A new study from the University of Adelaide and The Australian National University (ANU) outlines the first genomic evidence of early migration from New Guinea into the Wallacea, an archipelago that includes Timor-Leste and numerous inhabited eastern Indonesian islands.
Published in PNAS, the study addresses significant gaps in the human genetic history of the Wallacean Archipelago and West Papuan regions of Indonesia, a region noted for its genetic and linguistic diversity comparable to the Eurasian continent. This includes the analysis of 254 newly sequenced genomes.
Combining linguistic and archaeological evidence, the study indicates that Wallacean societies were transformed by the spread of genes and languages from West Papua over the past 3,500 years, coinciding with the active mixing of Austronesian seafarers with Wallacean and Papuan groups.
Lead author Dr. Gludhug Ariyo Purnomo from the University of Adelaide's School of Biological Sciences states, “My colleagues at the Indonesian Genome Diversity Project have been studying Indonesia's complex genetic structure for more than a decade, but this comprehensive study provides confirmation that Papuan ancestry is widespread across Wallacea, pointing to historical migrations from New Guinea.”
Dr. Purnomo further notes, “By connecting the dots between genetics, linguistics, and archaeology, we now recognize West Papua as an important bio-cultural hub and the launching place of historical Papuan seafarers that now contribute up to 60% of modern Wallacean ancestry.”
Associate Professor Ray Tobler from ANU mentions that Wallacea had been isolated for over 45,000 years since the arrival of the first human groups. The more recent Papuan and Austronesian migrants reconfigured Wallacean culture by introducing new languages that diversified and intermingled, creating a rich linguistic landscape.
Professor Tobler states, “Our findings suggest that the Papuan and Austronesian migrations were so extensive that they have largely overwritten the ancestry of the first migrants, making the recovery of these ancient migrations from genetic data challenging.”