@article {333525,
	title = {Reconstruction of the lifeways of Central European Late Bronze Age communities using ancient DNA, isotope and osteoarchaeological analyses},
	journal = {Nature Communications},
	volume = {17},
	year = {2026},
	month = {2026/02/24},
	abstract = {<p><meta charset="UTF-8" />The Late Bronze Age (ca. 1300\&ndash;800 BCE) of Central Europe is often characterised as a period of increasing mobility, socioeconomic transformation, environmental fluctuations, and expanding cultural networks. However, reconstructing the demographic aspects of these changes has been hindered by cremation being the dominant mortuary practice, limiting biomolecular approaches. Here, we integrate ancient DNA, oxygen and strontium isotope analyses, and osteoarchaeology to examine rare inhumation burials from Kuckenburg and Esperstedt in Central Germany (n\&thinsp;=\&thinsp;36) and compare them to contemporaneous inhumations from the neighbouring regions of South Germany, Bohemia (Czechia) and Southwest/Central Poland (n\&thinsp;=\&thinsp;33). Genome-wide data show genetic continuity with preceding Early Bronze Age populations, alongside gradual increases in Early European Farmer-related ancestry, albeit with regionally different timing and extent, reflecting a nuanced pattern of mobility and admixture. Oxygen and strontium isotope data from Central Germany indicate that most individuals match the local isotope signal, including those who were cremated or had a different diet, and with only a few isotopic outliers, suggesting that mobility was present but not extensive. Overall, our findings suggest that the diverse inhumation practices at Kuckenburg and Esperstedt were culturally motivated, reflecting local traditions and ongoing regional interconnectedness rather than the influx of new genetic groups or non-local individuals.</p>
},
	isbn = {2041-1723},
	doi = {https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-69895-y},
	url = {https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-026-69895-y},
	author = {Orfanou, Eleftheria and Ghalichi, Ayshin and Rohrlach, Adam B. and Paust, Enrico and Andrades Valtue{\~n}a, Aida and Ern{\'e}e, Michal and Furmanek, Miros{\l}aw and Ha{\l}uszko, Agata and Hermes, Taylor and Himmel, Marie and Ilgner, Jana and Krause, Johannes and K{\"u}{\ss}ner, Mario and Lamnidis, Thiseas Christos and Lucas, Mary and Ad{\'a}mkov{\'a} Malykov{\'a}, Drahom{\'\i}ra and Meller, Harald and Neumann, Gunnar U. and Papac, Luka and Penske, Sandra and Salinger, Maike and Schrader, Sarah A. and Schunke, Torsten and Semerau, Lena and Smejtek, Lubor and Traverso, Luca and Zach, Barbara and Spengler, Robert and Stockhammer, Philipp W. and Wahl, Joachim and Snoeck, Christophe and Ettel, Peter and Schneider, Florian N. and Roberts, Patrick and Haak, Wolfgang}
}
