The Ancient North Siberians are one such snapshot: a 31,000-year-old image of a human population that was once real, that lived and hunted and raised children in the Ice Age Arctic, and that has left only molecular traces in the modern genetic world.

The Population History Of A Vast Region

The Sikora et al.

2019 study was not just about the Yana children.

It was a comprehensive reconstruction of the population history of northeastern Siberia across the full span from the Pleistocene to the historic period, using the largest set of ancient genomes from the region ever assembled at that time.

The picture that emerged was one of remarkable complexity and dynamism.

Martin Sikora described the key finding this way: “The key finding is that northeastern Siberia was a surprisingly dynamic place.