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Hunter-gatherers in Belgium/Netherlands survived until 2500 BCE, women transmitted farming knowledge

BioarchaeologyNew Research
LIVE ~ PREHISTORIC ARCHAEOLOGY NEWS From Around the World
Source: LIVE ~ PREHISTORIC ARCHAEOLOGY NEWS From Around the World by The Prehistory Guys

A study reveals hunter-gatherers thrived in Belgium and Netherlands until around 2500 BCE—far longer than elsewhere in Europe. Analyzing genomes from 8,500-1,700 BCE, researchers found women brought farming knowledge into hunter-gatherer communities. Researchers call the area 'a water world where time stood still' thanks to rich riverine and coastal resources. 🌍

Key facts:

- Study conducted by researchers including Harvard collaboration, published in a peer-reviewed journal

- Analyzed complete human genomes from Belgium, Netherlands, and northwest Germany between 8,500-1,700 BCE

- Hunter-gatherers in riverine wetlands and coastal areas survived thousands of years longer than elsewhere in Europe

- Women marrying into hunter-gatherer communities brought farming expertise and genes

- Hunter-gatherer ancestry persisted until around 2500 BCE in the Rhine-Meuse region

Key facts

  • University of Huddersfield study led by Dr. David Reich (Harvard) published in Nature
  • Analyzed complete human genomes from Belgium, Germany, Netherlands between 8,500-1,700 BCE
  • Hunter-gatherers in riverine wetlands and coastal areas survived thousands of years longer than elsewhere in Europe
  • Women marrying into hunter-gatherer communities brought farming expertise and genes
  • High levels of hunter-gatherer ancestry persisted until end of Neolithic around 2,500 BCE
  • Rich natural resources allowed selective embrace of farming while preserving hunter-gatherer practices
  • Professor John Stewart (Bournemouth) described the area as 'a water world where time stood still'
  • Dr. Maria Pala noted findings from heartland of Europe make results even more striking

Related stories

Sources

Long-term hunter-gatherer continuity in the Rhine-Meuse region ...pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
The time-transect dataset includes new Mesolithic individuals from Belgium, the Netherlands and northwest Germany, as well as published data from now submerged ...
Ancient DNA Reveals Europe's Last Hunter-Gatherers Survived ...scitechdaily.com
Genomic evidence has revealed that hunter-gatherer communities in parts of present-day Belgium and the Netherlands persisted for thousands ...
(PDF) Long-term hunter-gatherer continuity in the Rhine-Meuse ...researchgate.net
A distinctive population with high hunter-gatherer ancestry (~50%) persisted up to three thousand years later than in continental European regions.
New research into ancient DNA sheds light on key phase in ...hud.ac.uk
The high levels of hunter-gatherer ancestry persisted across the region (modern-day Belgium and the Netherlands) until the end of the Neolithic, ...
Hunter-gatherers northwestern Europe adopted farming from ...eurekalert.org
A new study has used ancient DNA to reveal that hunter-gatherers in Belgium, the Netherlands and nearby parts of Germany adapted to farming ...
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