Unearth a groundbreaking finding: Ancient DNA unveils that Çatalhöyük, a 9,000-year-old proto-city in Turkey, may have been a female-centered society. The latest research published in Science reveals women held significant roles in this early agricultural community, challenging previous assumptions. Mehmet Somel’s findings highlight the oldest genetically inferred female-centered social structure in food-producing societies. Explore the unique architecture, burial practices, and symbolic art of Çatalhöyük, which housed people around 7100 B.C. for a millennium. Analysis of the ancient DNA illuminates the meaning of maternal lineages compared to those of the patriarchal structures seen in Europe. News Directory 3 brings you this exclusive report on this pivotal discovery. Discover what’s next as researchers analyze earlier societies to unveil if Çatalhöyük was truly unique.
Ancient DNA Suggests Çatalhöyük Was Female-Centered
New analysis of ancient DNA from Stone Age burials in Turkey suggests the proto-city of Çatalhöyük, dating back 9,000 years, may have been a female-centered society. The findings, published in Science, support the idea that women and girls held significant roles in this early agricultural community.
Mehmet Somel, an evolutionary geneticist at Middle East Technical University, said the research reveals the oldest genetically-inferred social institution pattern in food-producing societies, which appears to be female-centered.
Çatalhöyük, located in south-central Turkey, was inhabited around 7100 B.C. for nearly 1,000 years. The settlement is known for its unique architecture, including houses entered from the roofs, burials beneath the floors, and symbolic art featuring female figurines.
Early excavations in the 1960s led some to believe the figurines represented a matriarchal society wiht “mother goddess” worship. later research suggested a more egalitarian structure.
To investigate further,researchers analyzed DNA from 131 skeletons dating between 7100 and 5800 B.C. The analysis revealed that first-degree relatives were buried together, suggesting family played a key role in structuring households. Furthermore, intergenerational connections were primarily based on maternal lineages.
Somel noted that the clear maternal connections indicate that male-centered practices seen in Neolithic and Bronze Age europe were not universal.
The ancient DNA analysis also determined the biological sex of infants, revealing a trend of more burial gifts for female babies, which was unexpected, Somel said.
Jens Notroff, an archaeologist at the German Archaeological Institute, said this is the first systematic evidence of a continuously matrilineally organized Neolithic community.
Benjamin Arbuckle,an archaeologist at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill,noted the difficulty some scholars have in imagining female power structures,despite evidence of matriarchal systems.
The findings raise questions about when and why a shift in social organization occurred compared to the patrilineal patterns seen in Neolithic Europe.Researchers plan to analyze data from earlier societies in the region to determine if Çatalhöyük is unique.