A time transect of genome-wide sequences from nine individuals was recently recovered from a single site in South Africa, Oakhurst Rockshelter.
Southern Africa has the largest human genetic diversity in the world; yet, the formation and processes of its gene pool in the past are still largely unknown. The demographic trajectories of the Indigenous San population and their ancestors during the last 10,000 years were reconstructed using the ancient DNA of these individuals and it shows that, in contrast to most regions around the world, the population history of southernmost Africa was not characterized by several waves of migration, replacement and admixture but by long-lasting genetic continuity from the early Holocene to the end of the Later Stone Age.
Findings indicate that, unlike many regions globally, the population history of southern Africa was marked by significant genetic continuity from the early Holocene to the end of the Later Stone Age, rather than multiple waves of migration and admixture. While the introduction of pastoralism and farming altered the gene pool in southern Africa approximately 1,300 years ago, analysis reveals that the Khomani San and Karretjiemense populations retain genetic links to the Oakhurst hunter-gatherers. This continuity is obscured by recent admixture from non-Southern African populations.
Read more about this research here:https://www.nature.com/articles/s41559-024-02532-3
