Consanguinity and Social Structure in the Roman World: A Diachronic Genomic Analysis

Consanguinity and Social Structure in the Roman World: A Diachronic Genomic Analysis | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Consanguinity and Social Structure in the Roman World: A Diachronic Genomic Analysis N. Ezgi Altınışık This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-9509678/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract This study investigates the diachronic alteration of consanguinity from the Iron Age to the Early Middle Ages across Anatolia, the Balkans, and Southern Europe. To achieve this, I introduce a novel probabilistic framework, ROHClassifier, to distinguish parental kinship degrees based on Runs of Homozygosity (ROH), enabling a high-resolution reconstruction of mating patterns from ancient genomes. The analysis of the compiled genomic dataset reveals starkly divergent regional trajectories under Roman rule. While the Italian Peninsula experienced a dramatic exogamic shift—marked by a significant reduction in consanguinity during the Imperial period—the eastern provinces demonstrated profound structural continuity. In Anatolia and the Balkans, highly endogamous mating networks proved remarkably resilient, a continuity shown to be deeply anchored in rural contexts such as the Imperial-era homestead at Nevalı Çori. Beyond these macro-scale baselines, micro-historical analyses of extreme biological outliers illuminate how society managed profound taboos. The offspring of full-sibling incest interred in a Nicaean infant trench (I14844) provides compelling evidence for institutional care (brephotrophia) in Late Antiquity, while a burial at the Viminacium frontier (R6750) reflects the complex ritual inclusion of marginalized individuals. Ultimately, these findings demonstrate that biological kinship was an active social strategy, revealing how Eastern Mediterranean communities successfully buffered their intimate family structures against the universalizing forces of the Roman Empire. Roman Empire Consanguinity Social Structure Mating Practices Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Supplementary Files SupplementaryTable.xlsx Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-9509678","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":630464901,"identity":"b0690b90-088b-41e5-a5bd-dfcb68805181","order_by":0,"name":"N. 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