AUTHOR=Allen Edward , Yu Yao , Yang Xiaomin , Xu Yiran , Du Panxin , Xiong Jianxue , Chen Dian , Tian Xiaohong , Wu Yong , Qin Xiaoli , Sheng Pengfei , Wang Chuan-Chao , Wen Shaoqing 

TITLE=Multidisciplinary lines of evidence reveal East/Northeast Asian origins of agriculturalist/pastoralist residents at a Han dynasty military outpost in ancient Xinjiang

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution

VOLUME=10

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/ecology-and-evolution/articles/10.3389/fevo.2022.932004

DOI=10.3389/fevo.2022.932004

ISSN=2296-701X

ABSTRACT=<p>Han/non-Han interactions were engrained among the border regions of ancient Imperial China. Yet, little is known about either the genetic origins or the lifeways of these border peoples. Our study applies tools from ancient deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and stable isotope analysis to the study of a Han dynasty population at the Shichengzi site in modern-day Xinjiang. Isotopic analysis (δ<sup>13</sup>C and δ<sup>15</sup>N) of human (<italic>n</italic> = 8), animal (<italic>n</italic> = 26), and crop remains (<italic>n</italic> = 23) from Shichengzi indicated that dietary patterns among site inhabitants could be split among agro-pastoral and agricultural groups based on differences in the collagen <sup>15</sup>N ratios. DNA analysis divided the four Shichengzi samples into two groups, with one group primarily harboring the ancient Northeast Asian (ANA) related ancestry, while the other showed a dominant Late Neolithic Yellow River (YR_LN) related ancestry. Both ancient DNA and stable isotope evidence point to the Northeast Asian origins of pastoralists and East Asian origins of Han agriculturalists, who, nonetheless, shared a single burial space at Shichengzi. This study thus provides clear evidence for the multiple origins and identities of populations across the porous border represented by the Han Empire and surrounding regions and proposes a new model for the interpretation of border culture in early Imperial China.</p>