Arabian Standstill Marks New Phase in Human Migration.
New research suggests that there may have been a previously unknown phase of humanity’s great migration: an “Arabian standstill” of up to 30,000 years in which humans settled in and around the Arabian Peninsula. These humans slowly adapted to life in the region’s colder climate before venturing to Eurasia and beyond. The genetic adaptations involved parts of the genome related to fat storage, nerve development, skin physiology, and tiny hair-like fibers in our airways called cilia. These adaptations share striking functional similarities with those found in humans and other mammals living in the Arctic today.