Tracking Health and Ancestry Impact of the Greek colonisation in Southern Italy

The period of Greek colonisation between 900 and 500 BC was one of the most formative periods of classical antiquity.

Historical and archaeological research has greatly informed our understanding of this era, but the exact nature and demographic impact of the colonisation process remains unclear.

The THAIS project will shed new light on this process by combining existing archaeological evidence with new ancient DNA data based on the analysis of human skeletal remains from four archaeological sites in Southern Italy, one of the focal points of Greek colonisation.

Using archaeological and molecular lines of evidence, the project will address the following objectives: 1) reconstruct the genetic ancestry and kinship structures of the local Italic population in southern Italy; 2) investigate the origins of the Greek colonists at two colonial sites (Metaponto and Siris); 3) assess nature and demographic impact of the Greek colonisation by investigating possible admixture processes and sex-biased migration, and 4) investigate the genetic legacies and lasting health impact of the Greek colonisation in Southern Italy.

The THAIS project will be the first to use ancient DNA analysis to study the impact of the Greek colonisation and together with archaeological lines of evidence will provide new information on the colonisation process and the interactions between the colonists and the indigenous Italic population at a key moment in Mediterranean history.