Major migration events in Holocene Eurasia have been characterized genetically at broad regional scales1–4. However, insights into the population dynamics in the contact zones are hampered by a lack of ancient genomic data sampled at high spatiotemporal resolution5–7. Here, to address this, we analysed shotgun-sequenced genomes from 100 skeletons spanning 7,300 years of the Mesolithic period, Neolithic period and Early Bronze Age in Denmark and integrated these with proxies for diet (13C and 15N content), mobility (87Sr/86Sr ratio) and vegetation cover (pollen). We observe that Danish Mesolithic individuals of the Maglemose, Kongemose and Ertebølle cultures form a distinct genetic cluster related to other Western European hunter-gatherers. Despite shifts in material culture they displayed genetic homogeneity from around 10,500 to 5,900 calibrated years before present, when Neolithic farmers with Anatolian-derived ancestry arrived. Although the Neolithic transitio
Åland Islands
The Åland Islands are an archipelago located in the Baltic Sea, at the southern end of the Gulf of Bothnia in southwestern Finland. Since 1921, the Åland Islands are a self-governing and demilitarized region under the Republic of Finland. The Åland islands are bordered by the Sea of Åland and the Archipelago Sea and are geographically positioned between southwestern Finland and eastern Sweden.
Geography
The Åland archipelago covers a total area of 1,551 km
2 and comprises approximately 300 islands and over 6,200 small rocky islands. Out of these 300 islands, only 80 islands are inhabited. The archipelago occupies just 0.51% of Finland’s total land area and is therefore considered its smallest region. Fasta Åland is the biggest and most populated island in the archipelago. The archipelago’s administrative capital, its principal town and major seaport, Mariehamn, is located on Fasta Åland.