What Does Natufian DNA Reveal About Ancient Ancestry?

Recent developments in ancient DNA provide a clearer picture of the Natufian people, a culture from the Levant region. These hunter-gatherers are recognized as among the first to adopt a settled lifestyle, a shift that occurred before agriculture. Analysis of genetic material from Natufian remains offers new information about the identity and origins of these early people.

The Natufian Culture

The Natufian culture flourished in the Levant from approximately 15,000 to 11,500 years ago, during the Epipaleolithic period. This region, which includes modern-day Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon, and parts of Syria, was experiencing significant environmental change. The Natufians are distinguished from earlier groups by establishing long-term settlements with some of the earliest known stone-built structures.

Their settlements show evidence of a complex society that exploited its environment’s rich resources. They hunted animals like gazelle and gathered wild plants, including cereals such as wild wheat and barley. The Natufians also developed a sophisticated toolkit featuring small stone tools called microliths, which were used to create composite tools for hunting and harvesting.

The Natufians also left behind an artistic and symbolic record, creating personal ornaments from shell and bone and carving some of the earliest known human figurines from stone. Their burial practices were elaborate, with individuals often interred in cemeteries within their settlements. These burials, sometimes including specific positions and grave goods, suggest a developed social structure and set of beliefs.

Genetic Profile of the Natufians

Genetic sequencing of Natufian skeletal remains has revealed a distinct ancestral profile with deep local roots. Their DNA indicates that Natufian ancestry can be traced back to earlier hunter-gatherer populations that inhabited the Levant for millennia. This finding points to a long-term, continuous human presence in the region.

A component of the Natufian genome is derived from a group called “Basal Eurasians.” This ancient lineage is thought to have split from other non-African populations very early, before other Eurasian groups separated and before interbreeding between modern humans and Neanderthals. The proportion of this ancestry in Natufians is debated, with studies suggesting it constituted between 15% and 50% of their genetic makeup.

The remaining portion of their genome is linked to a West Eurasian hunter-gatherer population. Genetic analysis allows for predictions about their physical appearance, indicating the Natufians had dark hair, dark-colored eyes, and a darker skin tone. This combination of traits distinguishes them from the later Anatolian farmers who would eventually migrate into Europe.

The Link to Early Farmers

A long-standing archaeological question was whether agriculture in the Levant resulted from a new population migrating into the area or an innovation by local hunter-gatherers. Ancient DNA has provided a clear answer. Genetic evidence demonstrates a direct ancestral link between the Natufian people and the first farmers of the Neolithic period in the Levant.

Analysis of remains from early farming villages shows these agriculturalists were the descendants of the Natufian population. Studies show early Levantine farmers could trace approximately two-thirds of their ancestry directly to the Natufians. This genetic continuity indicates it was the local people who domesticated the plants and animals they had been gathering and hunting.

While the transition from foraging to farming transformed societies, the people themselves remained largely the same. The genetic profile of the Natufians carried over into the Pre-Pottery Neolithic populations that followed them. This evidence confirms the agricultural revolution in the Levant was a homegrown development, pioneered by the area’s last hunter-gatherers.

The Natufian Genetic Legacy

The genetic signature of the Natufians did not remain confined to the Levant. As their descendants, the early Levantine farmers, developed agriculture, they began to expand. They carried their farming technologies and genes with them, leading to lasting demographic changes across a vast geographical area.

One migration route was northward into Anatolia, where the Levantine farmers mixed with local hunter-gatherer populations. This admixture created a new genetic group known as the Anatolian farmers. It was this group that later migrated into Europe, bringing agriculture to the continent and shaping the genetic landscape of modern Europeans.

Another migration carried Natufian-related ancestry into Africa. Genetic studies show connections between Natufians and ancient populations in North Africa, such as the Iberomaurusian culture of Morocco, suggesting interaction across these regions dating back 15,000 years. Further expansion carried this ancestry into East Africa, contributing to the genetic makeup of various populations in the Horn of Africa.

The most direct genetic legacy of the Natufians is found in modern populations of the Levant. People in Lebanon, Jordan, and Palestine, as well as some Arabian groups, retain substantial ancestry from these ancient farmers. For instance, modern Saudi Arabian and Yemeni populations derive a large part of their ancestry from a Natufian-like source. This demonstrates a remarkable population continuity in the region for over ten thousand years.