Russian geneticists prove the genetic relationship between the peoples of the Caucasus and the Scythian civilization

Russia – Russian and German paleontologists were able, for the first time, to decipher the genomes of the people of the ancient “Kuban” civilization in the Bronze Age, revealing their close connection to the Scythian civilization.

Scientists have also proven that its genetic heritage is present in the genes of many contemporary peoples in the North Caucasus. This was reported by the press service of the Higher School of Economics, Wednesday, April 17.

The scientists say: “The study we conducted allows us to confirm that the contemporary peoples of the North Caucasus have a direct genetic relationship to the ancient civilizations whose bearers lived in these regions many centuries ago.” The carriers of the “Kuban” civilization left their genetic heritage within the modern population, and the study says that the “Kumik and Lezgin” peoples may have had the same genes and the same origins as the isolated Armenian ethnic group “Khamshini.”

This conclusion was reached by a group of Russian and German paleontologists led by Artem Nedolozhko, head of the Paleontology Laboratory at the European University in Petersburg. Scientists made this discovery while studying the structure of DNA fragments extracted from the remains of five representatives of the “Kuban” civilization and one ancient Caucasian from the “Alan” civilization.

Representatives of these civilizations inhabited the North Caucasus at the end of the Bronze Age and the beginning of the Iron Age, where it is assumed that they were in close contact with the peoples and countries of Transcaucasia and the Middle East, as they were in contact with the Cimmerians, and later with the Scythians. Many historians and archaeologists believe that the “Kuban” and “Alan” civilizations contributed greatly to the development of the genes of the contemporary peoples of the Caucasus, but so far there is no direct evidence of this.

Natalia Slobodova, assistant professor at the Higher School of Economics, said: “The analysis of genetic mixing of carriers of the Kuban and Alan civilizations showed that the nomadic Scythian tribes not only influenced the population of the Caucasus culturally, but also genetically.” Moreover, a person from the “Klin Yar 3” region, whose grave had characteristics that were unusual for the “Kuban” civilization, and those characteristics appear to have a close cultural and genetic relationship with the Scythians from the Black Sea region.”

Source: TASS