The ground in Central Africa contains acidic soil and the climate is very hot and humid. Archeologists found ancient DNA could not survive these conditions and as a result, restricted DNA knowledge of ancient Africa. Until now. For the first time, researchers are doing an in-depth analysis of the DNA in western Central Africa. Four children were found buried beside each other from the Stone-Age to Metal-Age transition. Their children’s ages ranged from 4-15 years and were dated from 8,000 years and 3,000 years ago. They were buried under a natural rock structure, called the Shum Laka, that has been used for 30,000 years by the region and archeologists have found a number of artifacts and human remain under it. It was previously believed the ancient people were related to the Bantu people that live in the area today. But, it is now discovered through the children’s remains, who turned out to be distant cousins, that they’re are not at all related to the Bantu people but rather the western central African hunter-gather tribes in the region. A third of their DNA related to the tribe while the other two-thirds were that of the ghost population of West Africa. The site of the Shum Laka has been used as a look into the early culture of the Bantu people. Now, it is believed this site either contains multiple cultures or that of the children.
This breakthrough gives a new understanding of the mystery of where people came from and the lineage of Central Africa. This is super interesting to me because it proves that even with the technology and knowledge we have access to, we are continued to be surprised in the field of science. Since this is such a new discovery, I am intrigued to see what researchers find next in the region and if the will find more DNA to gather a better understanding.