Gothic Identity as Cultural Practice: Paleogenomic Evidence for Multi - Ethnic Assemblages Under Gothic Material Culture in Late Antique Bulgaria (4th - 6th centuries CE)

Abstract

Ethnonyms such as "Goth" in Late Antique sources capture political and cultural affiliations that may not map cleanly onto biological descent. Here we report genome - wide ancient DNA from 38 individuals associated with Gothic - period mortuary contexts at two sites in present - day Bulgaria: the Aquae Calidae necropolis (~320 - 375 CE) and the Aul of Khan Omurtag necropolis (~350 - 489 CE). Using PCA, f - statistics, qpAdm, uniparental markers, and IBD/kinship analyses, we find: (i) strong within - site heterogeneity, rejecting a single "Gothic" genetic profile; (ii) a reproducible north - south genetic contrast, with Aquae Calidae individuals shifted toward a Balkan/Anatolian - related ancestry axis and AKO individuals enriched in northern European - related ancestry consistent with Wielbark/Chernyakhiv proxies; and (iii) admixture dating with DATES placing the mixing between northern and southern ancestry poles at ~11 - 13 generations before burial (point estimates in the 1st century CE, depending on target grouping), based on 23 individuals with sufficient coverage. Together, these results support models in which Gothic material culture in the Balkans was practiced by multi - ethnic communities and illustrate how cultural "Gothic" identity could persist despite substantial genetic diversity. Full f3/qpAdm/DATES outputs, f4 validation, and kinship/IBD summaries are provided in Supplementary Tables S1-S6, Supplementary Notes S2-S4, and the Supplementary IBD Workbook.