A groundbreaking archaeological discovery has rewritten our understanding of early medieval England, revealing that two individuals buried in seventh-century cemeteries had recent West African ancestors. The stunning revelation, published in two articles in the journal Antiquity, represents the first genetic evidence connecting Britain and sub-Saharan Africa during the Early Middle Ages, challenging long-held assumptions about the demographic composition of Anglo-Saxon England.
Researchers from multiple universities performed ancient DNA analysis on skeletal remains from two seventh-century cemeteries on England’s south coast: Updown in Kent and Worth Matravers in Dorset. Their analysis uncovered that one individual at each cemetery possessed genetic markers indicating a recent ancestor, likely at the grandparent level, from West Africa.
The discovery adds an extraordinary new dimension to our understanding of early medieval Britain, suggesting a far more cosmopolitan population than previously imagined. While historical accounts describe the well-documented settlement of Angles, Saxons, and Jutes who gave their names to the Anglo-Saxon period, the extent of migration from regions beyond northern Europe remained largely unknown.
