Uncovering the Influence of Xiongnu Princesses on Mongolian Traditions through Ancient DNA Analysis.
A new study reveals that elite princesses played a crucial role in the Xiongnu nomadic tribe, which seeped into the Mongol tradition a full thousand years later. The Xiongnu built a multiethnic empire on the Mongolian steppe that was connected by trade to Rome, Egypt, and Imperial China. The study found that high status Xiongnu burials and elite grave goods were disproportionately associated with women, corroborating textual and archaeological evidence that Xiongnu women played especially prominent political roles in the expansion and integration of new territories along the empire's frontier.