparietal deformations of the Early Bronze Age skulls from the southern European part of Russia and the similarities between those deformations and head modifications among the population of the Okunev culture in Southern Siberia. The study objects used were 3D models of neurocrania from 41 individuals retrieved from Early Bronze Age graves in the northwestern Caspian Sea region and 64 individuals from the Okunev graves. Analyses, of the skull shape variations, included geometric morphometrics, generalized Procrustes analysis, and principal component analysis with visualization of morphological changes as heat maps. Statistically significant differences between the subgroups were tested by performing dispersion analysis (ANOVA) using the Geomorph package. The samples of Early Bronze Age skulls from the southern European part of Russia showed differences between deformed and non-deformed skulls, as well as differences in the location of the deformed regions in both males and females. The differences between chronological groups turned out to be stronger than the difference between undeformed and deformed skulls in the Okunev samples. The next analysis focused only on the Okunev deformed skulls involving a study and assessment of the differences in the types of deformation between the early and late subgroups. The final analysis demonstrated similarities between the Bronze Age male deformed neurocrania from the northwestern Caspian Sea region and those from the early Okunev culture. The study confirmed the occipitoparietal flattening on the Bronze Age skulls from the southern European part of Russia using geometric morphometrics. This skull deformation finds analogies among deformed male neurocrania from the early chronological horizons of the Okunev culture. The similarity of head modifications in populations from different geographical regions indicates contact between these populations. This is confirmed by archaeological data and nonmetric cranial traits.
SummaryThe transitions from foraging to farming and later to pastoralism in Stone Age Eurasia (c.... more SummaryThe transitions from foraging to farming and later to pastoralism in Stone Age Eurasia (c. 11-3 thousand years before present, BP) represent some of the most dramatic lifestyle changes in human evolution. We sequenced 317 genomes of primarily Mesolithic and Neolithic individuals from across Eurasia combined with radiocarbon dates, stable isotope data, and pollen records. Genome imputation and co-analysis with previously published shotgun sequencing data resulted in >1600 complete ancient genome sequences offering fine-grained resolution into the Stone Age populations. We observe that: 1) Hunter-gatherer groups were more genetically diverse than previously known, and deeply divergent between western and eastern Eurasia. 2) We identify hitherto genetically undescribed hunter-gatherers from the Middle Don region that contributed ancestry to the later Yamnaya steppe pastoralists; 3) The genetic impact of the Neolithic transition was highly distinct, east and west of a boundary...
Ancient human movements through Asia Ancient DNA has allowed us to begin tracing the history of h... more Ancient human movements through Asia Ancient DNA has allowed us to begin tracing the history of human movements across the globe. Narasimhan et al. identify a complex pattern of human migrations and admixture events in South and Central Asia by performing genetic analysis of more than 500 people who lived over the past 8000 years (see the Perspective by Schaefer and Shapiro). They establish key phases in the population prehistory of Eurasia, including the spread of farming peoples from the Near East, with movements both westward and eastward. The people known as the Yamnaya in the Bronze Age also moved both westward and eastward from a focal area located north of the Black Sea. The overall patterns of genetic clines reflect similar and parallel patterns in South Asia and Europe. Science , this issue p. eaat7487 ; see also p. 981
The genetic formation of Central and South Asian populations has been unclear because of an absen... more The genetic formation of Central and South Asian populations has been unclear because of an absence of ancient DNA. To address this gap, we generated genome-wide data from 362 ancient individuals, including the first from eastern Iran, Turan (Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and Tajikistan), Bronze Age Kazakhstan, and South Asia. Our data reveal a complex set of genetic sources that ultimately combined to form the ancestry of South Asians today. We document a southward spread of genetic ancestry from the Eurasian Steppe, correlating with the archaeologically known expansion of pastoralist sites from the Steppe to Turan in the Middle Bronze Age (2300-1500 BCE). These Steppe communities mixed genetically with peoples of the Bactria Margiana Archaeological Complex (BMAC) whom they encountered in Turan (primarily descendants of earlier agriculturalists of Iran), but there is no evidence that the main BMAC population contributed genetically to later South Asians. Instead, Steppe communities int...
The Yamnaya expansions from the western steppe into Europe and Asia during the Early Bronze Age (... more The Yamnaya expansions from the western steppe into Europe and Asia during the Early Bronze Age (~3000 BCE) are believed to have brought with them Indo-European languages and possibly horse husbandry. We analyze 74 ancient whole-genome sequences from across Inner Asia and Anatolia and show that the Botai people associated with the earliest horse husbandry derived from a hunter-gatherer population deeply diverged from the Yamnaya. Our results also suggest distinct migrations bringing West Eurasian ancestry into South Asia before and after but not at the time of Yamnaya culture. We find no evidence of steppe ancestry in Bronze Age Anatolia from when Indo-European languages are attested there. Thus, in contrast to Europe, Early Bronze Age Yamnaya-related migrations had limited direct genetic impact in Asia.
For thousands of years the Eurasian steppes have been a centre of human migrations and cultural c... more For thousands of years the Eurasian steppes have been a centre of human migrations and cultural change. Here we sequence the genomes of 137 ancient humans (about 1× average coverage), covering a period of 4,000 years, to understand the population history of the Eurasian steppes after the Bronze Age migrations. We find that the genetics of the Scythian groups that dominated the Eurasian steppes throughout the Iron Age were highly structured, with diverse origins comprising Late Bronze Age herders, European farmers and southern Siberian hunter-gatherers. Later, Scythians admixed with the eastern steppe nomads who formed the Xiongnu confederations, and moved westward in about the second or third century BC, forming the Hun traditions in the fourth-fifth century AD, and carrying with them plague that was basal to the Justinian plague. These nomads were further admixed with East Asian groups during several short-term khanates in the Medieval period. These historical events transformed th...
We present a brief archaeological summary of the main phases of cultural and social change in the... more We present a brief archaeological summary of the main phases of cultural and social change in the Western, Central, and South Asia ca. 4000-1500 BCE as a contextual framework for the findings presented in Damgaard et al. 2018.
The transitions from foraging to farming and later to pastoralism in Stone Age Eurasia (c. 113 th... more The transitions from foraging to farming and later to pastoralism in Stone Age Eurasia (c. 113 thousand years before present, BP) represent some of the most dramatic lifestyle changes in human evolution. We sequenced 317 genomes of primarily Mesolithic and Neolithic individuals from across Eurasia combined with radiocarbon dates, stable isotope data, and pollen records. Genome imputation and co-analysis with previously published shotgun sequencing data resulted in >1600 complete ancient genome sequences offering fine-grained resolution into the Stone Age populations. We observe that: 1) Hunter-gatherer groups were more genetically diverse than previously known, and deeply divergent between western and eastern Eurasia. 2) We identify hitherto genetically undescribed hunter-gatherers from the Middle Don region that contributed ancestry to the later Yamnaya steppe pastoralists; 3) The genetic impact of the Neolithic transition was highly distinct, east and west of a boundary zone extending from the Black Sea to the Baltic. Large-scale shifts in genetic ancestry occurred to the west of this “Great Divide”, including an almost complete replacement of hunter-gatherers in Denmark, while no substantial ancestry shifts took place during the same period to the east. This difference is also reflected in genetic relatedness within the populations, decreasing substantially in the west but not in the east where it remained high until c. 4,000 BP; 4) The second major genetic transformation around 5,000 BP happened at a much faster pace with Steppe-related ancestry reaching most parts of Europe within 1,000years. Local Neolithic farmers admixed with incoming pastoralists in eastern, western, and southern Europe whereas Scandinavia experienced another near-complete population replacement. Similar dramatic turnover-patterns are evident in western Siberia; 5) Extensive regional differences in the ancestry components involved in these early events remain visible to this day, even within countries. Neolithic farmer ancestry is highest in southern and eastern England while Steppe-related ancestry is highest in the Celtic populations of Scotland, Wales, and Cornwall (this research has been conducted using the UK Biobank resource); 6) Shifts in diet, lifestyle and environment introduced new selection pressures involving at least 21 genomic regions. Most such variants were not universally selected across populations but were only advantageous in particular ancestral backgrounds. Contrary to previous claims, we find that selection on the FADS regions, associated with fatty acid metabolism, began before the Neolithisation of Europe. Similarly, the lactase persistence allele started increasing in frequency before the expansion of Steppe-related groups into Europe and has continued to increase up to the present. Along the genetic cline separating Mesolithic hunter-gatherers from Neolithic farmers, we find significant correlations with trait associations related to skin disorders, diet and lifestyle and mental health status, suggesting marked phenotypic differences between these groups with very different lifestyles. This work provides new insights into major transformations in recent human evolution, elucidating the complex interplay between selection and admixture that shaped patterns of genetic variation in modern populations.
Nonmetric and metric traits were studied in cranial series representing prehistoric and modern po... more Nonmetric and metric traits were studied in cranial series representing prehistoric and modern populations of America and Siberia. Frequencies of the infraorbital pattern type II (longitudinal infraorbital suture overlaid by the zygomatic bone) are universally lower in Amerindians than in Siberians. The os japonicum posterior trace, too, is much less frequent in America than in Siberia. The only two Siberian groups with an almost Amerindian combination are late third to early second millennium BC populations from Okunev and Sopka, southern Siberia. The multivariate analysis of five nonmetric facial traits and ten facial measurements in 15 cranial series reveals two independent tendencies. One of them shows a contrast between prehistoric Siberian Caucasoids and modern Siberian Mongoloids; the second one sets Amerindians apart from others. Prehistoric people who lived west of Lake Baikal and modern Uralic speakers are intermediate between Siberian Caucasoids and Siberian Mongoloids; Eskimos, Aleuts, and Chukchi are intermediate between Siberian Mongoloids and Amerindians; and Okunev and Sopka are intermediate between Siberian Caucasoids and Amerindians. Our results suggest that people of Okunev and Sopka are collateral relatives of Amerindians with some Caucasoid admixture.
The Yamnaya expansions from the western steppe into Europe and Asia during the Early Bronze Age (... more The Yamnaya expansions from the western steppe into Europe and Asia during the Early Bronze Age (~3000 BCE) are believed to have brought with them Indo-European languages and possibly horse husbandry. We analyze 74 ancient whole-genome sequences from across Inner Asia and Anatolia and show that the Botai people associated with the earliest horse husbandry derived from a hunter-gatherer population deeply diverged from the Yamnaya. Our results also suggest distinct migrations bringing West Eurasian ancestry into South Asia before and after but not at the time of Yamnaya culture. We find no evidence of steppe ancestry in Bronze Age Anatolia from when Indo-European languages are attested there. Thus, in contrast to Europe, Early Bronze Age Yamnaya-related migrations had limited direct genetic impact in Asia. One Sentence Summary: We investigate the origins of Indo-European languages in Asia by coupling ancient genomics to archaeology and linguistics
This research examined the occipitoparietal deformations of the Early Bronze Age skulls from the ... more This research examined the occipitoparietal deformations of the Early Bronze Age skulls from the southern European part of Russia and the similarities between those deformations and head modifications among the population of the Okunev culture in Southern Siberia. The study objects used were 3D models of neurocrania from 41 individuals retrieved from Early Bronze Age graves in the northwestern Caspian Sea region and 64 individuals from the Okunev graves. Analyses, of the skull shape variations, included geometric morphometrics, generalized Procrustes analysis, and principal component analysis with visualization of morphological changes as heat maps. Statistically significant differences between the subgroups were tested by performing dispersion analysis (ANOVA) using the Geomorph package. The samples of Early Bronze Age skulls from the southern European part of Russia showed differences between deformed and non-deformed skulls, as well as differences in the location of the deformed regions in both males and females. The differences between chronological groups turned out to be stronger than the difference between undeformed and deformed skulls in the Okunev samples. The next analysis focused only on the Okunev deformed skulls involving a study and assessment of the differences in the types of deformation between the early and late subgroups. The final analysis demonstrated similarities between the Bronze Age male deformed neurocrania from the northwestern Caspian Sea region and those from the early Okunev culture. The study confirmed the occipitoparietal flattening on the Bronze Age skulls from the southern European part of Russia using geometric morphometrics. This skull deformation finds analogies among deformed male neurocrania from the early chronological horizons of the Okunev culture. The similarity of head modifications in populations from different geographical regions indicates contact between these populations. This is confirmed by archaeological data and nonmetric cranial traits.
Archaeology, Ethnology and Anthropology of Eurasia (Russian-language)
Изучение искусственно деформированных черепов осложнено неудобством анализа криволинейных форм бе... more Изучение искусственно деформированных черепов осложнено неудобством анализа криволинейных форм без надежных ориентиров для измерения. Методы геометрической морфометрии позволяют решить эту проблему. В статье анализируются 3D-модели деформированных черепов из погребений разных хронологических горизонтов окуневской археологической культуры (XXVI-XVIII вв. до н.э., Южная Сибирь): 26 мужских и 19 женских из памятников Верхний Аскиз I, Уйбат III, V, Уйбат-Чарков, Итколь I, II. С помощью программы Landmark IDAV каждая модель была преобразована в комплекс координат из шести точек, соответствующих классическим краниометрическим, и 450 полуточек, расположенных равномерно по всей поверхности мозгового отдела черепа. Для дальнейшей обработки материалов с помощью прокрустова анализа и метода главных компонент были привлечены отдельные функции нескольких пакетов программ — Morpho, Geomorph и Arothron — в рамках программной среды R. В результате установлено, что черепа из ранних погребений окунев...
Громов А.В., Казарницкий А.А. Искусственная деформация головы у ранних окуневцев // Археологические вести, 2022. Вып. 34. С. 266-274., 2022
Методами двухмерной геометрической морфометрии изучены сагиттальные контуры искусственно деформир... more Методами двухмерной геометрической морфометрии изучены сагиттальные контуры искусственно деформированных черепов представителей окуневской культуры и эпохи ранней бронзы Калмыкии. Установлено, что наиболее ранние окуневские черепа (уйбатский хронологический горизонт) отличаются от поздних характером деформации. У первых больший акцент деформирующего воздействия приходится на затылочную область мозговой коробки, у вторых — на теменную. Морфология искусственно деформированных черепов эпохи ранней бронзы Калмыкии сходна с таковой ранних окуневских черепов.
Пугачева Е.В., Учанева Е.Н., Казарницкий А.А., Громов А.В. Анализ 3D-моделей черепов с искусственной деформацией методами геометрической морфометрии // Археология, этнография и антропология Евразии, № 3 (50), 2022, с. 140-147., 2022
Изучение искусственно деформированных черепов осложнено неудобством анализа криволинейных форм бе... more Изучение искусственно деформированных черепов осложнено неудобством анализа криволинейных форм без надежных ориентиров для измерения. Методы геометрической морфометрии позволяют решить эту проблему. В статье анализируются 3D-модели деформированных черепов из погребений разных хронологических горизонтов окуневской археологической культуры (XXVI–XVIII вв. до н.э., Южная Сибирь): 26 мужских и 19 женских из памятников Верхний Аскиз I, Уйбат III, V, Уйбат-Чарков, Итколь I, II. С помощью программы Landmark IDAV каждая модель была преобразована в комплекс координат из шести точек, соответствующих классическим краниометрическим, и 450 полуточек, расположенных равномерно по всей поверхности мозгового отдела черепа. Для дальнейшей обработки материалов с помощью прокрустова анализа и метода главных компонент были привлечены отдельные функции нескольких пакетов программ – Morpho, Geomorph и Arothron – в рамках программной среды R. В результате установлено, что черепа из ранних погребений окуневской культуры имеют небольшой деформированный участок в области краниометрической точки лямбда, охватывающий заднюю часть теменных костей и верхнюю часть чешуи затылочной кости. Для черепов из более поздних погребений характерно усиление деформации в теменной области, в результате чего снижалась высота мозгового отдела из-за уменьшения высоты изгиба теменного сегмента, увеличивалась выпуклость боковых стенок черепа, чешуи лобной кости и нижней части чешуи затылочной кости.
Pugacheva E.V., Uchaneva E.N., Kazarnitsky A.A., Gromov A.V. Analysis of 3D-Models of Artificially Deformed Crania, Using Geometric Morphometry // Archaeology, Ethnology & Anthropology of Eurasia, 50/3, (2022), 140–147., 2022
The study of artifi cially deformed crania is complicated by diffi culties in analyzing curviline... more The study of artifi cially deformed crania is complicated by diffi culties in analyzing curvilinear shapes without reliable reference points for measurement. Methods of geometric morphometrics (GM) help to solve this problem. We generated 3D-models of deformed crania (26 male and 19 female) from burials of different chronological periods of the Okunev archaeological culture (Verkhniy Askiz I, Uybat III and V, Uybat-Charkov, Itkol I and II), Southern Siberia (2600–1700 BC). Using the Landmark IDAV software, each model was transformed into a set of six traditional craniometric landmarks and 450 semi-landmarks regularly distributed over the entire surface of the braincase. For further processing with the Procrustes and principal component analysis, functions of several R-packages (Morpho, Geomorph, and Arothron) were employed. Crania from early Okunev burials were found to have a small deformed area around lambda, spanning the posterior parts of parietal bones and the upper part of the occipital squama. In crania from later Okunev burials, the deformation extends on the parietal area, causing the reduction of cranial height owing to a lesser curvature of the parietal segment. The lateral walls of the braincase, the frontal squama, and the lower part of the occipital squama in such crania are more convex.
Kazarnitsky, A. A., Gromov, A. V., Uchaneva, E. N., Pugacheva, E. V. (2023). Cranial deformation in the northwestern Caspian Sea region in the Bronze Age: Siberian parallels. International Journal of Osteoarchaeology, 33(1), 26–38, 2023
This research examined the occipitoparietal deformations of the Early Bronze Age skulls from the ... more This research examined the occipitoparietal deformations of the Early Bronze Age skulls from the southern European part of Russia and the similarities between those deformations and head modifications among the population of the Okunev culture in Southern Siberia. The study objects used were 3D models of neurocrania from 41 individuals retrieved from Early Bronze Age graves in the northwestern Caspian Sea region and 64 individuals from the Okunev graves. Analyses, of the skull shape variations, included geometric morphometrics, generalized Procrustes analysis, and principal component analysis with visualization of morphological changes as heat maps. Statistically significant differences between the subgroups were tested by performing dispersion analysis (ANOVA) using the Geomorph package. The samples of Early Bronze Age skulls from the southern European part of Russia showed differences between deformed and non-deformed skulls, as well as differences in the location of the deformed regions in both males and females. The differences between chronological groups turned out to be stronger than the difference between undeformed and deformed skulls in the Okunev samples. The next analysis focused only on the Okunev deformed skulls involving a study and assessment of the differences in the types of deformation between the early and late subgroups. The final analysis demonstrated similarities between the Bronze Age male deformed neurocrania from the northwestern Caspian Sea region and those from the early Okunev culture. The study confirmed the occipitoparietal flattening on the Bronze Age skulls from the southern European part of Russia using geometric morphometrics. This skull deformation finds analogies among deformed male neurocrania from the early chronological horizons of the Okunev culture. The similarity of head modifications in populations from different geographical regions indicates contact between these populations. This is confirmed by archaeological data and nonmetric cranial traits.
SummaryThe transitions from foraging to farming and later to pastoralism in Stone Age Eurasia (c.... more SummaryThe transitions from foraging to farming and later to pastoralism in Stone Age Eurasia (c. 11-3 thousand years before present, BP) represent some of the most dramatic lifestyle changes in human evolution. We sequenced 317 genomes of primarily Mesolithic and Neolithic individuals from across Eurasia combined with radiocarbon dates, stable isotope data, and pollen records. Genome imputation and co-analysis with previously published shotgun sequencing data resulted in >1600 complete ancient genome sequences offering fine-grained resolution into the Stone Age populations. We observe that: 1) Hunter-gatherer groups were more genetically diverse than previously known, and deeply divergent between western and eastern Eurasia. 2) We identify hitherto genetically undescribed hunter-gatherers from the Middle Don region that contributed ancestry to the later Yamnaya steppe pastoralists; 3) The genetic impact of the Neolithic transition was highly distinct, east and west of a boundary...
Ancient human movements through Asia Ancient DNA has allowed us to begin tracing the history of h... more Ancient human movements through Asia Ancient DNA has allowed us to begin tracing the history of human movements across the globe. Narasimhan et al. identify a complex pattern of human migrations and admixture events in South and Central Asia by performing genetic analysis of more than 500 people who lived over the past 8000 years (see the Perspective by Schaefer and Shapiro). They establish key phases in the population prehistory of Eurasia, including the spread of farming peoples from the Near East, with movements both westward and eastward. The people known as the Yamnaya in the Bronze Age also moved both westward and eastward from a focal area located north of the Black Sea. The overall patterns of genetic clines reflect similar and parallel patterns in South Asia and Europe. Science , this issue p. eaat7487 ; see also p. 981
The genetic formation of Central and South Asian populations has been unclear because of an absen... more The genetic formation of Central and South Asian populations has been unclear because of an absence of ancient DNA. To address this gap, we generated genome-wide data from 362 ancient individuals, including the first from eastern Iran, Turan (Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and Tajikistan), Bronze Age Kazakhstan, and South Asia. Our data reveal a complex set of genetic sources that ultimately combined to form the ancestry of South Asians today. We document a southward spread of genetic ancestry from the Eurasian Steppe, correlating with the archaeologically known expansion of pastoralist sites from the Steppe to Turan in the Middle Bronze Age (2300-1500 BCE). These Steppe communities mixed genetically with peoples of the Bactria Margiana Archaeological Complex (BMAC) whom they encountered in Turan (primarily descendants of earlier agriculturalists of Iran), but there is no evidence that the main BMAC population contributed genetically to later South Asians. Instead, Steppe communities int...
The Yamnaya expansions from the western steppe into Europe and Asia during the Early Bronze Age (... more The Yamnaya expansions from the western steppe into Europe and Asia during the Early Bronze Age (~3000 BCE) are believed to have brought with them Indo-European languages and possibly horse husbandry. We analyze 74 ancient whole-genome sequences from across Inner Asia and Anatolia and show that the Botai people associated with the earliest horse husbandry derived from a hunter-gatherer population deeply diverged from the Yamnaya. Our results also suggest distinct migrations bringing West Eurasian ancestry into South Asia before and after but not at the time of Yamnaya culture. We find no evidence of steppe ancestry in Bronze Age Anatolia from when Indo-European languages are attested there. Thus, in contrast to Europe, Early Bronze Age Yamnaya-related migrations had limited direct genetic impact in Asia.
For thousands of years the Eurasian steppes have been a centre of human migrations and cultural c... more For thousands of years the Eurasian steppes have been a centre of human migrations and cultural change. Here we sequence the genomes of 137 ancient humans (about 1× average coverage), covering a period of 4,000 years, to understand the population history of the Eurasian steppes after the Bronze Age migrations. We find that the genetics of the Scythian groups that dominated the Eurasian steppes throughout the Iron Age were highly structured, with diverse origins comprising Late Bronze Age herders, European farmers and southern Siberian hunter-gatherers. Later, Scythians admixed with the eastern steppe nomads who formed the Xiongnu confederations, and moved westward in about the second or third century BC, forming the Hun traditions in the fourth-fifth century AD, and carrying with them plague that was basal to the Justinian plague. These nomads were further admixed with East Asian groups during several short-term khanates in the Medieval period. These historical events transformed th...
We present a brief archaeological summary of the main phases of cultural and social change in the... more We present a brief archaeological summary of the main phases of cultural and social change in the Western, Central, and South Asia ca. 4000-1500 BCE as a contextual framework for the findings presented in Damgaard et al. 2018.
The transitions from foraging to farming and later to pastoralism in Stone Age Eurasia (c. 113 th... more The transitions from foraging to farming and later to pastoralism in Stone Age Eurasia (c. 113 thousand years before present, BP) represent some of the most dramatic lifestyle changes in human evolution. We sequenced 317 genomes of primarily Mesolithic and Neolithic individuals from across Eurasia combined with radiocarbon dates, stable isotope data, and pollen records. Genome imputation and co-analysis with previously published shotgun sequencing data resulted in >1600 complete ancient genome sequences offering fine-grained resolution into the Stone Age populations. We observe that: 1) Hunter-gatherer groups were more genetically diverse than previously known, and deeply divergent between western and eastern Eurasia. 2) We identify hitherto genetically undescribed hunter-gatherers from the Middle Don region that contributed ancestry to the later Yamnaya steppe pastoralists; 3) The genetic impact of the Neolithic transition was highly distinct, east and west of a boundary zone extending from the Black Sea to the Baltic. Large-scale shifts in genetic ancestry occurred to the west of this “Great Divide”, including an almost complete replacement of hunter-gatherers in Denmark, while no substantial ancestry shifts took place during the same period to the east. This difference is also reflected in genetic relatedness within the populations, decreasing substantially in the west but not in the east where it remained high until c. 4,000 BP; 4) The second major genetic transformation around 5,000 BP happened at a much faster pace with Steppe-related ancestry reaching most parts of Europe within 1,000years. Local Neolithic farmers admixed with incoming pastoralists in eastern, western, and southern Europe whereas Scandinavia experienced another near-complete population replacement. Similar dramatic turnover-patterns are evident in western Siberia; 5) Extensive regional differences in the ancestry components involved in these early events remain visible to this day, even within countries. Neolithic farmer ancestry is highest in southern and eastern England while Steppe-related ancestry is highest in the Celtic populations of Scotland, Wales, and Cornwall (this research has been conducted using the UK Biobank resource); 6) Shifts in diet, lifestyle and environment introduced new selection pressures involving at least 21 genomic regions. Most such variants were not universally selected across populations but were only advantageous in particular ancestral backgrounds. Contrary to previous claims, we find that selection on the FADS regions, associated with fatty acid metabolism, began before the Neolithisation of Europe. Similarly, the lactase persistence allele started increasing in frequency before the expansion of Steppe-related groups into Europe and has continued to increase up to the present. Along the genetic cline separating Mesolithic hunter-gatherers from Neolithic farmers, we find significant correlations with trait associations related to skin disorders, diet and lifestyle and mental health status, suggesting marked phenotypic differences between these groups with very different lifestyles. This work provides new insights into major transformations in recent human evolution, elucidating the complex interplay between selection and admixture that shaped patterns of genetic variation in modern populations.
Nonmetric and metric traits were studied in cranial series representing prehistoric and modern po... more Nonmetric and metric traits were studied in cranial series representing prehistoric and modern populations of America and Siberia. Frequencies of the infraorbital pattern type II (longitudinal infraorbital suture overlaid by the zygomatic bone) are universally lower in Amerindians than in Siberians. The os japonicum posterior trace, too, is much less frequent in America than in Siberia. The only two Siberian groups with an almost Amerindian combination are late third to early second millennium BC populations from Okunev and Sopka, southern Siberia. The multivariate analysis of five nonmetric facial traits and ten facial measurements in 15 cranial series reveals two independent tendencies. One of them shows a contrast between prehistoric Siberian Caucasoids and modern Siberian Mongoloids; the second one sets Amerindians apart from others. Prehistoric people who lived west of Lake Baikal and modern Uralic speakers are intermediate between Siberian Caucasoids and Siberian Mongoloids; Eskimos, Aleuts, and Chukchi are intermediate between Siberian Mongoloids and Amerindians; and Okunev and Sopka are intermediate between Siberian Caucasoids and Amerindians. Our results suggest that people of Okunev and Sopka are collateral relatives of Amerindians with some Caucasoid admixture.
The Yamnaya expansions from the western steppe into Europe and Asia during the Early Bronze Age (... more The Yamnaya expansions from the western steppe into Europe and Asia during the Early Bronze Age (~3000 BCE) are believed to have brought with them Indo-European languages and possibly horse husbandry. We analyze 74 ancient whole-genome sequences from across Inner Asia and Anatolia and show that the Botai people associated with the earliest horse husbandry derived from a hunter-gatherer population deeply diverged from the Yamnaya. Our results also suggest distinct migrations bringing West Eurasian ancestry into South Asia before and after but not at the time of Yamnaya culture. We find no evidence of steppe ancestry in Bronze Age Anatolia from when Indo-European languages are attested there. Thus, in contrast to Europe, Early Bronze Age Yamnaya-related migrations had limited direct genetic impact in Asia. One Sentence Summary: We investigate the origins of Indo-European languages in Asia by coupling ancient genomics to archaeology and linguistics
This publication opens a series of databases of individual craniometric measurements relating to collections owned by the Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography (Kunstkamera) in Saint-Petersburg and by other institutions of Russia. The present database relates to 3139 recent human crania (2209 male and 930 female) representing 16 ethnic groups. They come from various regions of eastern and northeastern Europe including European Russia, Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Belorussia. The texts are in Russian and in English. The publication is destined for those studying the population history of the respective regions and aspects of cranial morphology.
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languages and possibly horse husbandry. We analyze 74 ancient whole-genome sequences from across Inner Asia and Anatolia and show that the Botai people associated with the earliest horse husbandry derived from a hunter-gatherer population deeply diverged from the Yamnaya. Our results also suggest distinct migrations bringing West Eurasian ancestry into South Asia before and after but not at the time of Yamnaya culture. We find no evidence of steppe ancestry in Bronze Age Anatolia from when Indo-European languages are attested there. Thus, in contrast to
Europe, Early Bronze Age Yamnaya-related migrations had limited direct genetic impact in Asia.
One Sentence Summary: We investigate the origins of Indo-European languages in Asia by coupling ancient genomics to archaeology and linguistics
languages and possibly horse husbandry. We analyze 74 ancient whole-genome sequences from across Inner Asia and Anatolia and show that the Botai people associated with the earliest horse husbandry derived from a hunter-gatherer population deeply diverged from the Yamnaya. Our results also suggest distinct migrations bringing West Eurasian ancestry into South Asia before and after but not at the time of Yamnaya culture. We find no evidence of steppe ancestry in Bronze Age Anatolia from when Indo-European languages are attested there. Thus, in contrast to
Europe, Early Bronze Age Yamnaya-related migrations had limited direct genetic impact in Asia.
One Sentence Summary: We investigate the origins of Indo-European languages in Asia by coupling ancient genomics to archaeology and linguistics
This publication opens a series of databases of individual craniometric measurements relating to collections owned by the Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography (Kunstkamera) in Saint-Petersburg and by other institutions of Russia. The present database relates to 3139 recent human crania (2209 male and 930 female) representing 16 ethnic groups. They come from various regions of eastern and northeastern Europe including European Russia, Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Belorussia. The texts are in Russian and in English. The publication is destined for those studying the population history of the respective regions and aspects of cranial morphology.