Genomic History of Neolithic to Bronze Age Anatolia, Northern Levant, and Southern Caucasus

AI interpretationAI-generated

Ancient DNA reveals how Near Eastern populations mixed, replaced, and moved from Neolithic to Bronze Age.

This study analyzed genomes from 110 ancient individuals across Anatolia, the Northern Levant, and the Southern Caucasus, spanning the Late Neolithic to Late Bronze Age. It shows that early populations formed a genetic cline through Neolithic admixture. Later, the Northern Levant experienced a major gene pool replacement, while other regions remained more stable with only brief gene flow. A unique individual in the Late Bronze Age also hints at long-distance mobility in increasingly connected societies.

• 6th millennium BCE North/Central Anatolia and Southern Caucasus shared mixed ancestry on a Neolithic genetic cline between Western Anatolia and Southern Caucasus/Zagros.
• Over half of the Northern Levantine gene pool was replaced during the Late Chalcolithic and/or Early Bronze Age.
• The rest of Anatolia and the Southern Caucasus showed genetic continuity with only transient gene flow, plus a genetically distinct Late Bronze Age individual in the Northern Levant.

Sample interpretation

The dataset includes 110 ancient individuals, with 49 resolved Y-chromosome lineages. The largest cultural groups are Late Chalcolithic-Early Bronze Age (37) and Middle-Late Bronze Age (28). Y-haplogroups are diverse, with small counts like H-Y19966, H-BY4105, J-CTS11741, and G-FGC5089. Mitochondrial DNA is dominated by K1a and K1a3 (5 each), followed by T2c1-T146C!, HV1, and H (3 each). This mix reflects both local continuity and regional interactions.

For genealogy enthusiasts

For ancestry enthusiasts, this study shows the Near East was not a single story: some regions had major population replacement, while others stayed continuous. It highlights how ancient DNA can track both large-scale admixture and smaller-scale mobility, helping you interpret your own deep ancestral connections to Anatolia, the Levant, and the Caucasus.