The Arrival of Siberian Ancestry Connecting the Eastern Baltic to Uralic Speakers further East

PRJEB31893 Original Paper / DOI2019-05-1056 samples (study)

AI interpretationAI-generated

Ancient DNA links Eastern Baltic to Siberian ancestry and early Uralic speakers.

This study analyzed ancient DNA from Estonia and Ingria, spanning the Late Bronze Age to the Middle Ages. It found that Stone-cist grave individuals (EstBA) had strong Western hunter-gatherer ancestry, while tarand cemetery individuals (EstIA) received gene flow from Siberian-related populations. This Siberian ancestry arrived by the mid-first millennium BC, coinciding with the spread of West Uralic (Finnic) languages. Also, traits like light eyes, hair, skin, and lactose tolerance were already present in the Bronze Age Eastern Baltic.

Late Bronze Age Estonians (EstBA) had strong Western hunter-gatherer ancestry.
Pre-Roman Iron Age Estonians (EstIA) received gene flow from Siberian-related populations.
Siberian ancestry reached the Baltic by the mid-first millennium BC, matching the diversification of West Uralic languages.
Phenotypic traits like light eyes, hair, skin, and lactose tolerance date back to the Bronze Age in the region.

Sample interpretation

The dataset includes 55 ancient individuals from Estonia and Ingria. Y-chromosome analysis of 34 males shows a majority of R-M417 (5), R-PF6162 (5), and R-M459 (3), with one N-CTS6967. Mitochondrial DNA is diverse, with U4a2b, H1b2, and T1a1b each appearing three times. These genetic markers reflect a mix of local and incoming lineages, consistent with the arrival of Siberian ancestry.

For genealogy enthusiasts

For ancestry enthusiasts, this study shows that the Eastern Baltic has been a crossroads of Western and Siberian gene flow since the Bronze Age, linking modern Uralic speakers. It also highlights that some traits we consider Northern European were already present in the Bronze Age.

Abstract

In this study, we compare the genetic ancestry of individuals from two as yet genetically unstudied cultural traditions in Estonia in the context of available modern and ancient datasets: 15 from the Late Bronze Age stone-cist graves (1200–400 BC) (EstBA) and 6 from the Pre-Roman Iron Age tarand cemeteries (800/500 BC–50 AD) (EstIA). We also included 5 Pre-Roman to Roman Iron Age Ingrian (500 BC–450 AD) (IngIA) and 7 Middle Age Estonian (1200–1600 AD) (EstMA) individuals to build a dataset for studying the demographic history of the northern parts of the Eastern Baltic from the earliest layer of Mesolithic to modern times. Our findings are consistent with EstBA receiving gene flow from regions with strong Western hunter-gatherer (WHG) affinities and EstIA from populations related to modern Siberians. The latter inference is in accordance with Y chromosome (chrY) distributions in present day populations of the Eastern Baltic, as well as patterns of autosomal variation in the majority of the westernmost Uralic speakers. This ancestry reached the coasts of the Baltic Sea no later than the mid-first millennium BC; i.e., in the same time window as the diversification of west Uralic (Finnic) languages. Furthermore, phenotypic traits often associated with modern Northern Europeans, like light eyes, hair, and skin, as well as lactose tolerance, can be traced back to the Bronze Age in the Eastern Baltic.

Samples & Data on TheYtree

55samples on site

34Y haplogroup resolved

37archaeological sites

Sample Map

Map tiles by TheYtree · dot size = number of samples

Paternal (Y-DNA) Haplogroups

Haplogroup	Samples
R-PF6162	5
R-M417	5
R-Z283	3
R-M459	3
R-YP4932	2
R-YP343	1
N-CTS6967	1
R-CTS1211	1
N-Z1957	1
N-M46	1
R-S6285	1
J-L283	1

Maternal (mtDNA) Haplogroups

N/A · 11 T1a1b · 3 U4a2b · 3 H1b2 · 3 U5a2a1 · 2 H1c · 2 T2a1b1a1 · 2 H6a1a · 1 J1c2k · 1 U2e2a1 · 1

Sample Highlights More samples →

Sample	Y-DNA	mtDNA	Culture / Period
0LS03	R-M417	U4d1a1	· Middle Ages 1180–1220/1240 AD
0LS10	N-CTS6967	H13a1a1a	· Iron Age 800–530 BC
0LS11	R-Z283	H1c	· Bronze Age 1060–850 BC
IIa	N-L550	H3h1	· Middle Ages 1230–1300 AD
IIf	N-CTS1678	T2b	· Middle Ages 1360–1390 AD
IIg	N-F1206	U4a2b	· Middle Ages 1210–1230/1240 AD
ILS01	R-M417	H11a1	· Middle Ages 1500–1625 AD
IVLS09KT	J-L283	H2a1	· Middle Ages 1570–1600 AD
V10	R-Z283	H1a	· Iron Age 790–430 BC
V12	N-Z1957	I1a1c	· Iron Age 360–40 BC