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Ancient DNA Uncovers the Surprising Origins of the Phoenicians

For centuries, the Phoenicians have been celebrated as fearless sailors, skilled traders, and creators of one of the earliest alphabets in the ancient world. Their cultural footprint stretched across the Mediterranean, from present-day Lebanon to Tunisia, Sicily, and even parts of Spain. Yet, a recent genetic study reveals a startling twist: although their cultural influence was widespread, the Phoenicians left behind little trace of their DNA outside their homeland.

A team of international researchers, led by population geneticist Harald Ringbauer from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany, analyzed the DNA of about 200 individuals from ancient Phoenician archaeological sites located in the Middle East, Europe, and North Africa. 


Ancestry Puzzle

The findings, published on April 23, 2025, in the journal Nature, challenge long-held assumptions. To the researchers’ surprise, individuals from the western outposts of Phoenician civilization—also known as Punic people—did not share genetic ancestry with ancient Middle Eastern populations, including those linked directly to the Phoenicians and their Canaanite forebears.

Even more surprising, Punic individuals didn’t match the DNA profiles of neighboring populations either, such as those from Sardinia or Ibiza. Instead, their genetic signatures aligned more closely with ancient Greeks and Sicilians. After 500 BCE, North African ancestry also became prominent—marking the rise of Carthage as a Mediterranean power.

A Network of Integration Across the Mediterranean

This unique blend of ancestries likely reflects an ongoing exchange of people across a “Mediterranean highway” powered by maritime trade between Phoenician colonies, according to Ringbauer. The study even identified closely related individuals buried at sites hundreds of kilometers apart—such as a pair of possible second cousins found in Tunisia and Sicily.

Once the Phoenician city-states in the Middle East fell, people with Levantine ancestry may have become cut off from this dynamic trade network, which could explain their genetic absence in later Punic populations.

Pierre Zalloua, a geneticist at Khalifa University in Abu Dhabi, isn’t surprised by the findings. “The Phoenicians were a culture of integration and assimilation,” he says. “They settled wherever they sailed.” Rather than imposing their identity, they absorbed local influences while spreading their language, religion, and trading systems.

Was Phoenician Culture a Kind of Franchise?

Despite these revelations, key questions remain. Why did such a diverse array of Mediterranean peoples adopt Phoenician culture without sharing common ancestry? Ringbauer speculates that Phoenician civilization might have operated like a cultural franchise—open to adoption by anyone linked through trade and mutual benefit.

This groundbreaking research challenges the traditional notion that cultural expansion always involves mass migration or genetic continuity. In the case of the Phoenicians, influence traveled by ship, not by bloodline.

Open Your Mind !!!


source: Article by Nature


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