Archaeologists have analysed the DNA of two unrelated individuals buried in seventh-century cemeteries on England’s south coast, revealing that both had recent ancestors—likely grandparents—from West Africa. The discovery provides new insight into the extent of long-distance migration and cultural integration during the Early Middle Ages.
During this period, England experienced significant migration from continental northern Europe, with historical accounts describing the settlement of Angles, Saxons, and Jutes—groups that gave their names to the Anglo-Saxon period. However, the degree of movement from further afield has been less clear.
“Migration and its direction, scale and impact have been much debated in European archaeology,” state the authors of the new studies. “Archaeogenetic research can now provide new insight, even identifying individual migrants.”
Two Cemeteries, Two Stories
Excavation at the post-Roman cemetery at Worth Matravers cemetery. Photo by Lilian Ladle
To explore the scale of migration in early medieval Europe, researchers from several universities conducted ancient DNA analysis on individuals buried at two seventh-century cemeteries: Updown in Kent and Worth Matravers in Dorset. Their findings are published in two separate articles in the journal Antiquity, each focused on one cemetery.
“Kent has always been a conduit for influence from the adjacent continent and this was particularly marked in the sixth century—what might be termed Kent’s ‘Frankish Phase’,” explains Professor Duncan Sayer from the University of Central Lancashire, lead author of the Updown study. “Updown is also located near to the royal centre of Finglesham, indicating that these connections were part of a wider royal network.”
Dr Ceiridwen J. Edwards from the University of Huddersfield, who led the Worth Matravers study, notes a stark regional difference. “In contrast, Dorset sat on the fringes of continental influence. The archaeological evidence suggests a marked and notable cultural divide between Dorset and areas to the west, and the Anglo-Saxon influenced areas to the east.”
West African Ancestry in Early Medieval England
While most individuals in the cemeteries had northern European or western British and Irish ancestry—common in England at the time—one person at each site had a recent ancestor from West Africa.
In both cases, mitochondrial DNA (inherited from the mother) was northern European, but autosomal DNA (inherited from both parents) showed clear signs of non-European ancestry with affinities to present-day Yoruba, Mende, Mandenka, and Esan groups from sub-Saharan West Africa. This indicates genetically and geographically mixed descent, with further analysis suggesting each had a paternal grandparent from West Africa.
The proportion of West African ancestry in both cases—between 20 and 40 percent—points to an admixture event just two generations before their deaths, likely in the mid-seventh century. Counting back from this period suggests their African ancestors may have left the southern Sahel between the mid-sixth and early seventh centuries, a time when North Africa was under Byzantine control following the reconquest of AD 533–534.
The Updown Girl: Family, Grave, and Artefacts
Human skeletal remains in a grave at the Updown cemetery, along with a plan indicating the positionin of grave goods – photo courtesy Antiquity
The Updown individual was an 11–13-year-old girl buried in grave 47, surrounded by relatives on her mother’s side. Genetic analysis revealed her maternal grandmother (grave 34), her maternal aunt (grave 45), and a more distant male relative—likely her maternal great-grandfather (grave 52)—were also interred in the cemetery. None of these relatives carried West African ancestry, indicating that the girl’s paternal line was the source of her mixed heritage.
Her grave goods tell their own story. Placed near her feet was a decorated, biconical pot—likely imported from Frankish Gaul, though with unusual decoration suggesting possible local manufacture. By her left hip were a knife, a bone comb, and an iron spoon, possibly contained in a bag with copper-alloy mounts. The knife was utilitarian, but the spoon could have symbolic meaning, associated in other Kentish burials with Christian faith or used as an amulet. The comb, a double-sided antler piece, may have been a keepsake or gift, and could reflect grooming traditions that were both personal and social.
Parallels to such spoon-and-comb combinations exist in other Kentish burials, often linked to adult female identity and sometimes Christian symbolism. That a subadult girl was buried with these items may reflect her expected social role, or perhaps special status within her community.
The research team also considered whether her African ancestry might have been visible in her appearance—hair texture, skin tone, or facial features—but noted that poor bone preservation made this uncertain.
The Worth Matravers Man
The individual from Worth Matravers was a 17–25-year-old man buried in a double grave alongside an unrelated adult male whose head rested on a limestone anchor. Like the Updown girl, his mitochondrial DNA was northern European, but his autosomal DNA carried strong West African signals. Stable isotope analysis also indicated regular shellfish consumption, suggesting a local coastal diet.
Unlike Updown, Worth Matravers lay outside the core Anglo-Saxon cultural zone, in a region with stronger continuity from the Roman and Iron Age populations. The man’s ancestry was predominantly western British and Irish, but his burial style matched that of others in the cemetery, indicating he was treated as a full member of his community.
Archaeological evidence shows that Worth Matravers was a relatively insular settlement compared to Kent, with fewer continental imports and a strong local material culture. Yet the presence of a man with recent West African ancestry — likely a paternal grandparent — points to far-reaching connections, possibly through maritime trade or indirect migration routes. His burial alongside a local man, and the symbolic limestone anchor, underscores the integration of individuals from diverse backgrounds into early medieval coastal communities.
Trade, Travel, and Cultural Connections
The presence of West African ancestry in both eastern and western parts of southern Britain challenges older assumptions about the insularity of early medieval communities. It also aligns with archaeological evidence for long-distance connections across the Mediterranean and beyond.
Byzantine North Africa in the sixth and seventh centuries was a hub of commerce, exporting grain, oil, and luxury goods. Trade routes linked the region to the eastern Mediterranean, the Near East, and Europe, while goods—such as Byzantine coins, textiles, amethysts, and garnets—reached even distant England. The period also saw the movement of individuals, whether as merchants, travellers, or through more coercive means. While the large-scale trans-Saharan slave trade to the Islamic Caliphate is documented for later centuries, the authors consider opportunistic movement along trade routes a more likely explanation for these two individuals’ ancestry.
Cultural Integration in Early Medieval England
The archaeological context indicates that both individuals were fully integrated into their respective communities. At Updown, the girl’s burial was consistent with the customs of a prominent Kentish centre, in a period when local law codes emphasised paternal lineage in determining social identity. At Worth Matravers, the man’s burial with a local companion reinforces his acceptance in a genetically distinct community.
“Rarely does a volunteer-led project have the good fortune to be associated with a study incorporating the latest cutting-edge analysis of aDNA,” says Lilian Ladle, director of the excavations at Worth Matravers. “This study has greatly enhanced our interpretation of the archaeological results by revealing not only fascinating family dynamics, but also exciting long-distance links between groups and individuals.”
Professor Sayer highlights the importance of the findings: “It is significant that it is human DNA—and therefore the movement of people, and not just objects—that is now starting to reveal the nature of long-distance interaction to the continent, Byzantium and sub-Saharan Africa. What is fascinating about these two individuals is that this international connection is found in both the east and west of Britain. Updown is right in the centre of the early Anglo-Saxon cultural zone and Worth Matravers, by contrast, is just outside its periphery in the sub-Roman west.”
Dr Edwards concludes, “Our joint results emphasise the cosmopolitan nature of England in the early medieval period, pointing to a diverse population with far-flung connections who were, nonetheless, fully integrated into the fabric of daily life.”
These findings are published in two articles in Antiquity:
Top Image: Human skeletal remains in a double burial at the Worth Matravers cemetery, along with the anchor stone found underneath the older individual’s head (Photo by Lilian Ladle, modified by Ceiridwen J. Edwards)
Archaeologists have analysed the DNA of two unrelated individuals buried in seventh-century cemeteries on England’s south coast, revealing that both had recent ancestors—likely grandparents—from West Africa. The discovery provides new insight into the extent of long-distance migration and cultural integration during the Early Middle Ages.
During this period, England experienced significant migration from continental northern Europe, with historical accounts describing the settlement of Angles, Saxons, and Jutes—groups that gave their names to the Anglo-Saxon period. However, the degree of movement from further afield has been less clear.
“Migration and its direction, scale and impact have been much debated in European archaeology,” state the authors of the new studies. “Archaeogenetic research can now provide new insight, even identifying individual migrants.”
Two Cemeteries, Two Stories
To explore the scale of migration in early medieval Europe, researchers from several universities conducted ancient DNA analysis on individuals buried at two seventh-century cemeteries: Updown in Kent and Worth Matravers in Dorset. Their findings are published in two separate articles in the journal Antiquity, each focused on one cemetery.
“Kent has always been a conduit for influence from the adjacent continent and this was particularly marked in the sixth century—what might be termed Kent’s ‘Frankish Phase’,” explains Professor Duncan Sayer from the University of Central Lancashire, lead author of the Updown study. “Updown is also located near to the royal centre of Finglesham, indicating that these connections were part of a wider royal network.”
Dr Ceiridwen J. Edwards from the University of Huddersfield, who led the Worth Matravers study, notes a stark regional difference. “In contrast, Dorset sat on the fringes of continental influence. The archaeological evidence suggests a marked and notable cultural divide between Dorset and areas to the west, and the Anglo-Saxon influenced areas to the east.”
West African Ancestry in Early Medieval England
While most individuals in the cemeteries had northern European or western British and Irish ancestry—common in England at the time—one person at each site had a recent ancestor from West Africa.
In both cases, mitochondrial DNA (inherited from the mother) was northern European, but autosomal DNA (inherited from both parents) showed clear signs of non-European ancestry with affinities to present-day Yoruba, Mende, Mandenka, and Esan groups from sub-Saharan West Africa. This indicates genetically and geographically mixed descent, with further analysis suggesting each had a paternal grandparent from West Africa.
The proportion of West African ancestry in both cases—between 20 and 40 percent—points to an admixture event just two generations before their deaths, likely in the mid-seventh century. Counting back from this period suggests their African ancestors may have left the southern Sahel between the mid-sixth and early seventh centuries, a time when North Africa was under Byzantine control following the reconquest of AD 533–534.
The Updown Girl: Family, Grave, and Artefacts
The Updown individual was an 11–13-year-old girl buried in grave 47, surrounded by relatives on her mother’s side. Genetic analysis revealed her maternal grandmother (grave 34), her maternal aunt (grave 45), and a more distant male relative—likely her maternal great-grandfather (grave 52)—were also interred in the cemetery. None of these relatives carried West African ancestry, indicating that the girl’s paternal line was the source of her mixed heritage.
Her grave goods tell their own story. Placed near her feet was a decorated, biconical pot—likely imported from Frankish Gaul, though with unusual decoration suggesting possible local manufacture. By her left hip were a knife, a bone comb, and an iron spoon, possibly contained in a bag with copper-alloy mounts. The knife was utilitarian, but the spoon could have symbolic meaning, associated in other Kentish burials with Christian faith or used as an amulet. The comb, a double-sided antler piece, may have been a keepsake or gift, and could reflect grooming traditions that were both personal and social.
Parallels to such spoon-and-comb combinations exist in other Kentish burials, often linked to adult female identity and sometimes Christian symbolism. That a subadult girl was buried with these items may reflect her expected social role, or perhaps special status within her community.
The research team also considered whether her African ancestry might have been visible in her appearance—hair texture, skin tone, or facial features—but noted that poor bone preservation made this uncertain.
The Worth Matravers Man
The individual from Worth Matravers was a 17–25-year-old man buried in a double grave alongside an unrelated adult male whose head rested on a limestone anchor. Like the Updown girl, his mitochondrial DNA was northern European, but his autosomal DNA carried strong West African signals. Stable isotope analysis also indicated regular shellfish consumption, suggesting a local coastal diet.
Unlike Updown, Worth Matravers lay outside the core Anglo-Saxon cultural zone, in a region with stronger continuity from the Roman and Iron Age populations. The man’s ancestry was predominantly western British and Irish, but his burial style matched that of others in the cemetery, indicating he was treated as a full member of his community.
Archaeological evidence shows that Worth Matravers was a relatively insular settlement compared to Kent, with fewer continental imports and a strong local material culture. Yet the presence of a man with recent West African ancestry — likely a paternal grandparent — points to far-reaching connections, possibly through maritime trade or indirect migration routes. His burial alongside a local man, and the symbolic limestone anchor, underscores the integration of individuals from diverse backgrounds into early medieval coastal communities.
Trade, Travel, and Cultural Connections
The presence of West African ancestry in both eastern and western parts of southern Britain challenges older assumptions about the insularity of early medieval communities. It also aligns with archaeological evidence for long-distance connections across the Mediterranean and beyond.
Byzantine North Africa in the sixth and seventh centuries was a hub of commerce, exporting grain, oil, and luxury goods. Trade routes linked the region to the eastern Mediterranean, the Near East, and Europe, while goods—such as Byzantine coins, textiles, amethysts, and garnets—reached even distant England. The period also saw the movement of individuals, whether as merchants, travellers, or through more coercive means. While the large-scale trans-Saharan slave trade to the Islamic Caliphate is documented for later centuries, the authors consider opportunistic movement along trade routes a more likely explanation for these two individuals’ ancestry.
Cultural Integration in Early Medieval England
The archaeological context indicates that both individuals were fully integrated into their respective communities. At Updown, the girl’s burial was consistent with the customs of a prominent Kentish centre, in a period when local law codes emphasised paternal lineage in determining social identity. At Worth Matravers, the man’s burial with a local companion reinforces his acceptance in a genetically distinct community.
“Rarely does a volunteer-led project have the good fortune to be associated with a study incorporating the latest cutting-edge analysis of aDNA,” says Lilian Ladle, director of the excavations at Worth Matravers. “This study has greatly enhanced our interpretation of the archaeological results by revealing not only fascinating family dynamics, but also exciting long-distance links between groups and individuals.”
Professor Sayer highlights the importance of the findings: “It is significant that it is human DNA—and therefore the movement of people, and not just objects—that is now starting to reveal the nature of long-distance interaction to the continent, Byzantium and sub-Saharan Africa. What is fascinating about these two individuals is that this international connection is found in both the east and west of Britain. Updown is right in the centre of the early Anglo-Saxon cultural zone and Worth Matravers, by contrast, is just outside its periphery in the sub-Roman west.”
Dr Edwards concludes, “Our joint results emphasise the cosmopolitan nature of England in the early medieval period, pointing to a diverse population with far-flung connections who were, nonetheless, fully integrated into the fabric of daily life.”
These findings are published in two articles in Antiquity:
“West African ancestry in seventh-century England: two individuals from Kent and Dorset,” by Duncan Sayer, Joscha Gretzinger, John Hines, Michael McCormick, Keziah Warburton, Erin Sebo, Katharina Dulias, Maria Pala, Martin B. Richards, Ceiridwen J. Edwards and Stephan Schiffels
“Ancient genomes reveal cosmopolitan ancestry and maternal kinship patterns at post-Roman Worth Matravers, Dorset,” by M. George B. Foody, Katharina Dulias, Pierre Justeau, Peter W. Ditchfield, Lilian Ladle, Joscha Gretzinger, Stephan Schiffels, David Reich, Robert Kenyon, Duncan Sayer, Martin B. Richards, Maria Pala and Ceiridwen J. Edwards
Top Image: Human skeletal remains in a double burial at the Worth Matravers cemetery, along with the anchor stone found underneath the older individual’s head (Photo by Lilian Ladle, modified by Ceiridwen J. Edwards)
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