Ancient DNA, pig domestication, and the spread of the Neolithic into Europe

TLDR

The Neolithic Revolution began roughly 11,000 years ago in the Near East and spread westward into Europe with agricultural societies and domesticated animals, yet the extent of admixture between indigenous and exotic populations remains debated. Using mitochondrial DNA from 544 pig samples (323 modern and 221 ancient) across western Eurasia, the study shows that Near Eastern domestic pigs were introduced into Europe during the Neolithic, likely via two routes, reaching the Paris Basin by the early 4th millennium B.C. The data reveal that local European wild boar were domesticated during the Neolithic, likely triggered by the arrival of Near Eastern pigs, and that these European pigs subsequently replaced the introduced stock across Europe, underscoring domestic pigs as a central element of the Neolithic Revolution and highlighting complex interactions during early farmer dispersal.

Abstract

The Neolithic Revolution began 11,000 years ago in the Near East and preceded a westward migration into Europe of distinctive cultural groups and their agricultural economies, including domesticated animals and plants. Despite decades of research, no consensus has emerged about the extent of admixture between the indigenous and exotic populations or the degree to which the appearance of specific components of the “Neolithic cultural package” in Europe reflects truly independent development. Here, through the use of mitochondrial DNA from 323 modern and 221 ancient pig specimens sampled across western Eurasia, we demonstrate that domestic pigs of Near Eastern ancestry were definitely introduced into Europe during the Neolithic (potentially along two separate routes), reaching the Paris Basin by at least the early 4th millennium B.C. Local European wild boar were also domesticated by this time, possibly as a direct consequence of the introduction of Near Eastern domestic pigs. Once domesticated, European pigs rapidly replaced the introduced domestic pigs of Near Eastern origin throughout Europe. Domestic pigs formed a key component of the Neolithic Revolution, and this detailed genetic record of their origins reveals a complex set of interactions and processes during the spread of early farmers into Europe.