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A Dynamic 6,000-Year Genetic History of Eurasia’s Eastern Steppe

2020; Cell Press; Volume: 183; Issue: 4 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/j.cell.2020.10.015

1097-4172

Choongwon Jeong, Ke Wang, Shevan Wilkin, William Taylor, Bryan K. Miller, Jan Bemmann, Raphaela Stahl, Chelsea Chiovelli, Florian Knolle, Sodnom Ulziibayar, Dorjpurev Khatanbaatar, Diimaajav Erdenebaatar, Ulambayar Erdenebat, Ayudai Ochir, Ganbold Ankhsanaa, Chuluunkhuu Vanchigdash, Battuga Ochir, Chuluunbat Munkhbayar, Dashzeveg Tumen, Alexey Kovalev, Nikolay Kradin, B. A. Bazarov, D. A. Miyagashev, Prokopiy B. Konovalov, Elena Zhambaltarova, Alicia Ventresca Miller, Wolfgang Haak, Stephan Schiffels, Johannes Krause, Nicole Boivin, Erdene Myagmar, Jessica Hendy, Christina Warinner,

Archaeology and ancient environmental studies

The Eastern Eurasian Steppe was home to historic empires of nomadic pastoralists, including the Xiongnu and the Mongols. However, little is known about the region's population history. Here, we reveal its dynamic genetic history by analyzing new genome-wide data for 214 ancient individuals spanning 6,000 years. We identify a pastoralist expansion into Mongolia ca. 3000 BCE, and by the Late Bronze Age, Mongolian populations were biogeographically structured into three distinct groups, all practicing dairy pastoralism regardless of ancestry. The Xiongnu emerged from the mixing of these populations and those from surrounding regions. By comparison, the Mongols exhibit much higher eastern Eurasian ancestry, resembling present-day Mongolic-speaking populations. Our results illuminate the complex interplay between genetic, sociopolitical, and cultural changes on the Eastern Steppe.