The Huns were related to the elites of the powerful nomadic Xiongnu Empire.

They suddenly appeared in Europe in the 370s, settling on the banks of the Danube and laying waste to everything. The Huns thus became one of the most influential empires in history, although their adventures were short-lived between the end of the 4th and 6th centuries AD.

The origins of this people, which achieved its greatest expansion under the leadership of the feared Attila, have puzzled historians for years. Some suggested that they were descendants of the nomadic tribes of Central Asia. And the truth is that they were not far off the mark.

A high-status elite

A study led by researchers at the Max Planck Institute and published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences has revealed that part of the Hun population was directly connected to a high-status elite of the former Xiongnu Empire, a powerful confederation of nomadic peoples centered on the Mongol steppe centuries before the Huns emerged north and west of the Black Sea.

The findings, which combine archaeogenomic analysis with archaeological and historical work, further show that only a few individuals in Central and Eastern Europe during the Hunnic period had East Asian ancestry, and that the new arrivals were of rather mixed origin.

The Xiongnu Empire dissolved around 100 AD, leaving a 300-year gap before the Huns appeared in Europe. And yet, DNA lineages can be found connecting these three centuries, as experts attest after studying the remains of 370 people who lived between the 2nd century BC and the 6th century AD.

The researchers not only covered sites in the Mongolian steppe, but also in Central Asia and the Carpathian Basin in Central Europe. In particular, they examined 35 newly sequenced genomes from a 3rd-4th century site in Kazakhstan and other 5th-6th century contexts in the Carpathians, including “eastern-type” or “steppe” Hunnic period burials linked to nomadic traditions.

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“It was a surprise to discover that some of these individuals from the Hunnic period in Europe share links with members of the highest-ranking Xiongnu imperial elite, including a figure buried in the largest terrace tomb ever discovered from that culture,” says Guido Alberto Gnecchi-Ruscone, co-author of the study.

This connection suggests that some of the Huns in Europe could trace their lineage back to important late burials of the Mongolian steppe confederation of nomadic peoples. However, the picture for most individuals from that period (and later) in the Carpathian Basin is much more mixed.

A mosaic of ancestors

“DNA and archaeological evidence reveal a mosaic of ancestry, which points to a complex process of mobility and interaction rather than mass migration,” says co-author Zsófia Rácz of Eötvös Loránd University in Budapest. Another conclusion is that the “eastern-type” burials from the 5th century in Central Europe are highly diverse, both in their cultural and genetic heritage.

The findings also underline that the arrival of the Huns in Europe contrasts with that of the Avars two centuries later. Walter Pohl of the Austrian Academy of Sciences points out that the Avars “arrived directly in Europe after the Turks destroyed their empire, and many of their descendants had a strong East Asian ancestry until the end of their rule in 800. The ancestors of Attila’s Huns, in contrast, took many generations to make their journey west and mixed with populations across Eurasia.”

“Although the Huns radically changed the political landscape, their actual genetic footprint – outside of certain elite burials – remains limited,” adds Zuzana Hofmanová from the Max Planck Institute. Overall, the population appears to have been predominantly of European origin and continued local traditions, with some newly arrived steppe influences woven in.

There was never a large community of Asian or steppe descent living in the Carpathian Basin after the arrival of the Huns. However, a small but distinct group of individuals, often belonging to “oriental-type” burials, was identified as having significant East Asian genetic signatures.