Scientists have discovered that ancient families were formed by more than just blood

It's about redefining the concept of family.

Details

The study was conducted by archaeologists, anthropologists and geneticists who analysed data from ancient burial sites.

They compared

• genetic data (DNA of the remains)
• burial location
• archaeological context

It was previously thought that:

• people buried together are related

However, analyses have shown that:

• the same houses and burials contained people who were not genetically related
• and they were buried as members of the same family
• this points to social rather than biological ties

For example, at archaeological sites in Turkey:

• the dead were often buried under the floor of the same house
• but DNA showed that they weren't always related

Why it's important

The results are changing the way we think about ancient societies.

Scientists note:

• family may have been formed through living together and social bonding
• genetics only reflects biological kinship
• without archaeological context, the picture is incomplete

This is important for interpreting ancient cultures.

Background

Modern DNA analysis techniques are actively used in archaeology to reconstruct kinship relationships.

However, more and more research is showing that social structures are more complex and are not reducible to biology.

Source

The study is based on a comparison of archaeological data and ancient DNA analysis from monuments in Europe and Western Asia. The work was published in the Cambridge Archaeological Journal (2026).