Indigenous peoples have occupied the island of Puerto Rico since at least 3000 BC. Due to the demographic shifts that occurred after European contact, the origin(s) of these ancient populations, and their genetic relationship to present-day islanders, are unclear. We use ancient DNA to characterize the population history and genetic legacies of precontact Indigenous communities from Puerto Rico. Bone, tooth, and dental calculus samples were collected from 124 individuals from three precontact archaeological sites: Tibes, Punta Candelero, and Paso del Indio. Despite poor DNA preservation, we used target enrichment and high-throughput sequencing to obtain complete mitochondrial genomes (mtDNA) from 45 individuals and autosomal genotypes from two individuals. We found a high proportion of Native American mtDNA haplogroups A2 and C1 in the precontact Puerto Rico sample (40% and 44%, respectively). This distribution, as well as the haplotypes represented, supports a primarily Amazonian South American origin for these populations and mirrors the Native American mtDNA diversity patterns found in present-day islanders. Three mtDNA haplotypes from precontact Puerto Rico persist among Puerto Ricans and other Caribbean islanders, indicating that present-day populations are reservoirs of precontact mtDNA diversity. Lastly, we find similarity in autosomal ancestry patterns between precontact individuals from Puerto Rico and the Bahamas, suggesting a shared component of Indigenous Caribbean ancestry with close affinity to South American populations. Our findings contribute to a more complete reconstruction of precontact Caribbean population history and explore the role of Indigenous peoples in shaping the biocultural diversity of present-day Puerto Ricans and other Caribbean islanders.
- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10330864
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
- Volume:
- 119
- Issue:
- 13
- ISSN:
- 0027-8424
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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Abstract Objectives The mortuary record at Middle Period site
Kalawwasa Rummeytak (CA‐SCL‐134) (2600‐1225 cal BP) in California's southern Santa Clara Valley shows pronounced wealth inequality;Olivella shell bead wealth, as well as other grave goods, are concentrated in the burials of several older adult females. The concentration of wealth among women, along with regional strontium isotopic evidence of male‐biased residential shifts in early adulthood, suggests a matrilineal kinship system that practiced matrilocal post‐marital residence patterns. We suggest local resource enhancement effects incentivized keeping women in their natal communities and investing more in female offspring.Materials and Methods With the consent of, and in collaboration with, the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area, this paper employs isotopic analysis (
δ 15N andδ 13C,86Sr/87Sr) to examine duration of exclusive breastfeeding, weaning age (complete cessation of breastmilk consumption), early childhood diet, and lifetime residential mobility of individuals interred atKalawwasa Rummeytak to test the assumption that the site inhabitants favored matrilocality and that female offspring received greater levels of investment in groups with female wealth/status attainment. First molars, third molars, and bone was sampled from 22 individuals.Results The average weaning age for females at
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The 17th-century colonization of North America brought thousands of Europeans to Indigenous lands in the Delaware region, which comprises the eastern boundary of the Chesapeake Bay in what is now the Mid- Atlantic region of the United States.1 The demographic features of these initial colonial migrations are not uni- formly characterized, with Europeans and European-Americans migrating to the Delaware area from other countries and neighboring colonies as single persons or in family units of free persons, indentured servants, or tenant farmers.2 European colonizers also instituted a system of racialized slavery through which they forcibly transported thousands of Africans to the Chesapeake region. Historical information about African- descended individuals in the Delaware region is limited, with a population estimate of less than 500 persons by 1700 CE.3,4 To shed light on the population histories of this period, we analyzed low-coverage genomes of 11 individuals from the Avery’s Rest archaeological site (circa 1675–1725 CE), located in Delaware. Previous osteological and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequence analyses showed a southern group of eight individ- uals of European maternal descent, buried 15–20 feet from a northern group of three individuals of African maternal descent.5 Autosomal results further illuminate genomic similarities to Northwestern European refer- ence populations or West and West-Central African reference populations, respectively. We also identify three generations of maternal kin of European ancestry and a paternal parent-offspring relationship between an adult and child of African ancestry. These findings expand our understanding of the origins and familial relationships in late 17th and early 18th century North America.more » « less
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Abstract The prehistory of the people of Uruguay is greatly complicated by the dramatic and severe effects of European contact, as with most of the Americas. After the series of military campaigns that exterminated the last remnants of nomadic peoples, Uruguayan official history masked and diluted the former Indigenous ethnic diversity into the narrative of a singular people that all but died out. Here, we present the first whole genome sequences of the Indigenous people of the region before the arrival of Europeans, from an archaeological site in eastern Uruguay that dates from 2,000 years before present. We find a surprising connection to ancient individuals from Panama and eastern Brazil, but not to modern Amazonians. This result may be indicative of a migration route into South America that may have occurred along the Atlantic coast. We also find a distinct ancestry previously undetected in South America. Though this work begins to piece together some of the demographic nuance of the region, the sequencing of ancient individuals from across Uruguay is needed to better understand the ancient prehistory and genetic diversity that existed before European contact, thereby helping to rebuild the history of the Indigenous population of what is now Uruguay.
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Results We successfully retrieved sequence data from 39 individuals. Haplogroup frequencies in Nuvuk were typed as 66.7% A2b1, 25.6% A2a, and 7.7% D4b1a2a1a. These results suggest that the population at Nuvuk was closest to the ancient Thule and modern Inuit of Canada, and to the Siberian Naukan people. We confirm that haplogroups A2a, A2b1, D2a, and D4b1a2a1a appear at high frequency in Arctic and sub‐Arctic populations of North America and Chukotka. Sister clades D2b and D4b1a2a1b are present in Asian and Eastern European populations.
Discussion The ancient mitochondrial sequences from Nuvuk confirm the link between the North Slope and the Thule who later spread east, and the maternal discontinuity between the Neo‐Inuit and Paleo‐Inuit. We suggest haplogroups A2a, A2b, and D4b1a2a1a are linked to the ancestors of the Thule in eastern Beringia, whereas the D2 and D4b1a2a1 clades appear to have Asian Holocene origins. Further Siberian and Alaskan genomes are necessary to clarify these population migrations beyond a simple two‐wave scenario of Neo‐Inuit and Paleo‐Inuit.
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Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2111533119
