Northwest African Neolithic Initiated by Migrants from Iberia and Levant
Villalba-Mouco, V. et al. (2023). Nature, 618, 550–556.
Summary
This groundbreaking study sequenced ancient DNA from Neolithic-era human remains found at multiple sites in Morocco, providing the first direct genetic evidence for how farming and pastoralism arrived in Northwest Africa. The transition from hunter-gatherer to agricultural societies in this region had long been debated.
The ancient Moroccan genomes revealed a mixture of two ancestral components: one related to Neolithic European (specifically Iberian) farmers, and another related to Levantine Neolithic populations. This dual ancestry indicates that the Neolithic revolution in Northwest Africa was driven by actual migration of people, not just the diffusion of ideas and technologies.
The European Neolithic component confirms trans-Gibraltar contact during the Neolithic period (~7,500–5,000 years ago), with genetic evidence of migration across the Strait of Gibraltar. The Levantine component suggests a parallel eastern route of migration, possibly through Egypt or along the Mediterranean coast.
Study Region
Key Takeaways
- First ancient DNA from Neolithic Morocco, directly dating the arrival of farming-associated lineages
- Dual ancestry identified: Iberian Neolithic farmers + Levantine Neolithic populations
- Confirms physical migration across the Strait of Gibraltar, not just cultural diffusion
- The Neolithic transition in Northwest Africa occurred ~7,500–5,000 years before present
- Indigenous Maghrebi hunter-gatherer ancestry persisted alongside incoming Neolithic lineages, showing admixture rather than replacement
Relevance to Our Lineage
This study provides the strongest direct evidence for the mechanism by which the H1 maternal lineage arrived in North Africa. The H1-T16189C! haplogroup discussed on our Lineage History page originated in the Franco-Cantabrian refuge of southwestern Europe, and the Iberian Neolithic migration pathway documented in this paper represents the most likely route of arrival.
The confirmation of trans-Gibraltar migration during the Neolithic period directly supports the timeline and route model presented on this site. The H1 lineage, dating to approximately 11,400 years before present, would have been carried by these migrating populations as they crossed from Iberia into Morocco.
Importantly, the finding that indigenous Maghrebi ancestry persisted alongside incoming lineages mirrors the dual-origin pattern observed in the Chtouka lineage: the indigenous E-PF2546 paternal lineage coexisting with the European-origin H1 maternal lineage within the same population.