Latest news with #RebeccaKinaston
Otago Daily Times
12-06-2025
- Science
- Otago Daily Times
Study reveals ‘rich tapestry' of cultures
Unlocking the first ancient genomes (aDNA) from Papua New Guinea and the Bismarck Archipelago has allowed Otago scientists to take a significant step forward in understanding the genetic diversity of the nation and those in the wider Pacific. It has helped bring clarity to the great migration of early Pacific pioneers, considered to be ancestors of many Pacific people, including Māori. Monica Tromp. PHOTO: ODT FILES Research co-author and University of Otago Southern Pacific Archaeological Research project manager Dr Monica Tromp said aDNA acted like "a time machine", revealing how people lived and interacted thousands of years ago, and how those connections still influence our world. By combining aDNA with dietary evidence and linguistics, the study revealed how the pre-colonial coastal communities were surprisingly genetically diverse from each other, and suggested many cultural groups did not intermarry for some time. The research revealed "Pacific Island cultures were far more diverse and complex than we ever imagined". "Rather than being one unified group, these ancient communities represented a rich tapestry of different cultures and peoples." New Guinea was settled more than 50,000 years ago, and served as a launch point for seafaring journeys into the wider Pacific. About 3300 years ago, the Lapita people — considered the earliest ancestors of many Pacific people, including Māori — settled in the Bismarck Archipelago, which became the cradle of the Lapita cultural complex. They were renowned for their intricate pottery and horticultural practices, and embarked on voyages that reached as far as Vanuatu, Tonga and Samoa. Rebecca Kinaston. PHOTO: ODT FILES Until now, the genomic legacy of these early Pacific pioneers had remained unexplored. Dr Tromp said one of the study's most striking findings was the presence of individuals with completely Papuan genetic signatures on the island of Watom, in the Bismarck Archipelago, where missionaries found the first Lapita-style pottery in the early 20th century. The individuals excavated on the island were all younger than evidence for the arrival of the Lapita Cultural Complex. "One of these individuals also displayed a rare case of cultural cranial modification, suggesting the co-occupation of the island by genetically and culturally different groups." Co-lead author and BioArch South director Dr Rebecca Kinaston said despite the co-occupation, it seemed the groups did not mix for a long time. The delay in intermarriage and the presence of people with Papuan ancestry might help answer a long-held question about whether the first settlers in the remote islands of Western Remote Oceania arrived unmixed, and mixed on the islands. The new findings supported the scenario. "Their ancestries started diverging 650 years ago, despite the absence of geographical borders."
Yahoo
09-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Ancient DNA from Papua New Guinea reveals centuries of genetic isolation
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. The first ancient human genomes analyzed from Papua New Guinea reveal that some of the early groups that lived there were completely genetically isolated from their neighbors, showing there was little intermarriage at multiple points in time, a new study finds. New Guinea is the second largest island in the world, after Greenland. It and its outlying isles were vital launch points for early seafaring journeys into the wider Pacific, culminating with the settlement of some of the last islands on Earth to be permanently inhabited, scientists noted. However, until now, much remained unknown about its ancient genetic history. In a new study, researchers analyzed ancient DNA from the bones and teeth of 42 people who lived as long as 2,600 years ago on Papua New Guinea — the nation inhabiting the eastern half of New Guinea — and the nearby Bismarck Archipelago, northeast of the main island. "This was a very long time in the making," study co-lead author Kathrin Nägele, an archaeogeneticist at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany, told Live Science. "DNA preservation in tropical environments is extremely challenging." Previous research suggested that New Guinea and outlying areas were first settled more than 50,000 years ago. Much later, by about 3,300 years ago, new seafaring peoples with Asian ancestry arrived at the Bismarck Archipelago. This group, which archaeologists have dubbed the Lapita culture, is renowned for their intricate pottery and farming practices, which included raising pigs, dogs and chickens, as well as growing coconuts, bananas, yams and varieties of breadfruit. The new findings unexpectedly revealed the earliest known inhabitants of the Bismarck Archipelago and the Lapita people did not mix genetically for centuries. However, one individual examined suggested they were the result of intermixing about 2,100 years ago. "Despite the co-occupation, it seems the different groups didn't mix for a long time, which is quite unusual for human encounters," study co-lead author Rebecca Kinaston, an anthropologist and director of BioArch South, an archaeology and forensic anthropology consultancy in New Zealand, said in a statement. Related: Easter Island's population never collapsed because it never got that big, researchers suggest These findings also shed light on the ancestry of remote Oceanic islands such as Samoa, Tonga and Vanuatu. They support prior research that Papuans and the Lapita independently arrived at those distant isles and intermarried there, as opposed to mixing first at New Guinea and nearby isles and then voyaging to those remote lands. "It suggests the Papuans were separately capable of remarkable seafaring," Nägele said. "The seafaring hunter-gatherers on Papua New Guinea have likely been underestimated, just as hunter-gatherer societies tend to be underestimated all over." Another striking discovery occurred when the scientists analyzed two communities that inhabited the south coast of Papua New Guinea between 150 and 500 years ago. "Although these two communities only lived a few kilometers apart, they were unexpectedly genetically different," Nägele said. "Looking into the direct family relations between the two sites, we had to go six generations back to find a common ancestor, which means that for six generations, the two groups did not mix despite the close proximity and no geological barriers between them." Both groups had a mix of Papuan-related and Southeast Asia-related ancestries. One group, buried at the site Eriama, showed more of the Papuan-related ancestry compared to the site of Nebira, where Asian ancestry was the larger component. Why did these groups stop mixing with each other? One possibility is a climatically challenging time on New Guinea between 1,200 and 500 years ago, which may have seen increased El Niño events, such as major droughts. RELATED STORIES —Some of the 1st ice age humans who ventured into Americas came from China, DNA study suggests —Polynesians and Native Americans paired up 800 years ago, DNA reveals —Newly discovered 'ghost' lineage linked to ancient mystery population in Tibet, DNA study finds "Settlements were abandoned — people might have retreated to unknown places that were more viable," Nägele said. "We think wherever these people were, they started engaging in new trade networks. Nebira appeared to engage more with coastal groups, and Eriama more with inland groups from the highlands. This might have led to different identities, different cuisines, and other differences that led to cultural diversification." In the future, the researchers hope to collect older genetic data, as well as samples from the highlands of New Guinea and the first Asian-related people to arrive on the coast of the island. "Papua New Guinea is such a diverse place in so many regards, that we have only just scratched the surface of what is to learn about the past of the second largest island in the world," Nägele said. The scientists detailed their findings June 4 in the journal Nature Ecology & Evolution.
