Tautalus
Regular Member
- Messages
- 585
- Reaction score
- 1,498
- Points
- 93
- Ethnic group
- Portuguese
- Y-DNA haplogroup
- I2-M223 / I-FTB15368
- mtDNA haplogroup
- H6a1b2y
Abstract
Roman writers found the relative empowerment of Celtic women remarkable. In southern Britain, the Late Iron Age Durotriges tribe often buried women with substantial grave goods. Here we analyse 57 ancient genomes from Durotrigian burial sites and find an extended kin group centred around a single maternal lineage, with unrelated (presumably inward migrating) burials being predominantly male. Such a matrilocal pattern is undescribed in European prehistory, but when we compare mitochondrial haplotype variation among European archaeological sites spanning six millennia, British Iron Age cemeteries stand out as having marked reductions in diversity driven by the presence of dominant matrilines. Patterns of haplotype sharing reveal that British Iron Age populations form fine-grained geographical clusters with southern links extending across the channel to the continent. Indeed, whereas most of Britain shows majority genomic continuity from the Early Bronze Age to the Iron Age, this is markedly reduced in a southern coastal core region with persistent cross-channel cultural exchange. This southern core has evidence of population influx in the Middle Bronze Age but also during the Iron Age. This is asynchronous with the rest of the island and points towards a staged, geographically granular absorption of continental influence, possibly including the acquisition of Celtic languages.
Fig.1) mtDNA and Y chromosome haplogroup frequencies for individuals.
Roman writers found the relative empowerment of Celtic women remarkable. In southern Britain, the Late Iron Age Durotriges tribe often buried women with substantial grave goods. Here we analyse 57 ancient genomes from Durotrigian burial sites and find an extended kin group centred around a single maternal lineage, with unrelated (presumably inward migrating) burials being predominantly male. Such a matrilocal pattern is undescribed in European prehistory, but when we compare mitochondrial haplotype variation among European archaeological sites spanning six millennia, British Iron Age cemeteries stand out as having marked reductions in diversity driven by the presence of dominant matrilines. Patterns of haplotype sharing reveal that British Iron Age populations form fine-grained geographical clusters with southern links extending across the channel to the continent. Indeed, whereas most of Britain shows majority genomic continuity from the Early Bronze Age to the Iron Age, this is markedly reduced in a southern coastal core region with persistent cross-channel cultural exchange. This southern core has evidence of population influx in the Middle Bronze Age but also during the Iron Age. This is asynchronous with the rest of the island and points towards a staged, geographically granular absorption of continental influence, possibly including the acquisition of Celtic languages.
Continental influx and pervasive matrilocality in Iron Age Britain - Nature
An analysis of ancient mitochondrial and nuclear DNA shows evidence of matrilocal communities in Iron Age Britain.www.nature.com
Fig.1) mtDNA and Y chromosome haplogroup frequencies for individuals.
| Sample | Macro-clade | ISOGG Haplogroup (Yfull informed) | YFull Clade | Yfull Clade Terminal Mutation(s) | Piechart (Figure 1) Grouping |
| WBK102 | R-M269? | R(*1b1a1b) | - | - | Not included (low resolution) |
| WBK32 | R-M269 | R1b1a1b | - | - | Not included (no relatives) |
| WBK104 | R-M269 | R1b1a1b | - | - | Not included (no relatives) |
| WBK193 | R-M269 | R1b1a1b | - | - | Not included (no relatives) |
| WBK27 | R-M269 | R1b1a1b(*1a1a2c1a) | - | - | Not included (no relatives) |
| WBK107 | R-M269 | R1b1a1b1 | - | - | Not included (low resolution) |
| WBK10 | R-M269 | R1b1a1b1a1(*a) | - | - | Not included (no relatives) |
| WBK36 | R-M269 | R1b1a1b1a1a2(*a2) | xR-L21,xR-Y24530,xR-L617; xR-Y14529 | - | Not included (low resolution) |
| WBK17 | R-M269 | R1b1a1b1a1a | xR-L21,xR-Y24530,xR-L617; xR-Y14529;xZ42 | - | Not included (low resolution) |
| WBK192 | R-M269 | R1b1a1b1a(*1) | xR-L21,xR-Y24530,xR-L617 | - | Not included (low resolution) |
| WBK08 | R-L21 | R1b1a1b1a1a2c1a1e | R-Z251 | Z251 | Not included (no relatives) |
| WBK43 | R-L21 | R1b1a1b1a1a2c1a1e | R-Y5833 | Y5833;BY3060 | Not included (no relatives) |
| WBK12 | R-L21 | R1b1a1b1a1a2c1a1i | R-S1051 | S1051,FGC9655,FGC9657,FGC9658,FGC9659 | R-L21-S1051 |
| WBK20 | R-L21 | R1b1a1b1a1a2c1a1i | R-S1051 | FGC9655,FGC9657,FGC9659,FGC17865 | R-L21-S1051 |
| WBK106 | R-L21 | R1b1a1b1a1a2c1a3 | R-A9871 | A9871;BY9001 | R-L21-A9871 |
| WBK29 | R-L21 | R1b1a1b1a1a2c1a4b2c1 | R-Z2186 | Z2186 | R-L21-Z2186 |
| WBK05 | R-L21 | R1b1a1b1a1a2c1a4b2c1a | R-Z2183 | L1066 | R-L21-Z2186 |
| WBK06 | R-L21 | R1b1a1b1a1a2c1a4b2c1a | R-Z2183 | L1066 | R-L21-Z2186 |
| WBK41 | R-L21 | R1b1a1b1a1a2c1a4d | R-Y16233 | MC14;FGC42666 | Not included (no relatives) |
| WBK18 | R-L21 | R1b1a1b1a1a2c1a6 | R-BY7804 | BY7804;BY705;BY11575 | R-L21-BY7804 |
| WBK30 | R-L21 | R1b1a1b1a1a2c1b1 | R-CTS6919 | CTS6919;A91;FT14123 | R-L21-CTS6919 |
| WBK191 | R-L21 | R1b1a1b1a1a2c1b1 | R-CTS6919 | CTS6919;Y5306 | Not included (no relatives) |
| WBK103 | R-DF27 | R1b1a1b1a1a2a | R-Y14529 | Y14530;FT8789;position21368487 | R-DF27-Y14529 |
| WBK23 | R-DF27 | R1b1a1b1a1a2a2a | R-L617 | L617;FGC14936;BY31967;BY31968;FGC14934 | R-DF27-L617 |
| WBK105 | R-DF27 | R1b1a1b1a1a2a | R-DF27; xR-L617; xR-Y14529 | DF27 (xL21,xZ42,xL617,xY14529) | R-DF27-xL617-xY14529 |
| WBK33 | R-U152 | R1b1a1b1a1a2b3 | R-Z42 | Z42 | R-Z42 |
| WBK39 | R-U152 | R1b1a1b1a1a2b3 | R-Z42 | Deduced from 1d male relative WBK33 | R-Z42 |
| WBK13 | R-U152 | R1b1a1b1a1a2b1 | R-Y24530 | Y24606;Y63081;Y24605;FT86728;FT5385;FT6628 | Not included (no relatives) |
| WBK24 | R-PF7589 | R1b1a1b1a2a | R-S1141 | S1141;Y11820 | Not included (no relatives) |
| WBK02 | G-Z725 (5600, 4300) | G2a2b2a1a1b1a1a2 | G-Z726 | Z6382 | G-Z725-Z726 |
| WBK195 | G-Z725 (5600, 4300) | G2a2b2a1a1b1a1a2a | G-CTS4803 | Z3441 | G-Z725-Z726 |
| WBK03 | I-L460 (21300,21300) | I2a1a1a1a1a1a(*1) | I-Z105 | PF4194 | I-L460-Z105 |
| WBK07 | I-L460 (21300,21300) | I2a1b1a1a1b1a~ | I-Y3684 | Y23433,Y6020,Y3716,Y6026,Y3714,Y6025,Y3708,Y3706 | Not included (no relatives) |
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