Urbanization and genetic homogenization in the medieval Low Countries revealed through a ten-century paleogenomic study of the city of Sint-Truiden
This study reveals that the genetic homogenization process in a medieval city population in the Low Countries was protracted for centuries. Over time, the Sint-Truiden population became more similar to the current population of the surrounding Limburg province, likely as a result of reduced long-distance migration after the high medieval period, and the continuous process of local admixture of Germanic and Gaulish ancestries which formed the genetic cline observable today in the Low Countries.
Authors
- Eugenia D’Atanasio (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4965-246X)
- Pieterjan Deckers (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7033-516X)
- Lehti Saag (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2274-8138)
- Simone Andrea Biagini (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4488-3162)
- Philip Van Damme (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4010-2357)
- Christiana L. Scheib (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4158-8296)
- Sofie Vanhoutte (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0951-7861)
- Maarten Larmuseau (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5974-7235)
- Ludovica Molinaro (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5788-5490)
- Stefania Sasso (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0008-1090-5731)
- Massimo Mezzavilla (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9000-4595)
- Biancamaria Bonucci (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0001-3292-3446)
- Bart Lambert
- April Pijpelink
- Meriam Guellil (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7235-4604)
- Kristiina Tambets (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8173-6380)
- Jan Geypen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1766-2038)
- Owyn Beneker
- Toomas Kivisild (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6297-7808)
- Ruoyun Hui (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5689-7131)
- Luca Pagani (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6639-524X)
- Noah Gaens (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0006-4871-2287)
- Helja Kabral (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0003-6068-0650)
- Maxim Hoebreckx
- Petra Driesen
- Birgit Berk
- Natasja De Winter
- Hélios Delbrassine
- Linde Braet
- Sara Becelaere
Institutions
- Danish Emergency Management Agency (DK)
- University of Vienna (AT)
- Central European Institute of Technology (CZ)
- Vrije Universiteit Brussel (BE)
- University of Padua (IT)
- Masaryk University (CZ)
- University of Cambridge (GB)
- Canadian Historical Association (CA)
- Central European Institute of Technology – Masaryk University (CZ)
- Institute of Molecular Biology and Pathology (IT)
- The Alan Turing Institute (GB)
- Agence Wallonne du Patrimoine (BE)
- Department of Archaeology (LK)
- University of Tartu (EE)
- KU Leuven (BE)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Genome biology
- Published
- 2025-05-19
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1186/s13059-025-03580-z
- Citations
- 3
- Primary Topic
- Yersinia bacterium, plague, ectoparasites research
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 5.45
Funders
- Vlaams Supercomputer Centrum
- Ministerstvo Školství, Mládeže a Tělovýchovy
- Eesti Teadusagentuur
- Austrian Science Fund
- Fonds Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek
- Haridus- ja Teadusministeerium
- KU Leuven
- Tartu Ülikool
- Vlaamse regering
- European Research Council