Roman rule caused more extensive changes in the genetic makeup of Iberia’s population than the migrations of the early Middle Ages. This was concluded by the authors of a study published in the journal Cell, as reported by News-Medical. Scientists found a significant contribution from ancestry components associated with the Eastern Mediterranean and North Africa during the Roman period.
DNA of 243 people
Researchers analyzed the DNA of 243 people who lived in Iberia between 100 and 800 CE and included data from another 58 individuals from previous studies. The remains used for the new analysis came from 31 archaeological sites representing different cultural settings, including communities with Hispano-Roman and Germanic features.
An ancestry component associated with the Eastern Mediterranean was identified in 55 of the 66 studied individuals from the Roman period, or 83%. Its average share ranged from 4.1% in Augusta Emerita to 34.6% in southeastern Iberia. At the same time, a clear genetic connection specifically with the Apennine Peninsula was rare. Genetic data do not make it possible to determine whether this ancestry component came directly from the Eastern Mediterranean or through other parts of the Roman Empire.
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North African and Northern European contribution
The North African component was also widespread during the Roman period and Late Antiquity. In southeastern Iberia, it was recorded in 33 of 34 individuals from Roman times, with an average share of 26.9%. At the Christian basilica of Cortijo Coracho, 29 of the 30 studied people had this component, usually together with local Iberian and Eastern Mediterranean components.
During the Migration Period, a component associated with Central and Northern Europe was more common: it was identified in 53 of 164 people, compared with six of 66 in Roman times. At cemeteries with Germanic cultural features, people with predominantly this ancestry lived alongside those who retained a Hispano-Roman genetic profile; researchers recorded admixture between these groups. Among the findings were two siblings with an entirely Central and Northern European component, buried about 725 kilometers apart along the Roman road network.
The authors emphasize that the limited number of samples from the Iron Age and early Roman period restricts the scope for conclusions. Further research may combine ancient DNA analysis with isotope data to trace the movement of people between Iberia and North Africa more precisely.
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