74 Ancient Genomes Reconstruct the Interaction Between Millet- and Rice-Farming Populations in Middle Neolithic East Asia

A Fudan University-led team has released the largest genome-wide dataset yet for East Asian middle Neolithic populations, sequencing 74 ancient individuals from 20 archaeological sites dated between roughly 6231 and 4650 years ago. The work, by Jianxue Xiong and colleagues including teams led by Wen Shaoqing, Jin Li, Wang Chuanchao, and Jia Xin of Nanjing Normal University, appears in Cell Genomics.

On the Yellow River, the researchers sequenced 21 ancient genomes from Yangshao and Majiayao cultures; on the Yangtze, seven genomes from the Daxi, Songze, and Liangzhu cultures. The dataset thus spans both of East Asia’s independent agricultural heartlands—millet farming in the north and rice farming in the south.

How millet farmers and rice farmers interacted, moved, and mixed is central to understanding the formation of East Asian civilization. The new genomes let researchers observe these relationships directly at the genetic level. Fudan University issued a press release on 17 September explaining the findings to the public, noting the dataset lays a foundation for reconstructing the spread and exchange of agricultural populations.