This designation reflected the fact that the USR1 genome showed a deep divergence from the later Native American population branches that are represented in ancient and modern samples from across the Americas, suggesting that the individual belonged to a founding lineage that had separated early in the history of the Beringian ancestral population.

Ancient Beringian, as a term, is a modern scientific label.

It is not a historical tribal name, not a cultural category that the people it refers to would have used or recognized, and not a designation that implies any specific language, material culture, or social organization.

It is a population-genetic designation — a label for a group of ancient people who share a specific pattern of genetic ancestry, reflecting a specific position in the branching genealogy of Native American founding populations.

The Ancient Beringian designation emerged from the comparison of USR1’s genome with other ancient and modern Native American genomes.