Multidisciplinary lines of evidence reveal East/Northeast Asian origins of agriculturalist/pastoralist residents at a Han dynasty military outpost in ancient Xinjiang

Edward Allen; Yao Yu; Xiaomin Yang; Yiran Xu; Yiran Xu; Panxin Du; Jianxue Xiong; Dian Chen; Xiaohong Tian; Yong Wu; Xiaoli Qin; Pengfei Sheng; Pengfei Sheng; Pengfei Sheng; Chuan-Chao Wang; Chuan-Chao Wang; Chuan-Chao Wang; Chuan-Chao Wang; Shaoqing Wen; Shaoqing Wen; Shaoqing Wen

doi:10.3389/fevo.2022.932004

Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution (Aug 2022)

Multidisciplinary lines of evidence reveal East/Northeast Asian origins of agriculturalist/pastoralist residents at a Han dynasty military outpost in ancient Xinjiang

Edward Allen,
Yao Yu,
Xiaomin Yang,
Yiran Xu,
Yiran Xu,
Panxin Du,
Jianxue Xiong,
Dian Chen,
Xiaohong Tian,
Yong Wu,
Xiaoli Qin,
Pengfei Sheng,
Pengfei Sheng,
Pengfei Sheng,
Chuan-Chao Wang,
Chuan-Chao Wang,
Chuan-Chao Wang,
Chuan-Chao Wang,
Shaoqing Wen,
Shaoqing Wen,
Shaoqing Wen

Affiliations

Edward Allen: MOE Laboratory for National Development and Intelligent Governance, Department of Cultural Heritage and Museology, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
Yao Yu: MOE Laboratory for National Development and Intelligent Governance, Department of Cultural Heritage and Museology, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
Xiaomin Yang: Department of Anthropology and Ethnology, School of Sociology and Anthropology, Institute of Anthropology, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
Yiran Xu: Institute of Archaeological Science, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
Yiran Xu: Center for the Belt and Road Archaeology and Ancient Civilizations, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
Panxin Du: Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Contemporary Anthropology, Department of Anthropology and Human Genetics, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
Jianxue Xiong: Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Contemporary Anthropology, Department of Anthropology and Human Genetics, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
Dian Chen: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
Xiaohong Tian: Xinjiang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, Urumqi, China
Yong Wu: Xinjiang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, Urumqi, China
Xiaoli Qin: MOE Laboratory for National Development and Intelligent Governance, Department of Cultural Heritage and Museology, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
Pengfei Sheng: MOE Laboratory for National Development and Intelligent Governance, Department of Cultural Heritage and Museology, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
Pengfei Sheng: Institute of Archaeological Science, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
Pengfei Sheng: Center for the Belt and Road Archaeology and Ancient Civilizations, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
Chuan-Chao Wang: Department of Anthropology and Ethnology, School of Sociology and Anthropology, Institute of Anthropology, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
Chuan-Chao Wang: State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
Chuan-Chao Wang: State Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Science, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
Chuan-Chao Wang: 0Institute of Artificial Intelligence, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
Shaoqing Wen: MOE Laboratory for National Development and Intelligent Governance, Department of Cultural Heritage and Museology, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
Shaoqing Wen: Institute of Archaeological Science, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
Shaoqing Wen: Center for the Belt and Road Archaeology and Ancient Civilizations, Fudan University, Shanghai, China

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2022.932004
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 10

Abstract

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Han/non-Han interactions were engrained among the border regions of ancient Imperial China. Yet, little is known about either the genetic origins or the lifeways of these border peoples. Our study applies tools from ancient deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and stable isotope analysis to the study of a Han dynasty population at the Shichengzi site in modern-day Xinjiang. Isotopic analysis (δ13C and δ15N) of human (n = 8), animal (n = 26), and crop remains (n = 23) from Shichengzi indicated that dietary patterns among site inhabitants could be split among agro-pastoral and agricultural groups based on differences in the collagen 15N ratios. DNA analysis divided the four Shichengzi samples into two groups, with one group primarily harboring the ancient Northeast Asian (ANA) related ancestry, while the other showed a dominant Late Neolithic Yellow River (YR_LN) related ancestry. Both ancient DNA and stable isotope evidence point to the Northeast Asian origins of pastoralists and East Asian origins of Han agriculturalists, who, nonetheless, shared a single burial space at Shichengzi. This study thus provides clear evidence for the multiple origins and identities of populations across the porous border represented by the Han Empire and surrounding regions and proposes a new model for the interpretation of border culture in early Imperial China.

Published in Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution

ISSN: 2296-701X (Online)
Publisher: Frontiers Media S.A.
Country of publisher: Switzerland
LCC subjects: Science: Biology (General): Evolution; Science: Biology (General): Ecology
Website: https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/ecology-and-evolution

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