Ancient mitochondrial diversity reveals population homogeneity in Neolithic Greece and identifies population dynamics along the Danubian expansion axis
In the last decade, ancient DNA (aDNA) studies have provided first insights into the genetic diversity and population structure of hunter-gatherers and early farmers in Europe and southwestern Asia, leading to a better understanding of the process of Neolithisation1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8. These palaeogenomic data imply immigration of Early Neolithic farmers from southwestern Asia to Europe3,9,10 following two major routes: a maritime route along the Mediterranean coastline and a mainland route along the Danube, connecting central Anatolia, Greece, the Balkans and central Europe3,11,12. Although this general pattern of the spread of agriculture, along with its significant demographic and socioeconomic implications, is well established today, little is known regarding regional heterogeneities.
Particularly, the region of present-day Greece at the crossroads of southwestern Asia, the Balkans, and the eastern Mediterranean, played an important role in the Neolithisation of Europe. Farming reached present-day Greece around c. 6,700 BCΕ. The earliest Neolithic sites are found on the island of Crete13,14, in the Peloponnese (Franchthi cave Initial Neolithic strata, 7028–6648 cal BCE15; Alepotrypa Cave, 6220–6030 cal BCE16) central Greece (Sarakenos Cave Initial Νeolithic, 6976–6685 cal BCE17,18) and Macedonia (Mavropigi-Fillotsairi and Paliambela-Kolindrou date to 6700–6600 BCE19,20,21. Available dates for Thessaly, from the sites of Argissa, Gendiki and Sesklo are slightly later at 6500–6400 BCΕ22,23. The newest archaeological findings and radiocarbon dates from northern Greece suggest that initial Neolithisation possibly occurred almost simultaneously on both sides of the Aegean20. From there, the Neolithic dispersal reached the northern Balkans and central Europe following three major routes: (1) the Struma Basin24, (2) Thrace25 and (3) the Black Sea26.
Overall, the Neolithic in Greece spans a period of nearly 4,000 years and comprises four main chronological phases, i.e., Early (6700/6500–6000/5600 BCE), Middle (6000/5600–5400/5300 BCE), Late (5400/5300–4700/4300 BCE), and Final Neolithic (4700/4300–3300/3100 BCE)19,27,28,29. The preceding Mesolithic period starts with the onset of the Holocene but is represented by only few human burials with dates spanning from 8600 to 6500 BCΕ. These findings derive from caves i.e., Franchthi in the Peloponnese, Theopetra in Thessaly, Cyclops Cave on Youra island, Sarakenos cave in Boeοtia15,18,30,31,32,33,34,35,37,38 and open-air sites i.e., Maroulas on the island of Kythnos, 8800–8700 BC35. Lithic technology from the Final Paleolithic site of Ouriakos on Lemnos, an island in the northeastern Aegean (10,500 cal BCΕ36) and Maroulas, a Mesolithic settlement on Kythnos in the southwestern Aegean (8500–6500 BCE37,38) indicate cultural contacts with hunter-gatherers of southwestern Anatolian cave sites of Öküzini, Direkli, and Girmeler respectively39,40. This supports the hypothesis of a coastal movement of hunter-gatherers across southeastern Mediterranean18,41,42,43 in parallel to the rise of sedentary communities in central Anatolia (Așikli, Boncuklu, Pinarbaṣi44,45).
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-022-16745-8
