Science

Stone Age Hunter-Gatherers Avoided Inbreeding By Exchanging Women Between Tribes, Study Finds!

Representational image (wabire/Wel Studio/Kuleshin/Cawisstudio/nimas exacti/gorodenkoff/via Canva) — Representational image
(wabire/Wel Studio/Kuleshin/Cawisstudio/nimas exacti/gorodenkoff/via Canva)

If you’ve ever tried to find love in a small town where everybody knows everybody, you might have an idea of just how hard this endeavour is — even with the nosy neighbourhood aunties and uncles out of the equation. Well, our hunter-gatherer ancestors, who lived in very small, close-knit tribes, faced similar problems, with inbreeding being an even bigger issue for them without present-day social constructs. And research shows that they came up with a crafty way of avoiding this: exchanging women between groups!

Researchers analysed the genomes of individuals from several well-preserved Stone Age burial sites in France, dating back roughly 6,700 years. These hunter-gatherers faced the risk of genetic isolation due to their small size, potentially leading to inbreeding, which is pretty messed up even without attaching the concept of morality to it.

However, the study turned the tables on expectations. Instead of finding evidence of close family ties within burial sites, researchers discovered no genetic relationship between many individuals, even women and children buried together. This suggests strong social bonds beyond blood ties, persisting even after death.

Further clues came from analysing the individuals' diets. Different levels of marine proteins in the bones indicated distinct groups, with some females at one site exhibiting a shift from land-based to sea-based protein consumption later in life. This dietary change, combined with genetic analysis, suggests women were exchanged between groups, likely as a deliberate strategy to avoid inbreeding.

Previous theories proposed these women might have come from Neolithic farming communities, but the study debunks this. Their genetic data revealed they were solely of hunter-gatherer descent, with no traces of farmer ancestry. “The Late Mesolithic forager community was limited in mate-exchange to neighbouring hunter-gatherer groups, to the exclusion of Neolithic farmers,” researchers wrote.

This research sheds light on the social dynamics of these ancient communities. It showcases their resourcefulness in navigating the challenges of small population size and the importance of maintaining genetic diversity for survival.

The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, rewrites our understanding of how these late Stone Age Europeans ensured their future generations thrived.

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