An international team of researchers has unveiled a groundbreaking discovery that reshapes our understanding of prehistoric human interactions across northern Asia. The study reveals a previously unidentified genetic and cultural corridor connecting Early Neolithic populations from the Lake Baikal region in Siberia with those inhabiting the Yan Mountains Region (YMR) of northern China. This north-south corridor existed millennia before the advent of pastoralism and metallurgy, challenging the prevailing notion that significant cultural and genetic exchanges only began during the Eurasian Bronze Age.
Published recently in the journal Science Bulletin, this research provides compelling genomic and archaeological evidence to support a nuanced prehistoric narrative in East Asia. Employing advanced ancient DNA sequencing and statistical analyses, the researchers analyzed 42 ancient genomes derived from three archaeological sites, spanning an extensive temporal range of approximately 7,700 to 4,300 years before present (BP). This temporal breadth allowed the investigators to capture key transitional phases in prehistoric population dynamics and cultural exchanges.
Central to this discovery is the Early Neolithic population from the Sitaimengguying (STM_EN) site, dating between circa 7,700 and 7,400 BP. Genomic data extracted from individuals associated with STM_EN reveal a distinctive genetic signature that directly connects to populations from the Lake Baikal region of Siberia. These individuals share ancestry with the Ancient Paleo-Siberians (APS), a crucial prehistoric gene pool previously believed to have had limited influence south of Siberia. The identification of the STM_EN group as a genetic conduit effectively bridges the vast geographic expanse separating Lake Baikal from northern China.
Professor Yinqiu Cui, a corresponding author of the study and a faculty member at Jilin University’s School of Life Sciences, emphasized the significance of the STM_EN genomes: “Without this genetic data, the prehistoric north-south corridor would have remained obscured. The STM_EN population functioned as a crucial intermediary, preserving and transmitting the Baikal genetic legacy southwards.” These findings represent a formidable stride forward in decoding the complex web of prehistoric human movements across continental East Asia.
Corroborating this genetic linkage, the researchers uncovered compelling archaeological parallels. Artifacts at the STM_EN site, notably unique round-bottomed ceramic vessels, share striking stylistic and technological affinities with contemporaneous material culture from the Lake Baikal region. Furthermore, burial practices at STM_EN manifest a rare and distinctive mortuary pattern, characterized by males interred in a lateral position with overlapping limbs—a funerary custom predominantly documented in the Baikal area. Together, these lines of evidence substantiate a deep cultural and demographic interchange stretching across large Eurasian distances during the Early Neolithic.
Beyond confirming this early prehistoric corridor, the study also sheds light on the dynamic population processes within the Yan Mountains region itself. The archaeologically later site of Jiangjialiang (JJL_LN), with remains dated to roughly 4,800-4,300 BP, exhibits considerable genetic heterogeneity. Individuals here represent a mosaic of ancestries, evidencing an ongoing admixture between descendants of the STM_EN gene pool to the north, and migrating agricultural groups originating from the Yellow River basin to the south. This admixture illustrates the YMR’s role as a vibrant interface where diverse genetic and cultural traditions met and blended over millennia.
Choongwon Jeong, co-corresponding author and associate professor at Seoul National University’s School of Biological Sciences, underscored the broader implications of these findings: “The Yan Mountains region emerges as a pivotal agropastoral transition zone—a true sphere of interaction where north-south genetic exchanges were both initiated and sustained. This reveals a far more intricate prehistoric landscape than previously appreciated.” The continuous gene flow between northern and southern populations documented in this study challenges previous models emphasizing isolation or delayed contact among Neolithic groups in East Asia.
By leveraging Ancient Paleo-Siberian ancestry as a genetic tracer, the research team has illustrated that long-distance prehistoric connections influenced both the genetic and cultural evolution of northern East Asian populations far earlier than archaeologists had hypothesized. These insights call for a reevaluation of the timing and mechanisms by which population interactions occurred on the Eurasian continent, emphasizing a prehistoric interconnectedness that predates the spread of pastoralism and metallurgy by several millennia.
Methodologically, the study combined next-generation sequencing techniques, rigorous contamination controls, and sophisticated computational methods for population genetic modeling. These allowed precise characterization of ancient genomic variation and the reconstruction of admixture events with unprecedented resolution. Such approaches are propelling archaeogenetics into a new era where complex prehistoric networks can be inferred from ancient DNA, offering granular insights into human history otherwise inaccessible from traditional archaeological records alone.
Critically, this research also has broader implications for understanding the spread of cultural innovations and subsistence strategies in early East Asia. The genetic corridor suggests that prehistoric human groups were engaged in dynamic and multilayered interactions, potentially facilitating the diffusion of technological and economic systems such as early agriculture and animal husbandry. This nuanced landscape reshapes not only demographic models but also informs archaeological interpretations of material culture dispersal and adaptation.
In summary, this study marks a significant advance in prehistoric East Asian studies by uncovering a deeply rooted north-south population corridor connecting the Lake Baikal region with the Yan Mountains area. Through an integrative approach combining genomic and archaeological data, the findings illuminate the early formation of genetic diversity patterns and cultural exchange spheres in this crucial geographic nexus. As these discoveries permeate both academic discourse and public consciousness, they underscore the profound complexity and connectivity that have shaped human societies since the dawn of the Neolithic.
Subject of Research: Prehistoric human gene flow and cultural interactions in the Yan Mountains region and broader northern East Asia during the Early to Late Neolithic
Article Title: Neolithic Gene Flow and Cultural Interactions in the Yan Mountains Region
News Publication Date: Not explicitly provided
Web References: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.scib.2025.11.013
Image Credits: ©Science China Press
Keywords: ancient DNA, East Asia, Yan Mountains, Lake Baikal, Ancient Paleo-Siberians, Neolithic, population genetics, gene flow, cultural interaction, prehistoric migration, archaeogenetics, admixture, agropastoral transition
