Mike Galsworthy šŸ¦£

Love this.

Skeletal evidence shows Britain's ancient Anglo-Saxon society as more genetically diverse than once thought.

Fascinating use of cranium morphology patterns to identify ethnic groups in early Britain.

Article --> https://eastangliabylines.co.uk/ancient-skulls-show-anglo-saxon-identity-was-more-cultural-than-genetic

Ancient skulls show Anglo-Saxon identity was more cultural than genetic

Skeletal evidence shows Britain's ancient Anglo-Saxon society as more genetically diverse than once thought.

East Anglia Bylines
Nov 16, 2022 at 11:04amWeb
Show threadLiz MiddletonNov 16, 2022
@mikegalsworthy Makes sense to me as humans have migrated and traded since day one.
#ancestry #migration #genetics
Show threadVerschlimmbessererNov 16, 2022

@mikegalsworthy This fits with what I learned. The Romano-British often lived in towns and the AS in farmsteads, which meant that diseases had more impact on the RB.

As AS became dominant, RBs would marry into AS families, or copy them to borrow the prestige.

The two factors mean that AS 'felt' like they had much greater numbers than they might have, because the number that identify as RB were shrinking.

Show threadLynnBrennerNov 16, 2022
@mikegalsworthy
Fascinating, thanks for posting.
Show threadJeniParsonsNov 16, 2022
@mikegalsworthy I thought this bit was particularly fascinating: ā€œInterestingly, this echoes results obtained in the largest ancient DNA study of Vikings published to date. In this study, a number of individuals who were buried as Vikings were found to be of local ancestry, which suggests that being a Viking was also a linguistic and cultural phenomenon rather than a genetic one.ā€ It makes the idea of ā€˜choosing to belongā€™ much older than one might think
Show threadMike Galsworthy šŸ¦£Nov 16, 2022

@JeniParsons

Exactly, right? It's fascinating.

Show threadBellaNov 16, 2022

@mikegalsworthy

Thanks for this. Always more to learn. I live not far from the site. About 3 years ago it was found during construction works for wind farm that the whole area was part of a large Anglo Saxon settlement. Thereā€™s also a palace remains found, currently under a non disclosure noticeā€¦ a sophisticated societal structure

Show threadRobertAWilsonNov 16, 2022
@mikegalsworthy Anglo Saxons were hardly early Britain. They were already a mix of two late invading tribes and only a short snip of time ago.
Show threadAmandaWrightNov 17, 2022
@mikegalsworthy I've just been reading Cat Jarman's book on the Vikings, River KIngs, showing how extensive their world was - Scandinavia to the Silk Roads. The Dark Ages were neither dark nor isolated.
Show threadSilentia7Nov 18, 2022
@mikegalsworthy it shows yet again that ethnicity and culture are not inextricably linked. After all finding a Coca Cola bottle somewhere doesnā€™t mean there are actual Americans nearby. Culture is customs, language and the way people express themselves in their decorations folklore and ceremonies.
Show threadJ Wigmore-WelshNov 19, 2022
@mikegalsworthy they obviously like having freedom of movement as well