Anatolian Neolithic farmer map
Anatolian Neolithic farmers (Barcin) · Northwestern Anatolia, from about 6600 BC
How to read these maps: pale yellow means little or none of the selected ancestry, orange a medium share and deep red the highest values. Each dot is the average of a modern population: hover or tap it to see its numbers. Areas with no samples nearby stay blank.
Anatolian Neolithic farmers (Barcin)
Northwestern Anatolia, from about 6600 BC
Faded dots are populations the model fits less well: read their values with care. Click the map to zoom with your mouse wheel.
Who were the Barcin farmers?
Barcin Hoyuk is a Neolithic village mound near Yenisehir, in northwestern Turkey, not far from the Sea of Marmara. Farmers lived there from about 6600 BC, growing wheat, barley and lentils and keeping sheep, goats and cattle.
Their genomes, published from 2015 onward, were a turning point for ancient DNA: they are the closest known relatives of the first farmers who carried agriculture into Europe. The Neolithic peoples of the Balkans, of the Linear Pottery culture of central Europe and of the Cardial culture of the Mediterranean all descend largely from populations like Barcin. In Europe these newcomers mixed with local hunter-gatherers, and from about 3000 BC both were joined by herders from the steppe.
Farmer ancestry is still the largest single share in many southern Europeans, and Sardinians are known for keeping more of it than almost anyone else. On this map, Barcin stands for that Early European Farmer heritage.
In our model, Anatolian Neolithic farmer ancestry peaks today in Italian Sardinia (Sardinian, Italy), at 81.8%, followed by Italian Sardinia North (Sardinian, Italy) (80.9%) and Italian Sardinia Benetutti (Sardinian, Italy) (80.1%). The ten highest values come from Italy, France and Spain. It reaches at least 5% in 626 of the 1,998 populations on the map, and at least 20% in 366 of them. On the world scale the colours run from 0 to 55.0%, the level reached by the top 2% of populations, so the deepest red marks the real hot spots.
Where Anatolian Neolithic farmer ancestry peaks today
| # | Population | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Italian Sardinia (Sardinian) Italy | 81.8% |
| 2 | Italian Sardinia North (Sardinian) Italy | 80.9% |
| 3 | Italian Sardinia Benetutti (Sardinian) Italy | 80.1% |
| 4 | Italian Sardinia Sulcis-Iglesiente (Sardinian) Italy | 78.5% |
| 5 | Italian Lombardy Bergamo (Lombard) Italy | 59.2% |
| 6 | Basque France Soule France | 57.4% |
| 7 | Italian Trentino Italy | 57.2% |
| 8 | French Occitan Occitanie Hautes-Pyrenees Bigorre France | 57.1% |
| 9 | Spanish La Rioja (Riojan) Spain | 56.7% |
| 10 | Gard (30), France France | 56.5% |
Averages of modern populations, modelled with 17 reference sources. Tap a name to find it on the map.
The 17 ancestral sources
About these numbers
These maps show model estimates for population averages, not ethnic labels and not the result of any one person. Each source stands in for a wider ancestral population, and ancestries that have no source of their own in this set, such as Oceanian or Khoe-San ancestry, are absorbed by their closest relatives among the 17. Populations the model fits less well are shown with faded dots and count less in the colour surface.
Method: Each population average (Global25 coordinates) is modelled as a mix of 17 ancient and modern reference groups with non-negative least squares, shares adding up to 100%. Fit is the distance between the population and its best mix: the lower the better, above 0.06 the mix explains the population poorly. Top lists leave out the few populations these 17 groups cannot model at all (fit above 0.15). Data generated 1 October 2026, 1,998 populations on the map.
Keep exploring
For the full picture of one population, the Population Genetics Atlas has a page for each of hundreds of modern populations, with its ancient make-up and its closest modern and ancient neighbours.
Curious about your own DNA? The free Report Finder tests which of our reports fits your G25 coordinates, before you order anything.
Frequently asked questions
Who were the Anatolian Neolithic farmers?
They were the early farming communities of Anatolia, today's Turkey. Those of the northwest, known from sites such as Barcin around 6600 BC, are the closest relatives of the farmers who brought agriculture to Europe, which is why geneticists often call this Early European Farmer ancestry.
Where is Anatolian Neolithic farmer ancestry highest today?
In our model it is highest in Italian Sardinia (Sardinian, Italy) (81.8%), Italian Sardinia North (Sardinian, Italy) (80.9%) and Italian Sardinia Benetutti (Sardinian, Italy) (80.1%). These are averages of modern populations modelled with 17 reference sources, so individuals within each population can differ.
How are these ancient ancestry maps made?
Each modern population average, taken from published G25 coordinates, is modelled as a mix of the same 17 ancient and modern reference sources with a non-negative least-squares fit, the same family of method our reports use. The map then interpolates the share of the selected source between the sampled places and leaves areas with no nearby samples blank.
Does a high value mean direct descent from these people?
No. Each source stands in for a broader ancestral population, and the 17 sources are fitted together, so closely related sources can trade shares between them. Read a value as how much of this kind of ancestry the model needs to describe a population average, not as a family tree.
Why are some areas of the map blank?
The colour surface is only drawn within a few hundred kilometres of real samples. Oceans and regions without data stay empty instead of showing invented values. Each dot on the map is a real population average.