Ancient DNA reveals genetic replacement despite language continuity in the South Pacific

(Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History) The study, published in Nature Ecology& Evolution and led by a multidisciplinary research team at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, reveals that migrations of people from the Bismarck Archipelago in Oceania to the previously settled islands of the Pacific began as early as 2,500 years ago, much earlier than previously thought. Vanuatu presents an unprecedented case, where the population's genetic ancestry but not its languages were replaced.
Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: news