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The Hindu
2 days ago
- Science
- The Hindu
Sinhalese migrated from South India, mixed heavily with Adivasi post-migration, genome study finds
Analyses of whole-genome sequence data of urban Sinhalese and two indigenous Adivasi clans in Sri Lanka, which live in geographically separated regions in the country, shed light on the migratory history of these populations and their genetic relationship to each other and to many Indian populations. The study published recently in the journal Current Biology found that Sinhalese and Adivasi are genetically closest to each other and to South Indians, but, at a regional and fine-scale level, the two Adivasi clans are genetically distinct. For the study, whole genomes of 35 urban Sinhalese individuals and 19 individuals from two indigenous Adivasi clans were sequenced. Of the 19 genomes of Adivasi clans that were sequenced, five were from Interior Adivasi and 14 were from Coastal Adivasi. The sampling and data generation became possible due to the outreach efforts of Sri Lankan collaborator, Dr. Ruwandi Ranasinghe from the University of Colombo. In addition, the whole genome data of 35 Sri Lankan Tamils sampled in the UK, which were already sequenced as part of the 1,000 Genomes Project, were included in the analyses. Sinhalese chronicles and previous genetic studies had proposed that Sinhalese had migrated from northern or northwest India around 500 BCE, though their exact origins and migratory history are still debated. That Sinhalese speak an Indo-European language, Sinhala, whose present-day distribution lies primarily in northern India further supports the idea of their migration from northern India. But the current study contradicts the findings of the previous studies from a genetic perspective. 'The genetic ancestries and their proportions in the Adivasi and Sinhalese are most similar to Dravidian speaking populations who live in Southern India today,' says Dr. Niraj Rai from Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences (BSIP), Lucknow and one of the corresponding authors of the paper. Also Read | Genome study: 180 million genetic variants found in 9,772 individuals 'Even among South Indian populations, we find that the Sinhalese are genetically closest to those communities that have higher proportions of the so-called ASI or Ancestral South Indian ancestry. In contrast to many North Indians, these populations generally have lower levels of a genetic ancestry related to ancient groups from the Eurasian Steppe, proposed to have carried Indo-European languages into South Asia and that are today spoken widely in northern regions of India,' says Dr. Maanasa Raghavan, Assistant Professor at the University of Chicago and a corresponding author of the study. But how does one reconcile the fact that Sinhalese speak a language that is classified as Indo-European, which today is spoken mostly in North India? The authors explain that genes do not reflect linguistic affinities, and biological and cultural evolution can have different trajectories. They speculate that this genetic-linguistic discordance may have been caused by the Sinhalese population having migrated from somewhere in North India geographically, but genetically speaking, the migration may have come from a group that resembles more South Indian Dravidian speakers today. An alternative explanation is that a small group of Sinhalese, perhaps representing the elite, might have migrated to Sri Lanka and transmitted the language but not genes. 'If the Sinhalese were derived from a North Indian genetic cluster with higher Steppe-related ancestry, mixing had to have happened with ASI populations to dilute their genetic ancestries and pull them genetically closer to South Indian populations in our analyses. More anthropological studies are needed to fully understand these differing genetic and cultural affinities of the Sinhalese,' Dr. Raghavan says. The time of formation of the Sinhalese genetic pool was dated in the study to about 3,000 years ago, falling within the range of dates displayed broadly by Indian and other Sri Lankan populations and around the time of the proposed migration date of the Sinhalese in the chronicles (500 BCE). 'The date our analysis reveals is interesting. It implies that the Sinhalese ancestors migrated to Sri Lanka fairly close in time to the dynamic genetic mixing events that were occurring about 2,000-4,000 years ago in India that created the ANI-ASI genetic spectrum we see in today's populations,' Dr. Rai explains. Sinhalese chronicles also say that when Sinhalese migrated from India to Sri Lanka about 3,000 years ago, Adivasi were already existing in Sri Lanka. This is also supported by anthropological studies that propose that Adivasi are descended from early hunter-gatherers in the region. The Adivasi are, in fact, traditionally hunter-gatherers and the Indigenous peoples of Sri Lanka. 'At a broad scale, Adivasi today look genetically very similar to the Sinhalese and Sri Lankan Tamil. This must mean that the Sinhalese, Sri Lankan Tamils, or other groups migrating from South India must have met the Adivasi, mixed with them heavily, and contributed to what is the present-day genetic structure of the Adivasi,' Dr. Raghavan says. Sinhalese and Adivasi are close to each other and share broad-level genetic similarities, but on a fine-scale demographic resolution, the study found that the two Adivasi clans are a bit different from the Sinhalese. The Adivasi have slightly higher levels of ancient hunter-gatherer ancestry than the Sinhalese and Sri Lankan Tamils, and have maintained smaller population sizes over the course of their history, both of which support their traditional hunting and gathering lifestyle. The Adivasi genomes also display signatures of endogamy, which appear as long stretches of DNA inherited from a common ancestor. The study further reports that a consequence of the low population size and endogamy is that the genetic diversity in the Adivasi is lower than the urban populations, which may have an impact on their health and disease status. While both Adivasi clans maintained lower population sizes compared to the Sinhalese and Sri Lankan Tamils, the authors found that the Interior Adivasi clan seemed to have undergone a stronger reduction in their population size compared to the Coastal Adivasi, leading to a greater loss of their genetic diversity. 'We find the two Adivasi clans — the Coastal Adivasi and the Interior Adivasi — also have some differences in their genetic ancestry arising due to distinct geographic separation between them,' says Dr. Rai. This, according to Dr. Raghavan, indicates that the Interior Adivasi clan must have undergone stronger pressures, perhaps societal or environmental, to keep the population size lower compared to their Coastal counterparts. Explaining how the two Adivasi clans are more similar to each other, but still have genetic differences at a fine scale, she says that this basically means that at some point in time, due to geographic separation, the genetic and lifestyle attributes of the two clans started to drift apart. In fact, the fragmented nature of the Adivasi clans also impacted the study sampling strategy. While 35 individuals representing the two large groups — Sinhalese and Sri Lankan Tamils — have been included in the analyses, the numbers for the two Adivasi populations are small — five for interior Adivasi and 14 for coastal Adivasi. Though it would be ideal to keep matched sample sizes of different populations for genetic analyses, the reason for including only small numbers for the two Adivasi clans was because the Adivasi communities today are very fragmented. 'Historical, anthropological, as well as our genetic results all suggest that these communities live in small sizes and practice endogamy,' says Dr. Raghavan. 'Because of endogamy, a lot of these individuals tend to be quite related to one another. Having really high relatedness in a group impacts the genetic analyses because then everybody's going to look like each other. So that's why our sample sizes were lower for the two Adivasi clans.' Despite the number of individuals representing the two Adivasi clans being small, the researchers were able to recapture the entire population history of these two groups. The study was able to address the questions that the researchers set out to do despite the Adivasi sample sizes being small, says Dr. Raghavan. 'Since every individual's genome is a mosaic of their ancestor's genomes, even a small number of individuals can represent their population's genetic histories. Moreover, we didn't find any genetic outliers within the Adivasi clans. So, all the sampled individuals fit into the model that we propose,' clarifies Dr. Rai. 'This is the first time that high-resolution genome data have been sequenced from multiple populations in Sri Lanka, including the Indigenous Adivasi and urban Sinhalese, to understand the deeply rooted ancestries and their population histories,' says Dr. Rai. Broadly, the study has important implications for how humans moved across South Asia and highlights the high degree of interconnectedness between India and Sri Lanka over millennia.
Hindustan Times
22-06-2025
- Hindustan Times
Salkhan Fossils Park makes it to UNESCO's tentative list of World Heritage Sites
Set amidst idyllic surroundings, Salkhan Fossils Park in Sonbhadra—one of the oldest fossil sites in the world—has been included in UNESCO's tentative list of World Heritage Sites. Detailed information about the park is now made available on the official UNESCO website. This milestone is expected to significantly boost Uttar Pradesh's global tourism profile. Located near Salkhan village, about 15 km from Robertsganj in Sonbhadra, the park has been the focus of dedicated efforts by the tourism department over the past year. (HT ) Following the chief minister's directives, the Uttar Pradesh eco-tourism development board is preparing a comprehensive dossier to support the park's nomination for UNESCO's permanent World Heritage status, said officials. The dossier will soon be submitted to the government of India and officials are optimistic that the park could attain full World Heritage status within the next two years. Tourism director Prakhar Mishra explained that inclusion in the tentative list is the first step in the UNESCO World Heritage nomination process. This is followed by the submission of a detailed dossier and an on-site evaluation by a UNESCO team—typically a year-long process. Mishra confirmed that the dossier for Salkhan Fossils Park is currently being finalised and will soon be forwarded to UNESCO via the central government. 'This recognition will not only bring international acclaim to Uttar Pradesh but also position the state as a major destination for eco-tourism and scientific research,' he said. Principal secretary of tourism, Mukesh Meshram, highlighted that CM Yogi Adityanath has consistently undertaken key initiatives to promote tourism, especially eco-tourism, across the state. One such recent initiative includes the introduction of Vistadome coaches on tourist trains, connecting Katarniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary and Dudhwa Tiger Reserve with scenic rail routes. Located near Salkhan village, about 15 km from Robertsganj in Sonbhadra, the park has been the focus of dedicated efforts by the tourism department over the past year. A key development in this journey was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on June 26, 2024, between the UP eco-tourism development board and the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences, Lucknow. The institute conducted detailed scientific studies of fossil-bearing rocks in the park. These studies revealed the presence of 1.4 billion-year-old stromatolites and algae fossils—some of the earliest known evidence of life on Earth. This scientific foundation played a critical role in the park's nomination to UNESCO.
NDTV
20-06-2025
- Science
- NDTV
24-Million-Year-Old Fossil Unearthed In Assam Reveals Stunning Link To Western Ghats
Scientists have discovered fossilised leaves in Assam's Makum Coalfield, dating back around 24 million years, which have a unique connection to the Western Ghats. A research team from the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences (BSIP) in Lucknow studied the fossil leaves and found they closely resemble modern plants from the Nothopegia genus, according to the findings published in the journal Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology. Researchers stated that Northeast India once provided a perfect home for Nothopegia, but over the course of millions of years, the landscape was altered, owing to monumental forces such as the rise of the Himalayas. The movement of tectonic plates and the subsequent emergence of the mountain range in India's northernmost region led to sweeping changes in temperature, rainfall, and wind patterns. These geological upheavals cooled the northeast, rendering it inhospitable for many tropical plant species, including Nothopegia, which vanished from the region. However, to this day, the species has survived in the climatically stable Western Ghats, making it a living relic of an ancient ecological past. "Fossil evidence from northeast India suggests that the genus once had a much broader range during the late Paleogene, thriving under equable climatic conditions similar to those found in its present habitat in the Western Ghats," the study highlighted. According to a statement by the Ministry of Science and Technology, by using advanced climate tools like the CLAMP method, the scientists found that northeast India had a warm and humid climate during the late Oligocene, akin to the climate in the Western Ghats today. The study shows that extinction and migration due to climate change is not a new phenomenon. It has been happening and shaping our planet's biodiversity for eons. "This fossil discovery is a window into the past that helps us understand the future," said study co-author Dr Harshita Bhatia, highlighting the need to protect biodiversity refuges like the Western Ghats, where ancient lineages continue to persist against the odds. Recent studies predict that more than 60 per cent of tropical terrestrial endemic species may face extinction due to climate change, with the Western Ghats potentially losing all their endemic plants by 2050.
Time of India
19-06-2025
- Science
- Time of India
This 24-million-year-old leaf fossil in Assam has stunned scientists– here's why
In a finding that sheds new light on India's ancient past, scientists have discovered fossilised leaves in Assam's Makum Coalfield that point to a surprising link between northeast India and the Western Ghats. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now These fossils are over 24 million years old and are helping researchers better understand how plants spread and survived through major climate changes across the Indian subcontinent. Ancient leaves tell a story of changing climates A research team from the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences (BSIP) in Lucknow studied the fossil leaves and found they closely resemble modern plants from the Nothopegia genus. Today, these plants grow only in the Western Ghats and are not found in northeast India. What makes this discovery remarkable is that it's the oldest known fossil record of Nothopegia anywhere in the world, dating back to the late Oligocene period. Climate shifts shaped plant migration As stated by the Ministry of Science and Technology, by using advanced climate tools like the CLAMP method, scientists found that northeast India had a warm and humid climate during the late Oligocene, very similar to the climate in the Western Ghats today. These conditions were ideal for tropical plants like Nothopegia to grow. But things changed when the Himalayas began to rise because of tectonic shifts. The region got cooler, and rainfall patterns changed, making it harder for tropical species to survive. As a result, plants like Nothopegia slowly disappeared from the northeast but continued to thrive in the Western Ghats, where the climate stayed more stable. Tracing biodiversity through time As mentioned by the Ministry of Science and Technology, the study, published in the journal Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, used fossil evidence along with climate modelling to trace how Nothopegia plants moved over time. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The findings highlight how climate change has played a key role in where plants survive and how they spread across different regions. According to Dr. Harshita Bhatia, co-author of the study, 'This fossil discovery is a window into the past that helps us understand the future.' The study highlights that while plants have moved to new areas over millions of years because of natural climate changes, today's climate shift is happening much faster, and it's mostly caused by human activity. Thumbnail image credit: Canva. For representative purposes only.
News18
06-06-2025
- Science
- News18
When Uttarakhand Was Underwater: Fossils Reveal 500-Million-Year-Old Secret
Last Updated: BSIP scientists are looking for 520-million-year-old marine fossils in Uttarakhand's Tethys Himalayas to uncover secrets of early life and ancient ocean ecosystems In a major scientific endeavour, Dr Hukam Singh and Dr Ranveer Singh Negi, distinguished researchers from the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences (BSIP), Lucknow, are carrying out a groundbreaking geological study in the Niti–Malari–Sumna region of Uttarakhand. Their mission: to uncover marine fossils embedded in the rock formations of the Garhwal Himalayas, dating back approximately 520 to 510 million years, from the Cambrian period—a key phase in Earth's early biological evolution when many major animal groups first appeared in the fossil record. These fossil-rich formations lie within the Tethys Himalayas, a region that was once part of the long-vanished Tethys Ocean. Though this ancient ocean disappeared millions of years ago due to tectonic plate collisions that uplifted the Himalayas, its secrets remain locked in the sedimentary rocks of this remote region. Through stratigraphic and paleontological analysis, the scientists aim to reconstruct early marine ecosystems that once thrived here, contributing to a better understanding of biodiversity patterns, plate tectonics, and climate shifts that have shaped Earth's past. The study also holds implications for broader research on continental drift and the formation of the Indian subcontinent. Fossils from this period can offer clues about the biogeographic links between ancient landmasses and provide a clearer picture of India's evolutionary journey as it separated from Gondwana and collided with Asia. Inspiring Young Minds On World Environment Day (June 5), Dr Singh and Dr Negi visited PM Shri Rajkiya Adarsh Balika Inter College in Jyotirmath, where they held an interactive session with Principal-in-charge Mrs Tara Rana, teachers, and students. The event focused on the importance of geological history and environmental preservation, linking scientific curiosity with the urgent need to protect our natural world. One of the highlights of the event was a live fossil exhibition, where students viewed ancient specimens, including fossilised wood of the Sindora tree from the Pliocene-Pleistocene period (3 to 1 million years ago), brought from Jharkhand. These were juxtaposed with modern Eucalyptus wood to demonstrate how flora has evolved over millions of years. Students were encouraged to ask questions and even handle some of the samples under supervision, sparking a hands-on interest in earth sciences. This rare scientific initiative not only contributes to our collective knowledge of Earth's geological timeline but also serves as a powerful tool to encourage scientific inquiry and environmental consciousness among school students. It aims to bridge the gap between scientific research and public engagement, especially in underserved and remote areas where exposure to such academic opportunities is limited. Get breaking news, in-depth analysis, and expert perspectives on everything from politics to crime and society. Stay informed with the latest India news only on News18. Download the News18 App to stay updated!
