Origins of ‘Transeurasian’ languages traced to Neolithic millet farmers

Research finds language family that includes modern Japanese, Korean and Turkish spread largely due to agricultureA study combining linguistic, genetic and archaeological evidence has traced the origins of a family of languages including modern Japanese, Korean, Turkish and Mongolian and the people who speak them to millet farmers who inhabited a region in north-eastern China about 9,000 years ago.The findings outlined on Wednesday document a shared genetic ancestry for the hundreds of millions of people who speak what the researchers callTranseurasian languages across an area stretching more than 5,000 miles (8,000km).Continue reading...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - Category: Science Authors: Tags: Language Agriculture Anthropology Science China World news Asia Pacific Source Type: news