Female lineages and changing kinship patterns in Neolithic Çatalhöyük

Area of Science:

• Paleogenomics
• Archaeology
• Social Anthropology

Background:

• Çatalhöyük, a major Neolithic settlement in Central Anatolia, offers insights into early societal structures.
• Understanding kinship and gendered practices is crucial for reconstructing past societies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate changes in social organization and gendered practices at Neolithic Çatalhöyük.
• To analyze kinship structures and mobility patterns over 1000 years.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of 131 paleogenomes.
• Integration with bioarchaeological and archaeological data.
• Examination of burial patterns and grave goods.

Main Results:

• Early Çatalhöyük showed house-based family units; later periods featured unrelated individuals in the same houses.
• No evidence of sex-biased migration into the settlement was found.
• Maternal genetic connections within buildings predominated over paternal ones across all periods.
• Female subadults received more frequent grave gifts than male subadults.

Conclusions:

• Kinship practices evolved significantly at Neolithic Çatalhöyük.
• Practices favoring maternal lines persisted for a millennium.
• This study illuminates the dynamic nature of Neolithic social organization and gender roles.