Scientists analyzed DNA from 136 ancient individuals that lived in the Balkans during the first millennium CE.
Studying the DNA of ancient individuals or artifacts provides valuable insights into the origins and lifestyles of early humans. When examined alongside historical and archaeological records, ancient DNA can offer fresh perspectives on more recent historical periods, such as the era of the Roman Empire.
A team of scientists conducted a collaborative study on the ancestry of individuals who lived in the Balkans during the time of the Roman Empire. They utilized ancient DNA analysis to gather their findings. Their findings have been published in the prestigious scientific journal, Cell.
A historical analysis of the Balkans and its impact on the decline of the Roman Empire
A team of researchers conducted a thorough analysis of DNA samples taken from 136 individuals who lived in 20 different locations across the Balkans during the first millennium CE. According to Iñigo Olalde, a population geneticist at the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU) and the study’s first author, this region was once a distant frontier of the Roman Empire. This historical context adds an intriguing element to the study, as it provides an opportunity to examine the interactions between people from within and outside the Empire. By analyzing this region, researchers can gain insights into the process of globalization.
Ancient DNA can give a lot of insight into historical periods, especially for regions where historical sources are scarce or when we don’t know whether sources are biased or not,” highlights Olalde. He emphasizes that many historical records from the Balkans are biased towards the Roman perspective, as the Slavic people did not have a writing system during that time.
Lack of genetic evidence from the Iron Age Italian heritage
Ancient DNA has been examined from burial sites in various Roman urban centers, as well as smaller settlements and military outposts. The researchers focused their analyses on three specific time periods: 1–250 CE, during the peak of the Roman empire, 250–550 CE – the late Imperial period – and 550–1000 CE, following the collapse of the Western Empire. Working closely with local historians and archeologists, the researchers meticulously recorded the burial style for each person, along with any artifacts discovered within the tomb. They utilized radiocarbon dating to verify the age of 38 individuals, generating isotopic data that could offer valuable insights into their diets.
Surprisingly, the researchers discovered that individuals of Italian descent made a minimal contribution to the Balkan populations during the peak of the Roman Empire. “The prevalence of cremation burials in the earliest centuries could bias the
sample, but even after the transition to inhumation burial around the 2nd century, ancestry contributions from populations of Italian descent are not detectable,” the authors state. Instead, it was found that individuals from Western Anatolia, a different region within the Roman Empire, relocated to the Balkans during this timeframe.
Genetic evidence reveals the migration of individuals into the Balkans, both from within and outside the Roman Empire. A 16-year-old male, discovered in a necropolis within a bustling Roman city, has been determined to have East African heritage. The authors describe that the individual of East African ancestry was buried with an oil lamp depicting Jupiter-related eagle iconography, which is an uncommon discovery in Viminacium graves. According to the analysis of tooth roots, it was found that his dietary habits during childhood were quite different from others. The elevated δ 15N and δ 13C values suggest that he probably consumed marine protein sources.
Source: Cell magazine
According to the researchers, the male likely grew up in East Africa. They speculate that his life may have included various roles such as a soldier, slave, merchant, or migrant. Regardless of his background, his journey was a lengthy one that ultimately led to his death during adolescence on the northern frontiers of the Roman Empire.
Diverse migrants from Northern Europe and the Pontic-Kazakh steppe were discovered during the late Imperial period. “According to Professor David Reich, a senior author and population geneticist at Harvard University, it was observed that the central/northern European and Sarmatian-Scythian ancestries often merged together. This finding suggests that these groups were likely multi-ethnic confederations of migrating people.”
There is evidence suggesting that a significant number of people migrated from Eastern Europe following the decline of the Western Roman Empire. This is supported by the genetic analysis of remains from that period, which show similarities to the genetic makeup of Eastern European populations today.
“There have been debates about how impactful these migrations were and to what extent the spread of Slavic language was largely through cultural influences or movements of people, but our study shows that these migrations had a profound demographic effect” states Reich. Most of the Balkans’ population today can trace more than half of their ancestry back to the Slavic migrations. Surprisingly, even in countries like Greece where Slavic languages are not spoken today, about a third of the population still has Slavic ancestry.
Advancements in ancient DNA sequencing techniques are paving the way for researchers to embark on another study, utilizing these sophisticated methods. “We are now able to sequence hundreds of individuals from the same site, so we can go to another level of resolution and start to understand more about the social interactions and kinship between the different individuals,” concludes Olalde.
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In a recent study, researchers obtained genetic samples from 37 Serb males who were not related to each other. The individuals were from various regions including Serbia, Montenegro, Croatia, North Macedonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Serbia (n=19), Montenegro (n=7), Croatia (n=5), North Macedonia (n=1) and Bosnia and Herzegovina (n=5).
Individuals from Serbia were chosen based on the following criteria:
1) Serbs residing in the territories of former Yugoslavia, where they have a historical presence.
2) Individuals who speak the Serbo-Croatian language.
3) Belonging to families with a history of Orthodox religion.
4) Serb families continue to honor and celebrate their patron saint, a cherished cultural tradition that is deeply ingrained in their identity.
Reference: Olalde I, Carrión P, Mikic I, et al. A genetic history of the Balkans from
Roman frontier to Slavic migrations. Cell. 2023. doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2023.10.018
