A genomic snapshot of demographic and cultural dynamism in Upper Mesopotamia during the Neolithic Transition

2022-11-04
ALTINIŞIK, NEFİZE EZGİ
Kazanci, Duygu Deniz
Aydoǧan, Ayça
GEMİCİ, HASAN CAN
ERDAL, ÖMÜR DİLEK
SARIALTUN, SAVAŞ
VURAL, KIVILCIM BAŞAK
KOPTEKİN, DİLEK
GÜRÜN, KANAT
Saǧlican, Ekin
Fernandes, Daniel
Çakan, Gökhan
Koruyucu, Meliha Melis
Lagerholm, Vendela Kempe
Karamurat, Cansu
Özkan, Mustafa
Kilinç, Gülşah Merve
Sevkar, Arda
Sürer, Elif
Götherström, Anders
Atakuman, Çiğdem
Erdal, Yilmaz Selim
Özer, Füsun
Özdoǧan, Asli Erim
Somel, Mehmet
Upper Mesopotamia played a key role in the Neolithic Transition in Southwest Asia through marked innovations in symbolism, technology, and diet. We present 13 ancient genomes (c. 8500 to 7500 cal BCE) from Pre-Pottery Neolithic Çayönü in the Tigris basin together with bioarchaeological and material culture data. Our findings reveal that Çayönü was a genetically diverse population, carrying mixed ancestry from western and eastern Fertile Crescent, and that the community received immigrants. Our results further suggest that the community was organized along biological family lines. We document bodily interventions such as head shaping and cauterization among the individuals examined, reflecting Çayönü's cultural ingenuity. Last, we identify Upper Mesopotamia as the likely source of eastern gene flow into Neolithic Anatolia, in line with material culture evidence. We hypothesize that Upper Mesopotamia's cultural dynamism during the Neolithic Transition was the product not only of its fertile lands but also of its interregional demographic connections.
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Citation Formats
N. E. ALTINIŞIK et al., “A genomic snapshot of demographic and cultural dynamism in Upper Mesopotamia during the Neolithic Transition,” Science Advances, vol. 8, no. 44, pp. 0–0, 2022, Accessed: 00, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?partnerID=HzOxMe3b&scp=85141889925&origin=inward.