Micronesia Ancient DNA

Micronesia began to be peopled at least as early as any other part of Remote Oceania, but the origins of its inhabitants remain unclear. We generated genome-wide data from 123 ancient individuals and co-analyzed with data from diverse modern and ancient individuals to document five streams of migration into the region: three related to East Asians, one to Papuans, and one to Polynesians. Indigenous people of the Marianas archipelago are consistent with deriving all their pre-colonial ancestry from East Asian-derived groups and are the only Remote Oceanians without evidence of Papuan ancestry. Female-inherited mitochondrial DNA was highly differentiated across early Remote Oceanian communities but homogeneous within communities, implying matrilocal social practices whereby women rarely moved households after marriage.