Increased rate of close-kin unions in the central Andes in the half millennium before European contact.

ABSTRACT: Analyzing ancient DNA of the central Andes, Ringbauer and colleagues identify a markedly elevated rate of unions of closely related parents after ca. 1000 CE. This change of mating preferences sheds new light on a unique system of social organization based on ancestry ("ayllu") whereby within-group unions were preferred to facilitate sharing of resources.

SUBMITTER: Ringbauer H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11571662 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature