Network of large pedigrees reveals social practices of Avar communities. (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38658749/)

These scientists studied ancient people who lived in the Carpathian Basin around 1,500 years ago. They looked at the DNA of people buried in four cemeteries from that time period. By studying their genes and how they were related to each other, the scientists were able to create family trees that went back nine generations and included around 300 individuals.

The scientists found that these ancient people followed a strict system where families were passed down through the father's side, and women typically married outside of their own community. They also discovered that it was common for people to have more than one partner and for widows to marry their husband's brother. Despite these practices, they did not find evidence of close relatives marrying each other, showing that these people kept track of their family history over many generations.

By looking at the DNA connections between different communities, the scientists found that social bonds were maintained through women marrying into other groups. They also noticed a change in the genetic makeup of one community, which matched up with changes in the archaeological evidence and likely happened due to political shifts in the area.

Overall, this study helped the scientists learn more about how these ancient people lived, who they were related to, and how they interacted with each other.

Gnecchi-Ruscone GA., Racz Z., Samu L., Szeniczey T., Farago N., Knipper C., Friedrich R., Zlamalova D., Traverso L., Liccardo S., Wabnitz S., Popli D., Wang K., Radzeviciute R., Gulyas B., Koncz I., Balogh C., Lezsak GM., Macsai V., Bunbury MME., Spekker O., le Roux P., Szecsenyi-Nagy A., Mende BG., Colleran H., Hajdu T., Geary P., Pohl W., Vida T., Krause J., Hofmanova Z. Network of large pedigrees reveals social practices of Avar communities. Nature. 2024 May;629(8011):376-383. doi: 10.1038/s41586-024-07312-4. Epub 2024 Apr 24.