Genetics reveals the shared history of southern and eastern African hunter-gatherers

Populations in southern Africa that speak non-Bantu languages characterized by click consonants fall into two major groups that share a genetic link with eastern African hunter-gatherers. Scientists have long debated whether populations in eastern and southern Africa that speak non-Bantu languages with click consonants descend from a common ancestor. The most comprehensive survey of genetic diversity in these populations to date provides strong evidence for a genetic link between eastern and southern Africa. The research also documents genetic differentiation between forager populations living in the northwestern and southeastern Kalahari that began up to 30,000 years ago. Furthermore, there is a genetic signature of population mixture between these indigenous populations and migrants from the north beginning 1,200 years ago.