RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Kinship, acquired and inherited status, and population structure at the Early Bronze Age Mokrin necropolis in northern Serbia
JF bioRxiv
FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
SP 2020.05.18.101337
DO 10.1101/2020.05.18.101337
A1 Žegarac, Aleksandra
A1 Winkelbach, Laura
A1 Blöcher, Jens
A1 Diekmann, Yoan
A1 Gavrilović, Marija Krečković
A1 Porčić, Marko
A1 Stojković, Biljana
A1 Milašinović, Lidija
A1 Schreiber, Mona
A1 Wegmann, Daniel
A1 Veeramah, Krishna R.
A1 Stefanović, Sofija
A1 Burger, Joachim
YR 2020
UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2020/05/19/2020.05.18.101337.abstract
AB Twenty-four ancient genomes with an average sequencing coverage of 0.85±0.25 X were produced from the Mokrin necropolis, an Early Bronze Age (2,100-1,800 BC) Maros culture site in Serbia, to provide unambiguous identification of biological sex, population structure, and genetic kinship between individuals. Of the 24 investigated individuals, 15 were involved in kinship relationships of varying degrees, including 3 parent-offspring relationships. All observed parent-offspring pairs were mother and son. In addition to the absence of biological daughters, we observed a number of young women and girls with no biological relatives in our sample. These observations, together with the high mitochondrial diversity in our sample, are consistent with the practice of female exogamy in the population served by Mokrin. However, moderate-to-high Y-chromosomal diversity suggests a degree of male mobility greater than that expected under strict patrilocality. Individual status differences at Mokrin, as indicated by grave goods, support the inference that females could inherit status, but could not transmit status to all their sons. The case of a son whose grave good richness outstrips that of his biological mother suggests that sons had the possibility to acquire status during their lifetimes. The Mokrin sample resembles a genetically unstructured population, suggesting that the community’s social hierarchies were not accompanied by strict marriage barriers.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.