For centuries, historical and linguistic theories have shaped our understanding of the origins of the Armenian people. Among these is the assertion by Greek historian Herodotus, who observed that Armenians, while serving in the Persian army, dressed and carried arms in the Phrygian style. Furthermore, linguistic studies reinforced this theory by identifying similarities between the Armenian language and the Thraco-Phrygian subgroup of Indo-European languages.

However, a recent study based on complete genomic analyses has challenged these beliefs, presenting a more complex and scientific narrative about the history of Armenians.

The research, published in the American Journal of Human Genetics, compared the genomes of modern Armenians and ancient individuals from the Armenian Highlands with genetic data from ancient and modern populations in the Balkans. The results revealed that there is no significant genetic link between Armenians and Balkan populations, thereby contradicting the theory of a shared origin.

Armenians
The orange, blue, and red colors represent our categorization of generated whole-genome modern samples into western, central, and eastern Armenian groups, respectively (populations are denoted as W, C, and E on a smaller map). The sampling areas of ancient populations are shown in rectangles, with colors matching those of their geographically corresponding modern Armenians. Apart from geographic considerations, the division of modern Armenian groups is based on their linguistic, historical, and cultural peculiarities. While western and central regions of the Armenian highlands experienced long periods of Ottoman rule and subsequent dispersion of their populations, the eastern parts were held by the Persian and later the Russian Empire. After the displacement in the early 20th century from the western and central regions of the highlands, Armenians today are predominantly located within the territory of the Republic of Armenia, from where most of the samples in this study have been collected. As seen on the map, the Sasun population (denoted as S on a smaller map) is located within the central Armenian group. However, in some of our analyses, we treated it as a distinct group when aiming to investigate the question of its origin. Credit: Anahit Hovhannisyan et al.

According to Dr. Anahit Hovhannisyan, lead researcher of the study and a member of Trinity College Dublin, advances in whole-genome sequencing and ancient DNA analysis have allowed researchers to question widely accepted ideas. For centuries, historical beliefs have shaped our perception of the past, leading us to accept theories as absolute truths. However, genetics enables us to rethink these ideas, offering a more nuanced and evidence-based perspective, she stated.

The study also debunked another deeply rooted belief: the alleged Assyrian ancestry of the Sasun Armenian group, which inhabited the southern part of the Armenian Highlands, in what is now southeastern Turkey. Although this connection has been mentioned in historical sources, cuneiform texts, biblical accounts, and local traditions, genetic analyses found no evidence to support this theory.

On the contrary, researchers identified that the Sasun population experienced a significant demographic contraction in recent times, setting them apart from other Armenian groups. This finding suggests that traditional narratives may be influenced more by cultural and political factors than by genetics.

Armenians
An Armenian family at the beginning of the 20th century. Credit: Public domain / Wikimedia Commons

One of the study’s most intriguing discoveries is the identification of genetic influence in the region from Neolithic Levantine farmers after the Early Bronze Age. This genetic influx aligns with similar findings in adjacent regions, suggesting the existence of large-scale migration across the Middle East. However, questions about the precise origin, timing, and causes of this massive migration remain unanswered and will require further investigation.

Professor Andrea Manica, from the University of Cambridge and a principal co-author of the study, emphasized the importance of these findings for understanding the migratory processes that shaped ancient populations.

The study also explored population structure and genetic variation among different Armenian groups, concluding that populations from the eastern, western, and central Armenian Highlands exhibit a high degree of genetic similarity. This finding highlights the genetic continuity in the region over time, despite migrations and historical changes.

This is the first attempt to construct a genetic atlas of the Armenian Highlands, noted Professor Levon Yepiskoposyan of the Institute of Molecular Biology in Armenia and a co-author of the study.

SOURCES

Trinity College Dublin

Anahit Hovhannisyan, Pierpaolo Maisano Delser, et al., Demographic history and genetic variation of the Armenian population. The American Journal of Human Genetics, 2024; DOI: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2024.10.022

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