Ancient DNA reveals a mysterious indigenous group lost 2,000 years ago in Colombia.

A new study has revealed the existence of a previously unknown human genetic line in what is now Colombia . Researchers have analyzed ancient DNA from the remains of hunter-gatherers who lived in the Altiplano region, near present-day Bogotá, approximately 6,000 years ago. The discovery was surprising: their genomes represent a unique lineage that disappeared about 2,000 years ago.

The Colombian Altiplano , an Andean plateau home to key archaeological sites , was the scene of significant cultural changes during the early to mid-Holocene, between 11,700 and 4,000 years ago. While periods like the Herrera Period, famous for its ceramics from around 2,800 years ago , were already known, scientists were still debating how and when these innovations arrived in the area, Live Science reports.

To shed light on population movements, the team sequenced the genomes of 21 skeletons recovered from five archaeological sites in the Altiplano , with chronologies ranging from 6,000 years ago to just 530 years ago. Of these, seven genomes came from the Checua site (6,000 years ago), nine from the Herrera period (2,000 years ago), three from the Muisca period (between 1,200 and 500 years ago), and two from Guane individuals from northern Bogotá (530 years ago).

The genomes extracted from Checua corresponded to a small group of hunter-gatherers whose genetic ancestry had no close relatives in either ancient or modern populations of Central America, North America, or other regions of South America. The data indicate that these individuals derive from the first population that rapidly dispersed throughout South America after arriving on the continent.

The hunter-gatherer group had no close relatives in either ancient or modern populations.

But the mystery is that around 4,000 years ago, that primitive population had completely disappeared : no genetic traits of those hunter-gatherers persist in later groups from the Altiplano . This suggests a complete replacement of the original population, leaving no direct genetic descendants in the Bogotá area.

Researchers propose that the cultural transformations associated with the beginning of the Herrera period—such as the widespread adoption of ceramics—were not the result of local evolution, but rather arrived through migrations from Central America. Furthermore, it is postulated that these populations also introduced the Chibchan languages ​​to the Altiplano, which are still spoken in that region today.

The mystery is that around 4,000 years ago that primitive population had completely disappeared.

Later samples from the Altiplano show genetic ancestry more similar to that of pre-Hispanic individuals from Panama than to that of early Colombians, suggesting multiple waves of Chibchan expansion into South America . Furthermore, traces of Chibchan ancestry have been found in remains from Venezuela , although less closely linked to the Colombian case, suggesting several phases of migration and genetic mixing in the region.

Finally, the study's authors indicate that future research should sequence more ancient genomes from the Altiplano and surrounding areas to determine the dates and routes of arrival of Central American populations. This would allow us to better understand the extent to which migrations and cultural exchanges shaped the ancestral history of the Colombian Andean plateau.

A new study has revealed the existence of a previously unknown human genetic line in what is now Colombia . Researchers have analyzed ancient DNA from the remains of hunter-gatherers who lived in the Altiplano region, near present-day Bogotá, approximately 6,000 years ago. The discovery was surprising: their genomes represent a unique lineage that disappeared about 2,000 years ago.