Tag

Ancient Populations

All articles tagged with #ancient populations

archaeologyanthropology1 year ago

"Neanderthals' Living Spaces Resemble Those of Modern Humans, Study Finds"

A new study analyzing the Riparo Bombrini site in Italy reveals that Neanderthals organized their living spaces in a structured manner similar to modern humans, indicating comparable cognitive capacities. Both populations exhibited distinct high and low-intensity activity zones, suggesting planned occupation of spaces. While similarities in spatial organization were found, differences included fewer artefact clusters in Neanderthal layers and sporadic use of the site. The findings challenge assumptions about Neanderthals and highlight their advanced behavior.

archaeologyanthropology1 year ago

"DNA Analysis Suggests Scandinavia's First Farmers Slaughtered Hunter-Gatherers"

A new study from Lund University in Sweden, published in Nature, suggests that the arrival of the first farmers in Scandinavia 5,900 years ago led to the rapid extinction of the hunter-gatherer population within a few generations, contrary to previous beliefs. DNA analysis of skeletal remains indicates two major population turnovers in Denmark over the past 7,300 years, with the first occurring when a farmer population displaced the hunter-gatherers, possibly through violence and the introduction of new pathogens from livestock. A second turnover occurred about 4,850 years ago when people with genetic roots in Yamnaya, originating from southern Russia, replaced the previous farmer population. The study sheds new light on historical migration flows and provides insights into the development of certain diseases.