David Reich – The Conversation

How are people today related to those who lived centuries ago in the Swahili civilization? The Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs/Flickr

April 5, 2023

Ancient DNA is restoring the origin story of the Swahili people of the East African coast

Chapurukha Kusimba, University of South Florida and David Reich, Harvard University

The first ancient DNA sequences from peoples of the medieval Swahili civilization push aside colonialist stories and reveal genetic connections from the past.

Partial layout of the graves discovered during the excavation at the medieval Jewish cemetery of Erfurt. Thuringian State Office for Heritage Management and Archaeology/Karin Sczech + Katharina Bielefeld

November 30, 2022

Ancient DNA from the teeth of 14th‑century Ashkenazi Jews in Germany already included genetic variations common in modern Jews

Shai Carmi, Hebrew University of Jerusalem and David Reich, Harvard University

A German town needed to relocate a medieval graveyard to build a parking garage. A positive side effect: Scientists got to sequence the DNA of Ashkenazi Jews who lived more than 600 years ago.

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