A Massive Migration From the Steppe Brought Indo-European Languages to Europe
Published in the journal Nature today, a new study by an international team has shown that at least some of the Indo-European languages spoken in Europe were likely introduced by a massive migration from the Russian steppe.
Almost three billion humans today speak languages belonging to the Indo-European family. The reason why these languages are related has been a mystery for more than two hundred years. A new study by an international team led by scientists at Harvard Medical School and the Australian Center for Ancient DNA now has shown that at least some of the Indo-European languages spoken in Europe were likely introduced by a massive migration from the Russian steppe.This new study challenges one of the most popular views about the origin of Indo-European languages in Europe, which is that the ancestor of all these languages arrived in Europe with early farmers expanding from the Near East more than 9,000 years ago.
![Corded Ware burial with vessel, perforated animal teeth and shell sequins, Oechlitz, Saalekreis, Saxony-Anhalt](/818900/original-1518443845.jpg?t=eyJ3aWR0aCI6MjQ2LCJvYmpfaWQiOjgxODkwMH0%3D--c6f6e04e76887ae8460c7c5061b3a0642b012cf6)
Corded Ware burial with vessel, perforated animal teeth and shell sequins, Oechlitz, Saalekreis, Saxony-Anhalt
Foto D. Menke, LDA Sachsen-Anhalt
![Burial of a young woman inside a carefully built stone cist, Rothenschirmbach, distict Mansfeld-Südharz, Saxony-Anhalt](/818909/original-1518443845.jpg?t=eyJ3aWR0aCI6MjQ2LCJvYmpfaWQiOjgxODkwOX0%3D--d7a9e0adca53b873e08a7c3ae18d5346432fafb4)
Burial of a young woman inside a carefully built stone cist, Rothenschirmbach, distict Mansfeld-Südharz, Saxony-Anhalt
Foto LDA Sachsen-Anhalt
![Grave 99 (father, mother, 2 sons) in situ, Naumburg, district Burgenlandkreis, Corded Ware culture ca. 2659-2501 B.](/818918/original-1518443845.jpg?t=eyJ3aWR0aCI6MjQ2LCJvYmpfaWQiOjgxODkxOH0%3D--5c75a61e8dec07d1fc2b948e28ecf3659b35d0ca)
Grave 99 (father, mother, 2 sons) in situ, Naumburg, district Burgenlandkreis, Corded Ware culture ca. 2659-2501 B.
Foto: Andrea Hörentrup, LDA Sachsen-Anhalt