Through the Lens of Genetics, Genographic Project and University of Pennsylvania Scientists Illuminate the Ancient History of Circumarctic Peoples

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CONTACT: Glynnis Breen Colby Bishop (202) 857-7481 (202) 828-8075 gbreen@ngs.org cbishop@ngs.

1 CONTACT: Glynnis Breen Colby Bishop (202) (202) Through the Lens of Genetics, Genographic Project and University of Pennsylvania Scientists Illuminate the Ancient History of Circumarctic Peoples PHILADELPHIA (May 17, 2012) Two studies led by National Geographic s Genographic Project scientists and University of Pennsylvania anthropologists reveal new information about the migration patterns of the first humans to settle the Americas. The studies identify the historical relationships among various groups of Native American and First Nations peoples and present the first clear evidence of the genetic impact of the groups cultural practices. For many of these populations, this is the first time their genetics have been analyzed on a population scale. One study, published in the American Journal of Physical Anthropology, focuses on the Haida and Tlingit communities of southeastern Alaska. The other study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, considers the genetic histories of three groups that live in the Northwest Territories of Canada. Establishing shared markers in the DNA of people living in the circumarctic region, the team of scientists uncovered evidence of interactions among the various tribes over the last several hundred years. The researchers used these clues to determine how humans migrated to and settled in North America up to 20,000 years ago, after crossing the land bridge from today s Russia, an area known as Beringia.

2 SCHURR, CIRCUMARCTIC PEOPLES (PAGE 2) University of Pennsylvania houses the Genographic Project s North American research center. Lead author, Genographic Project Principal Investigator for North America and Associate Professor in Penn s Department of Anthropology Theodore Schurr said: These studies inform our understanding of the initial peopling process in the Americas, what happened after people moved through and who remained behind in Beringia. Both papers also confirm theories that linguists had posited about population divisions among circumarctic populations, based on analyses of spoken languages. Schurr contributed to both papers, along with Penn colleagues Matthew Dulik, Amanda Owings, Jill Gaieski and Miguel Vilar. The first paper focused on the Haida and Tlingit tribes of southeastern Alaska, which have similar material culture. They share potlatch, or rituals of feasting, totemic motifs and a type of social organization that is based on matrilineal clans and moieties [social groups], said Schurr. Using cheek swab DNA samples, the analyses confirmed that the two tribes although they possessed some similarities in their mitochondrial DNA makeup were quite distinct from one another. Comparing the DNA from the Tlingit and Haida tribes with samples from other circumarctic groups further suggested that the Haida had been relatively isolated for a significant period of time. This isolation had already been suspected by linguists, who have questioned whether the Haida language belonged in the Na-Dene language family a family that encompasses Tlingit, Eyak and Athapaskan languages. In the clan system of Haida and Tlingit peoples, children inherit the clan status and territory of their mothers. Each clan is divided in two moieties, or social groups, for example the Eagle and the Raven in the Tlingit tribe. Traditionally, a person from the Raven clan married someone from the Eagle clan and vice versa. Part of what we were interested in testing was whether we could see clear genetic evidence of that social practice in these groups, Schurr said. In fact, we could, demonstrating the importance of culture in molding human genetic diversity. The other paper expands this view of circumarctic peoples to closely consider the genetic histories of three groups that live in the Northwest Territories of Canada: the Inuvialuit, the Gwich in and the Tlicho peoples. The Inuivialuit language belongs to the Eskimo-Aleut language family, while the Gwich in and Tlicho speak languages belonging to the Na-Dene family and the Athapaskan subgroup.

3 SCHURR, CIRCUMARCTIC PEOPLES (PAGE 3) In this study, the researchers analyzed 100 individual mutations and 19 short stretches of DNA from all individuals sampled, obtaining the highest-resolution Y chromosome data ever from these groups. The team s results indicate several new genetic markers that define previously unknown lineages, or branches, of the family tree of circumarctic groups. One marker, found in the Inuvialuit but not the other two groups, suggests that this group arose from an Arctic migration event somewhere between 4,000 and 8,000 years ago, separate from the migration that gave rise to many of the speakers of the Na-Dene language group. If we re correct [this lineage] was present across the entire Arctic and in Beringia, said Schurr. This means it traces a separate expansion of Eskimo-Aleut-speaking peoples across this region. Many of the native groups who have participated in both studies are also enthusiastic collaborators, said Schurr. What we find fits very nicely with their own reckoning of ancestry and descent and with their other historical records. We ve gotten a lot of support from these communities. Additional contributors to the American Journal of Physical Anthropology paper are Sergey Zhadanov of Penn, Judy Ramos of the Yakutat Tlingit Tribe, Mary Beth Moss of the Huna Indian Association, Francis Natkong of the Hydaburg Cooperative Association and the Genographic Consortium. For the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences paper, the Penn team worked with Alestine Andre, Ingrid Kritsch, Sharon Snowshoe and Ruth Wright of the Gwich in Social and Cultural Institute; Crystal Lennie of the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation; Mary Adele Mackenzie, James Martin and Nancy Gibson of the Tlicho Community Services Authority; Thomas Andrews of the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Center; and the Genographic Consortium. The Genographic Project, launched in 2005, enters its eighth year this spring. Nearly 75,000 participants from over 1,000 indigenous populations around the world have joined the initiative, along with more than 440,000 members of the general public who have purchased a testing kit online, swabbed their cheeks and sent their samples to the Genographic lab for processing. This unprecedented collection of samples and data is a scientific resource that the project plans to

4 SCHURR, CIRCUMARCTIC PEOPLES (PAGE 4) leverage moving forward. Genographic Project Director and National Geographic Explorer-in- Residence Dr. Spencer Wells noted, Perhaps the most extraordinary finding to come out of these two studies is the way the traditional stories and the linguistic patterns correlate with the genetic data. Genetics complements our understanding of history, but doesn t replace other components of group identity. Background: The Genographic Project seeks to chart new knowledge about the migratory history of the human species and answer age-old questions surrounding the genetic diversity of humanity. The project is a nonprofit, multi-year, global research partnership of National Geographic and IBM with field support by the Waitt Family Foundation. At the core of the project is a global consortium of 11 regional scientific teams following an ethical and scientific framework and who are responsible for sample collection and analysis in their respective regions. Members of the public can participate in the Genographic Project by purchasing a public participation kit from the Genographic website ( where they can also choose to donate their genetic results to the expanding database. Sales of the kits help fund research and support a Legacy Fund for indigenous and traditional peoples community-led language revitalization and cultural projects. The University of Pennsylvania is an Ivy League institution with a distinctive past. Its 12 undergraduate, graduate and professional schools are located in Philadelphia on an attractive urban campus that serves as a diverse community of more than 20,000 students from throughout the nation and around the world. Ranked consistently among the top 10 universities in the nation, Penn has a longstanding reputation for excellence in graduate and professional education, with a number of its graduate and professional schools ranked at or near the top in their fields. *************************************************** The National Geographic Society is one of the world s largest nonprofit scientific and educational organizations. Founded in 1888 to increase and diffuse geographic knowledge, the Society s mission is to inspire people to care about the planet. It reaches more than 400 million people worldwide each month through its official journal, National Geographic, and other magazines; National Geographic Channel; television documentaries; music; radio; films; books; DVDs; maps; exhibitions; live events; school publishing programs; interactive media; and merchandise. National Geographic has funded more than 10,000 scientific research, conservation and exploration projects and supports

5 an education program promoting geographic literacy. For more information, visit ###

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