Center for the Human Past
In the Media
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Surprising discovery in prehistoric DNA – traced to our kidneys
Read more →: Surprising discovery in prehistoric DNA – traced to our kidneysLatest research results from Mattias Jakobsson and his colleagues at the Human Evolution Program were featured on local TV (18 Apr 2026). By examining DNA from thousands of years-old bone fragments, researchers have found genetic changes that were present in prehistoric humans – and in us today. The researchers also made a surprising discovery: several…
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Homo sapiens-specific evolution unveiled by ancient southern African genomes, published in Nature
Read more →: Homo sapiens-specific evolution unveiled by ancient southern African genomes, published in NatureMattias Jakobsson and Carina Schlebusch are two co-authors of the study on ancient South Africans that was just published. Abstract Homo sapiens evolved hundreds of thousands of years ago in Africa, later spreading across the globe, but the early evolutionary process is debated. Here we present whole-genome sequencing data for 28 ancient southern African individuals, including…
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Stories of horses, people & Indo-European language
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Read more →: Stories of horses, people & Indo-European languageIn summer, Jenny Larsson and Axel Palmér talked with Karin Bojs about the intertwined history of people and horses. The conversations contributed to the recorded podcast series, “Shortcuts with Karin Bojs”, available on Swedish Radio (in Swedish). Hästar och indoeuropeiska språk har parallell historia (4/8) Från Vedaskrifter till Staffan Stalledräng (5/8)
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Fulani: new study unravels the genetic history of Africa’s largest pastoralist community
Read more →: Fulani: new study unravels the genetic history of Africa’s largest pastoralist communityA popular science feature on the recently published Fulani study (see our news item) is available in The Conversation – Africa. Carina Schlebusch and Cesar Fortes-Lima are two of three co-authors. African populations remain underrepresented in genomic studies. Only about 1.1% of genomic data being used for studies of the links between genes and diseases has come from…
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The Indo-European language puzzle can be solved
Read more →: The Indo-European language puzzle can be solvedIn response to the article The genetic origins of the Indo-Europeans, recently published in Nature, Jenny Larsson was one of the researchers interviewed by the popular science magazine Forskning & Framsteg. The text, Den Indoeuropeiska språkgåtan kan vara löst, based on the interviews, is available to the subscribers (in Swedish). Genetic researchers have cracked a…
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New read alert: Population history and admixture of the Fulani people from the Sahel
Read more →: New read alert: Population history and admixture of the Fulani people from the SahelThe new paper by Fortes-Lima, Diallo, Janoušek, Černý, and Schlebusch (2025) was published last week in The American Journal of Human Genetics. Researchers have uncovered the origins and genetic diversity of the Fulani, one of Africa’s largest pastoral populations. The study reveals a complex genetic ancestry with influences from North and West Africa, shaped by historical migrations that have left a…
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Prehistoric concept of joy, history of May Day and the Center for the Human Past.
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Read more →: Prehistoric concept of joy, history of May Day and the Center for the Human Past.On the Swedish Vetenskapsradion Historia, you can listen to Annelie Drakman’s talk about joy as divine grace or an individualistic project. Dick Harrison unravels the history of May Day, which was not always a great day for workers. Also, Jenny Larsson, a linguistics professor at Stockholm University and one of the Center for the Human…