Orta Doğu Teknik Üniversitesi Enformatik Enstitüsü
Abstract
We present partial ancient genomes from 13 individuals from the Pre-Pottery Neolithic period of Çayönü Tepesi in present-day Diyarbakır, Turkey. The sample coversa 1,000 year range, between approximately 10,500-9,500 years ago, and represents the first ancient genome set yet published from Upper Mesopotamia. Pre-Pottery Neolithic Çayönü was a sedentary community, with largely hunter-gatherersubsistence,but at the same time heavily experimenting with crop cultivation and animal management. Neolithic Çayönü is also known for its remarkable cultural dynamism reflected in diverse architectural styles and changing mortuary practices. Our genome data suggest that the Çayönü population, most likely representing that of Upper Mesopotamia, emerged through admixture between groups from eastern and western Fertile Crescent, namely the Central Zagros and Central Anatolia/Levant, respectively. We find that the Çayönü genetic profile is the best candidate for "eastern" gene flow into Central Anatolia by the 7th millennium BCE, marking Upper Mesopotamia as a potentialcontributing ancestry source to sites such as Çatalhöyük. We further determineclose genetic kinship among individuals co-buried underneath floors of domestic buildings, in support of the notion that household membership was related to biological family ties in thePre-Pottery Neolithic, a pattern that appears to have changed in later sites such as Çatalhöyük and Barcın. Finally, using the genomic data and pedigree simulations we identifya possible third-generation migrant infant of likely Central Zagros descent in our sample, implying that the Çayönü communitywas open to immigration
