Prehistoric Migrations Research Articles

Simulations of human migration into North America are more sensitive to demography than choice of palaeoclimate model

Reconstructions of the spatiotemporal dynamics of human dispersal away from evolutionary origins in Africa are important for determining the ecological consequences of the arrival of anatomically modern humans in naïve landscapes and interpreting inferences from ancient genomes on indigenous population history. While efforts have been made to independently validate these projections against the archaeological record and contemporary measures of genetic diversity, there has been no comprehensive assessment of how parameter values and choice of palaeoclimate model affect projections of early human migration. We simulated human migration into North America with a process-explicit migration model using simulated palaeoclimate data from two different atmosphere-ocean general circulation models and did a sensitivity analysis on the outputs using a machine learning algorithm. We found that simulated human migration into North America was more sensitive to uncertainty in demographic parameters than choice of atmosphere-ocean general circulation model used for simulating climate-human interactions. Our findings indicate that the accuracy of process-explicit human migration models will be improved with further research on the population dynamics of ancient humans, and that uncertainties in model parameters must be considered in estimates of the timing and rate of human colonisation and their consequence on biodiversity.

Vegetation History and Survival Patterns of the Earliest Village on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau.

The upper Yellow River valley in the northeastern Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau (QTP) is an important corridor for prehistoric migration to the hinterland plateau. However, most studies have focused on the Neolithic Age, with limited evidence for earlier periods. The Shalongka (SLK) site on the northeastern QTP spans the Epipaleolithic to Bronze Age and contains cultural deposits, so provides a good basis for unraveling the evolutionary history of the human-land relationship. In this study, we sampled the 420-cm-thick section T1406E at the SLK site and undertook lithologic stratigraphic description and analysis of grain size, redness, magnetic susceptibility, geochemical elements, pollen and charcoal. Dating control was provided by accelerated mass spectrometry 14C and optically stimulated luminescence methods. Results show that SLK site was affected by the local fluvial sedimentary environment. The absolute dating results of the SLK site have revealed that humans occupied the site during the Epipaleolithic (8.5–7.3 cal ka BP), Yangshao culture (5.9–5.1 ka) and Qijia Culture (4.1–3.9 cal ka BP). Pollen analysis showed that the humans lived in a landscape that was predominated by forest-steppe. Consolidating with multidisciplinary evidence, we learned that Epipaleolithic sites were occupied by microlithic hunter-gatherers and comprised by relatively fixed seasonal central campsites, and their mobility was significantly decreased from the early to late period. Subsequently, farmers of the Yangshao culture migrated from the low elevation (Chinese Loess Plateau) to the upper Yellow River valleys on the QTP and founded the earliest settlement villages (~5.9 ka) on the QTP. People of the Qijia culture adopted diversified survival strategies under the settled lifestyle. In all, we infered that SLK site may play an important role in the communication and integration between different people and cultures.

Early modern human migration into Sulawesi and Island adaptation in Wallacea

ABSTRACTMaritime migration and island adaptation by anatomically modern humans (AMH) are among the most significant current issues in Southeast Asian archaeology and directly related to their behavioural and technological advancement. In the center of this research hotspot are the Wallacean islands, situated between the Pleistocene landmasses of Sunda and Sahul. Two major migration routes have been suggested for the initial maritime migration from Sunda via Wallacea into Sahul, a northern route into the region of New Guinea and a southern route leading into northern Australia. Here, we report the outcomes of new archaeological research in Central Sulawesi, the most likely entry location for the northern route. Based on our latest findings and new C14 dates from Goa Topogaro 2, we discuss the evidence and timeline for the migration of early modern humans into the Wallacean islands and their adaptation to insular environments during the Late Pleistocene.

A genetic history of migration, diversification, and admixture in Asia

L.L. Cavalli-Sforza spearheaded early efforts to study the genetic history of humans, recognizing the importance of sampling diverse populations worldwide. He supported research on human evolutionary genetics in Asia, with research on human dispersal into Asia and genetic distances between present-day East Asians in the late 20th century. Since then, great strides have been made in understanding the genetic history of humans in Asia, through large-scale genomic sequencing of present-day humans and targeted sequencing of DNA from ancient humans. In this review, I survey the genetic prehistory of humans in Asia, based on research using sequence data from humans who lived in Asia as early as 45,000 years ago. Genetic studies comparing present-day Australasians and Asians show that they likely derived from a single dispersal out of Africa, rapidly differentiating into three main lineages: one that persists partially in South Asia, one that is primarily found today in Australasia, and one that is widely represented across Siberia, East Asia, and Southeast Asia. Studies of ancient DNA from human remains in Asia dating from as far back as 45,000 years has greatly increased our understanding of the population dynamics leading to the current Asian populations. Based on "Jin L, Underhill PA, Doctor V, Davis RW, Shen P, Cavalli-Sforza LL, Oefner PJ. Distribution of haplotypes from a chromosome 21 region distinguishes multiple prehistoric human migrations. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1999;96(7):3796-3800”.

Is there Initial Upper Palaeolithic in Western Tian Shan? Example of an open-air site Katta Sai 2 (Uzbekistan)

The paper presents the results of multidisciplinary studies on the open-air loess site Katta Sai 2 located in the western piedmonts of Tian Shan in Uzbekistan. Two archaeological horizons contain features associated with the Initial Upper Palaeolithic (IUP) - both Levallois and blade/bladelet volumetric technology, together with an Upper Palaeolithic toolkit. The cultural traits observed in Katta Sai 2 might have local roots dating back to MIS 5a and can be found in so-called Obirakhmatian technocomplex determined in several archaeological sites in the region. Thus, the obtained results question the hypothesis of non-local origins of IUP complexes associated with the early modern human migration from the Near East to Mongolia along the piedmonts of Pamir and Tian Shan. Until reliable anthropological and genetic data are obtained, it seems to be too early to conclude about the relationship between modern human migration and the appearance of IUP assemblages, at least across the western parts of Central Asia.

Generalizability of GWA-Identified Genetic Risk Variants for Metabolic Traits to Populations from the Arabian Peninsula

The Arabian Peninsula, located at the nexus of Africa, Europe, and Asia, was implicated in early human migration. The Arab population is characterized by consanguinity and endogamy leading to inbreeding. Global genome-wide association (GWA) studies on metabolic traits under-represent the Arab population. Replicability of GWA-identified association signals in the Arab population has not been satisfactorily explored. It is important to assess how well GWA-identified findings generalize if their clinical interpretations are to benefit the target population. Our recent study from Kuwait, which performed genome-wide imputation and meta-analysis, observed 304 (from 151 genes) of the 4746 GWA-identified metabolic risk variants replicable in the Arab population. A recent large GWA study from Qatar found replication of 30 GWA-identified lipid risk variants. These complementing studies from the Peninsula increase the confidence in generalizing metabolic risk loci to the Arab population. However, both the studies reported a low extent of transferability. In this review, we examine the observed low transferability in the context of differences in environment, genetic correlations (allele frequencies, linkage disequilibrium, effect sizes, and heritability), and phenotype variance. We emphasize the need for large-scale GWA studies on deeply phenotyped cohorts of at least 20,000 Arab individuals. The review further presents GWA-identified metabolic risk variants generalizable to the Arab population.

‘Moving South’: Late Pleistocene Plant Exploitation and the Importance of Palm in the Colombian Amazon

The role of plants in early human migrations across the globe has received little attention compared to big game hunting. Tropical forests in particular have been seen as a barrier for Late Pleistocene human dispersals due to perceived difficulties in obtaining sufficient subsistence resources. Archaeobotanical data from the Cerro Azul rock outcrop in the Colombian Amazon details Late Pleistocene plant exploitation providing insight into early human subsistence in the tropical forest. The dominance of palm taxa in the assemblage, dating from 12.5 ka BP, allows us to speculate on processes of ecological knowledge transfer and the identification of edible resources in a novel environment. Following the hypothesis of Martin Jones from his 2009 work, “Moving North: archaeobotanical evidence for plant diet in Middle and Upper Paleolithic Europe”, we contend that the instantly recognizable and economically useful palm family (Arecaceae) provided a “gateway” to the unknown resources of the Amazon forest.

Late Pleistocene climate induced changes in paleo-vegetation in Borneo: Possible implications to human divergence

The impact of changes in vegetation on ancient human colonization and divergence in Southeast Asia is unclear. Here we present a 40 ky history of vegetation evolution in Borneo, which has been recognized as one of the hubs for early human migration, based on a pollen sequence from the southern South China Sea. Our pollen record shows that the succession of vegetation in Borneo responded to orbital climate changes as well as to the millennial-scale cold events in boreal high-latitudes in the form of upper montane taxa expansion. We find that the altitude structure of vegetation in Borneo changed from a clear altitudinal zonation of upper montane, lower montane, and lowland forests during MIS 3 to one that was dominated by upper montane forests during the last glacial maximum (MIS 2). Five expansions of upper montane forests during the past 40 ky, indicating the decrease of temperature, apparently correspond to five cold events in the northern high latitudes, with a lag of 500–1000 years. To test the influence of the changes in Borneo's vegetation on human distribution we compare our palynological data with archaeological records and the molecular evolution of ancient human genotype in Southeast Asian islands. The expansion of upper montane forests and the accompanying contraction of lowland forests in Borneo during the last glacial maximum and the last deglaciation may have promoted the divergence of human genotype. Our study offers a new perspective on the possible impact of vegetation succession on the colonization of Homo sapiens on Southeast Asian islands.

Reflectance spectroscopy in combination with cluster analysis as tools for identifying the provenance of Neolithic flint artefacts

The provenance of flint artefacts found in archaeological excavations is very important for archaeologists to better understand artefact displacement, exchange networks, mobility patterns, prehistoric migrations and various cultural processes such as commerce, procurement strategies, territorial boundaries, etc. Reflectance Spectroscopy is an analytical technique that measures the radiation reflected by any type of surface, as it is sensitive to electronic and vibrational processes, both at the atomic and molecular level, which results in spectral signatures and absorption bands of the material. In this study the flint material of 16 quarries with evident signs of having been used to manufacture artefacts during the Neolithic period have been characterized by means of their spectral signatures and used to identify the origin of 5 flint blades found in a dolmen close to one of the quarries. The application of cluster analysis to compare the spectral signatures of both the quarries and the archaeological blades has ruled out one of them as not being sourced from the studied quarries, as well as assigning a very probable origin to the other four. Interestingly, none of the blades studied have been sourced to the nearest quarry, as one might presume. The results of this study confirm that reflectance spectroscopy combined with the multivariate statistical analysis could provide a powerful tool for determining the origin of flint artefacts which have been deposited in museums and other institutions.

HAQ and AQ-MPYS Modulate Fatty Acid Metabolism and Immune Tolerance at Homoeostasis

MPYS/STING senses cyclic dinucleotides (CDNs) and promotes inflammation. During out-of-Africa early human migration, common human MPYS alleles R71H-G230A-R293Q (HAQ) replaced G230A-R293Q (AQ) suggesting a strong natural selection on human MPYS. Using HAQ and AQ knock-in mice, we found that HAQ mice had more fat mass than the AQ mice on a chow diet supporting the thrifty gene hypothesis. Mechanistically, adult AQ or MPYS-/- mice had more epididymal adipose tissue (eWAT) suppressive regulatory T cells and M2-macrophages than HAQ or WT mice at the steady-state. Conditional knockout mice and adoptive cell transfer indicated a cell-intrinsic control of fatty acid metabolism and immune tolerance by MPYS. Unlike the HAQ mice, which are defective in CDNs responses, the AQ mice retain CDNs responses. Finally, MPYS interacts with fatty acid metabolites acyl-CoA, lysophosphatidic acid, phosphatidic acid, and diglyceride at the steady-state. MPYS/STING ligand ADU-S100 inhibited lipogenesis in white adipocytes. Together, we propose that HAQ has a pro-lipogenesis function that is more important than the CDNs sensing function of AQ in early humans revealing a fundamental function of human MPYS.

Contemporary Distribution, Estimated Age, and Prehistoric Migrations of Old World Monkey Retroviruses.

Old World monkeys (OWM), simians inhabiting Africa and Asia, are currently affected by at least four infectious retroviruses, namely, simian foamy virus (SFV), simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV), simian T-lymphotropic virus (STLV), and simian type D retrovirus (SRV). OWM also show chromosomal evidence of having been infected in the past with four more retroviral species, baboon endogenous virus (BaEV), Papio cynocephalus endogenous virus (PcEV), simian endogenous retrovirus (SERV), and Rhesus endogenous retrovirus-K (RhERV-K/SERV-K1). For some of the viruses, transmission to other primates still occurs, resulting, for instance, in the HIV pandemic. Retroviruses are intimately connected with their host as they are normally spread by close contact. In this review, an attempt to reconstruct the distribution and history of OWM retroviruses will be made. A literature overview of the species infected by any of the eight retroviruses as well as an age estimation of the pathogens will be given. In addition, primate genomes from databases have been re-analyzed for the presence of endogenous retrovirus integrations. Results suggest that some of the oldest retroviruses, SERV and PcEV, have travelled with their hosts to Asia during the Miocene, when a higher global temperature allowed simian expansions. In contrast, younger viruses, such as SIV and SRV, probably due to the lack of a primate continuum between the continents in later times, have been restricted to Africa and Asia, respectively.

Homogeneous Glacial Landscapes Can Have High Local Variability of Strontium Isotope Signatures: Implications for Prehistoric Migration Studies

Increasingly, strontium (Sr) isotopes are used to distinguish locals and migrants in prehistoric studies, by measuring87Sr/86Sr in human remains and comparing these values to the distribution of the bioavailable87Sr/86Sr in the study area, often in surface water. However, it has recently been shown that agricultural lime can have a substantial impact on the87Sr/86Sr ratio and strontium concentration in surface water in areas where soils are low- to non-calcareous. Agricultural lime is rich in strontium with low87Sr/86Sr ratios, such that interpretations of prehistoric migration based on surface waters affected by agricultural lime often overestimate the number of migrants in a given area. However, the impact of agricultural lime was questioned in a new study, which argues that strontium derived from agricultural lime is retained in the topsoil of the fields and therefore do not contaminate the surface water. In the present study and in a companion study in this volume, we show that strontium derived from agricultural lime is highly mobile in soils, and so contaminate surface waters extensively. We also show that the87Sr/86Sr ratios are consistently higher in waters from “pristine areas” (where no agricultural lime has been applied within a distance of 150 m from the sample locality) than in water from farmland, thus confirming that it is of vital importance for accurate mapping of isoscapes to avoid sampling waters contaminated by agricultural lime. Our new measurements of87Sr/86Sr ratios in central Jutland, Denmark, raise the highest measured values to 0.7186. High values between 0.7140 and 0.7156 occur repeatedly and it is apparent that nearly all prehistoric human finds in Jutland, previously believed to have journeyed from afar are more likely of local origin. Furthermore, we show that carbonate-rich areas along the coast of southwest Zealand carry high87Sr/86Sr values (0.7112–0.7132), where we would expect low values. This surprising result indicates that nearly all humans buried at the Viking Age site, Trelleborg could well have originated locally, in contrast to past studies, which have suggested that about 50% of the burials were of individuals who came from afar.

The provenance of siliceous rocks from the Kraków-Częstochowa Upland (Poland) used as raw-materials in the manufacture of siliceous artefacts from Central-Eastern Europe; An old problem in new light

One of the siliceous raw-materials used in the manufacture of artefacts and found in archaeological sites in Central-Eastern Europe is the “Jurassic flint from around Kraków” type, the origin of which is believed to be outcrops of Upper Jurassic sediments scattered throughout the southern part of the Kraków-Częstochowa Upland (Southern Poland). Unfortunately, the identification criteria of this siliceous rock remain unclear, which precludes it being distinguished as a separate variety of siliceous raw-material used in the manufacture of prehistoric artefacts.The early-diagenetic siliceous rocks from the Kraków region include chert concretions and bedded cherts which are hosted in particular limestone facies. The comparative analysis of chert concretions and bedded cherts from the southern and the northern parts of the Kraków-Częstochowa Upland clearly demonstrate that the determination of their provenance based upon macroscopic features, microfacial development and/or the results of geochemical analyses is unjustified.The criteria used in the typological classifications of siliceous artefacts from archaeological sites in Central-Eastern Europe are frequently subjective, ambiguous and unrelated to the geological fundamentals. This precludes the association of any variety of raw-material used in the manufacture of artefacts with a particular source locality. Consequently, any speculation concerning prehistoric human migrations that is based upon the raw-material of siliceous artefacts varieties distinguished in such typological classifications are groundless.

House mouse Mus musculus dispersal in East Eurasia inferred from 98 newly determined complete mitochondrial genome sequences

The Eurasian house mouse Mus musculus is useful for tracing prehistorical human movement related to the spread of farming. We determined whole mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequences (ca. 16,000 bp) of 98 wild-derived individuals of two subspecies, M. m. musculus (MUS) and M. m. castaneus (CAS). We revealed directional dispersals reaching as far as the Japanese Archipelago from their homelands. Our phylogenetic analysis indicated that the eastward movement of MUS was characterised by five step-wise regional extension events: (1) broad spatial expansion into eastern Europe and the western part of western China, (2) dispersal to the eastern part of western China, (3) dispersal to northern China, (4) dispersal to the Korean Peninsula and (5) colonisation and expansion in the Japanese Archipelago. These events were estimated to have occurred during the last 2000–18,000 years. The dispersal of CAS was characterised by three events: initial divergences (ca. 7000–9000 years ago) of haplogroups in northernmost China and the eastern coast of India, followed by two population expansion events that likely originated from the Yangtze River basin to broad areas of South and Southeast Asia, including Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Indonesia (ca. 4000–6000 years ago) and to Yunnan, southern China and the Japanese Archipelago (ca. 2000–3500). This study provides a solid framework for the spatiotemporal movement of the human-associated organisms in Holocene Eastern Eurasia using whole mtDNA sequences, reliable evolutionary rates and accurate branching patterns. The information obtained here contributes to the analysis of a variety of animals and plants associated with prehistoric human migration.

Hot debate: Identifying heat treatment in Australian archaeology using science and modern indigenous knowledge

The deliberate heat treatment of lithic material for stone tools is a critical and hotly debated subject in human evolution and archaeology, representing a major technological innovation. This engineering of material has proven hard to demonstrate with archaeological data, although experimental data back early records from southern Africa. There is scant evidence of heat treatment from records representing early modern human migrations out of Africa and along the migration routes through Sunda to Sahul. The long cultural sequences found in Australian archaeology, have rarely been assessed for heat treatment, although it was practised in recent times by Indigenous peoples. Using modern Indigenous knowledge and a comprehensive review of the latest heat treatment identification methods, we assess a Pleistocene to Holocene record spanning some 47,000 years, for signals of deliberate heat treatment. We find unambiguous evidence for heat treatment to occur only in the mid to late Holocene, corresponding to a time of significant change. We discuss these findings concerning stone tool technology as an adaptive response to changing environmental, economic and social contexts. Our unique approach offers global relevance to the study of deliberate heat treatment in prehistory and engages with global debates on technological organization theory.

OSL chronology of the Liena archeological site in the Yarlung Tsangpo valley throws new light on human occupation of the Tibetan Plateau

Recent environmental archeological evidence has started to throw light on both the timing and processes of human colonization of the Tibetan Plateau (TP). Yarlung Tsangpo (YT) valley, a very important region of the southern TP for occupation, is home to not only modern Tibetans but also their ancestors. However, a lack of suitable sedimentary strata has limited the establishment of a secure chronology. Here, we report on a new stratigraphic section with prehistoric pottery and cultural layers that was discovered on a terrace of the YT at Liena, in Nyingchi County. The cultural layers are overlain by, and bedded within, eolian and lacustrine sediments. We used the quartz Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) method to date 11 samples and performed geochemical analysis on 100 samples to derive paleoenvironmental indicators. The OSL analysis gave an age of 4.3 ka BP for the cultural layer, which makes it the earliest human activity in the YT valley of Nyingchi to date. In addition, commencement of eolian deposition was dated to at least 8.3 ka, coinciding with the Holocene warm period. We discuss possible causal factors for human occupation in the valley and show that climatic changes played a crucial role in prehistoric human migration c. 8.3–4.3 ka BP. Before the early Holocene, most of the river terraces in the valley were being actively reworked by rivers or covered by lakes. So there were no suitable places for occupation by ancient populations. With the recession of dammed lakes during the Holocene warm period, the relatively flat and wide valley terraces, blanketed with rich eolian deposits (such as sandy loess), provided an attractive place for ancient people engaged in nomadic and even agricultural activities. Hence, the climate conditions of the Holocene warm period drove the environmental changes that provided favorable conditions for ancient human activities.

An Oceanographic Perspective on Early Human Migrations to the Americas

An Oceanographic Perspective on Early Human Migrations to the Americas

Recent Out-of-Africa Migration of Human Herpes Simplex Viruses.

Herpes simplex virus types 1 and 2 (HSV-1 and HSV-2) are ubiquitous human pathogens. Both viruses evolved from simplex viruses infecting African primates and they are thus thought to have left Africa during early human migrations. We analyzed the population structure of HSV-1 and HSV-2 circulating strains. Results indicated that HSV-1 populations have limited geographic structure and the most evident clustering by geography is likely due to recent bottlenecks. For HSV-2, the only level of population structure is accounted for by the so-called "worldwide" and "African" lineages. Analysis of ancestry components and nucleotide diversity, however, did not support the view that the worldwide lineage followed early humans during out-of-Africa dispersal. Although phylogeographic analysis confirmed an African origin for both viruses, molecular dating with a method that corrects for the time-dependent rate phenomenon indicated that HSV-1 and HSV-2 migrated from Africa in relatively recent times. In particular, we estimated that the HSV-2 worldwide lineage left the continent in the 18th century, which corresponds to the height of the transatlantic slave trade, possibly explaining the high prevalence of HSV-2 in the Americas (second highest after Africa). The limited geographic clustering of HSV-1 makes it difficult to date its exit from Africa. The split between the basal clade, containing mostly African sequences, and all other strains was dated at ∼5,000 years ago. Our data do not imply that herpes simplex viruses did not infect early humans but show that the worldwide distribution of circulating strains is the result of relatively recent events.

A younger "earliest human migration" to Southeast Asia.

New dating suggests that hominids arrived at the Sangiran dome later than had been thought

Нижний палеолит Казахстана: морфо-технологический и типологический аспект изучения двусторонне обработанных изделий на примере бифасов Приаралья и Мугалжарских гор

Situated at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, actual Kazakhstan represents a strong scientific interest in understanding of the early human migrations “Out-of-Africa” to the Far East. During the whole Pleistocene, the arid conditions of this geographic area hindered the sediment accumulative deposits and the formation of stratified Paleolithic sites. Only studies of lithic industries from the sites with a surface cultural horizon seem possible. These analyses are based on a deflation degree of artefacts and on their technological and typological study followed by a comparison with other lithic collections from stratified and dated sites from surrounding grounds. This paper presents the morphological, technological and typological study of handaxes from the surface sites discovered in the Mugalzhar mountains and in the Aral Sea region. The goal of the study is to reconstitute the operational procedure (chaîne opératoire) in handaxe manufacture with the following comparison study between the handaxe samples. The lithic collection (20 artifacts) is housed at the A. Kh. Margulan Institute of Archaeology (Almaty, Kazakhstan). The analysis of data allows seeing the stark technological difference in the handaxe manufacture from the Mugalzhary mountains and from the Aral Sea region sites. As regards the typological analysis, the great majority of these handaxes from the Mugalzhary sites are characterized by fairly elongated and massive forms. Only on is of discoidal morphology and rather thin in thickness. The other are represented by one amygdaloidal, seven ovate, two lanceolate and two naviform (spear-shaped) handaxes. Any cordiform or triangular handanxes are not determined. Between the handaxes from the Aral Sea region sites, the majority is caracterised by elongated and rather thickened forms. Only one cordiform handaxe from the sample is thin. The elongated handaxes are represented by one amygdaloidal and by three lanceolate objects. It is expected that the handaxes from the Mugalzhary sites belong to more ancient period than the collection from the Aral Sea region sites. The predominance of both lanceolate handaxes and limandes is a typical dance of the Acheulean period, in particular, of its middle phase. The knapping technology used for handaxe manufacturing processes from the Aral Sea region sites and their typology (cordiform handaxes) are representative of the Middle Paleolithic.