Uploaded July 2025 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
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The Hidden Links Between Modern Faces & Ancestry…
Chapters:
0:00 Intro
0:14 The 7 Face Shapes
1:09 Neanderthal Influence
2:55 Climate & Nose Shape
4:34 Get Member-Only Videos
4:51 Faces of Ancient European Ancestors
6:47 Denisovan Influence
7:52 Factors That Influence Jawline
Your face can tell many stories, but does your facial structure hold secrets to your ancient ancestry, from high cheekbones to a broad jawline? Well in this video we are going to look at the fascinating links between ancient ancestry and modern faces…
Now in general there are 7 different types of face shapes: oval, round, square, oblong (which is sometimes also known as rectangle), diamond, heart and triangular. And some of these shapes are associated with people from certain regions of the world. For instance, an oblong face shape often conveys maturity and elegance, and it is frequently seen in Scandinavian populations. A round face on the other hand gives a more youthful, soft appearance. This is common in many East Asian populations as well as some Celtic groups, such as the Irish. Yet there is plenty of variation within these groups as well.
Now it’s important to note that facial structure in general is highly polygenic, with hundreds of genetic variants having tiny influences on facial measurements. Various other factors go into your face shape on top of this, from age to weight.
Sources:
Zaidi AA, Mattern BC, Claes P, McEcoy B, Hughes C, Shriver MD (2017) Investigating the case of human nose shape and climate adaptation. PLoS Genet 13(3): e1006616. doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1006616
Nose form was shaped by climate | Penn State University
A GWAS in Latin Americans identifies novel face shape loci, implicating VPS13B and a Denisovan introgressed region in facial variation | Science Advances
Neanderthal Noses - Nose shape gene inherited from Neanderthals | UCL News - UCL – University College London
Li, Q., Chen, J., Faux, P. et al. Automatic landmarking identifies new loci associated with face morphology and implicates Neanderthal introgression in human nasal shape. Commun Biol 6, 481 (2023). doi.org/10.1038/s42003-023-04838-7
Different Types of Face Shapes Explained – AMS Aesthetics
The evolutionary history of the human face
Genes for face shape identified
A genome-wide association scan implicates DCHS2, RUNX2, GLI3, PAX1 and EDAR in human facial variation - PMC
Testosterone responses to competition in men are related to facial masculinity | Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
Human faces are so variable because we evolved to look unique - Berkeley News
Sheehan, M., Nachman, M. Morphological and population genomic evidence that human faces have evolved to signal individual identity. Nat Commun 5, 4800 (2014). doi.org/10.1038/ncomms5800
Betty Bonfante et al. A GWAS in Latin Americans identifies novel face shape loci, implicating VPS13B and a Denisovan introgressed region in facial variation.Sci. Adv.7,eabc6160(2021).DOI:10.1126/sciadv.abc6160
Native Americans Inherited Lip Shape Gene from Denisovans | Genetics | Sci-News.com
How Breathing Through the Mouth Can Affect Growth of the Face | MyoTape
Zhao, Z., Zheng, L., Huang, X. et al. Effects of mouth breathing on facial skeletal development in children: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Oral Health 21, 108 (2021). doi.org/10.1186/s12903-021-01458-7
The Distinctive ‘Habsburg Jaw’ Was Likely the Result of the Royal Family’s Inbreeding
Creative Commons Imagery:
Jason Potter, FunkMonk File:Neanderthal cranial anatomy.jpg - Wikimedia Commons Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 Generic license. Deed - Attribution-ShareAlike 2.5 Generic - Creative Commons
Wojciech Pędzich, Robert Molyneaux File:Yamnaya phenotype, Reconstruction, male, grave Novooleksiivka; Ukraine.png - Wikimedia Commons Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. Deed - Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International - Creative Commons
Matteo De Stefano/MUSE File:Homo sapiens - Neolithic - reconstruction - MUSE.jpg - Wikimedia Commons Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. Deed - Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported - Creative Commons
Qiaomei Fu, Peng Cao, Qingyan Dai, E. Andrew Bennett, Xiaotian Feng, Melinda A. Yang, Wanjing Ping, Svante Pääbo, Qiang Ji (2025) Denisovan mitochondrial DNA from dental calculus of the 146,000-year-old Harbin cranium, Cell, Elsevier doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2025.05.040 Creative Commons CC-BY license
#ancestry #dna #heritage
Join This Channel on YouTube to Get Access to Perks: youtube.com/channel/UCCS3M_uNHH2iOJkpGhkO2SA/join
Subscribe to Celtic History Decoded - youtube.com/channel/UCCS3M_uNHH2iOJkpGhkO2SA?sub_confirmation=1
Get Access to Member-Only Videos & More Perks on Patreon - patreon.com/historydecoded
The Hidden Links Between Modern Faces & Ancestry…
Chapters:
0:00 Intro
0:14 The 7 Face Shapes
1:09 Neanderthal Influence
2:55 Climate & Nose Shape
4:34 Get Member-Only Videos
4:51 Faces of Ancient European Ancestors
6:47 Denisovan Influence
7:52 Factors That Influence Jawline
Your face can tell many stories, but does your facial structure hold secrets to your ancient ancestry, from high cheekbones to a broad jawline? Well in this video we are going to look at the fascinating links between ancient ancestry and modern faces…
Now in general there are 7 different types of face shapes: oval, round, square, oblong (which is sometimes also known as rectangle), diamond, heart and triangular. And some of these shapes are associated with people from certain regions of the world. For instance, an oblong face shape often conveys maturity and elegance, and it is frequently seen in Scandinavian populations. A round face on the other hand gives a more youthful, soft appearance. This is common in many East Asian populations as well as some Celtic groups, such as the Irish. Yet there is plenty of variation within these groups as well.
Now it’s important to note that facial structure in general is highly polygenic, with hundreds of genetic variants having tiny influences on facial measurements. Various other factors go into your face shape on top of this, from age to weight.
Sources:
Zaidi AA, Mattern BC, Claes P, McEcoy B, Hughes C, Shriver MD (2017) Investigating the case of human nose shape and climate adaptation. PLoS Genet 13(3): e1006616. doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1006616
Nose form was shaped by climate | Penn State University
A GWAS in Latin Americans identifies novel face shape loci, implicating VPS13B and a Denisovan introgressed region in facial variation | Science Advances
Neanderthal Noses - Nose shape gene inherited from Neanderthals | UCL News - UCL – University College London
Li, Q., Chen, J., Faux, P. et al. Automatic landmarking identifies new loci associated with face morphology and implicates Neanderthal introgression in human nasal shape. Commun Biol 6, 481 (2023). doi.org/10.1038/s42003-023-04838-7
Different Types of Face Shapes Explained – AMS Aesthetics
The evolutionary history of the human face
Genes for face shape identified
A genome-wide association scan implicates DCHS2, RUNX2, GLI3, PAX1 and EDAR in human facial variation - PMC
Testosterone responses to competition in men are related to facial masculinity | Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
Human faces are so variable because we evolved to look unique - Berkeley News
Sheehan, M., Nachman, M. Morphological and population genomic evidence that human faces have evolved to signal individual identity. Nat Commun 5, 4800 (2014). doi.org/10.1038/ncomms5800
Betty Bonfante et al. A GWAS in Latin Americans identifies novel face shape loci, implicating VPS13B and a Denisovan introgressed region in facial variation.Sci. Adv.7,eabc6160(2021).DOI:10.1126/sciadv.abc6160
Native Americans Inherited Lip Shape Gene from Denisovans | Genetics | Sci-News.com
How Breathing Through the Mouth Can Affect Growth of the Face | MyoTape
Zhao, Z., Zheng, L., Huang, X. et al. Effects of mouth breathing on facial skeletal development in children: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Oral Health 21, 108 (2021). doi.org/10.1186/s12903-021-01458-7
The Distinctive ‘Habsburg Jaw’ Was Likely the Result of the Royal Family’s Inbreeding
Creative Commons Imagery:
Jason Potter, FunkMonk File:Neanderthal cranial anatomy.jpg - Wikimedia Commons Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 Generic license. Deed - Attribution-ShareAlike 2.5 Generic - Creative Commons
Wojciech Pędzich, Robert Molyneaux File:Yamnaya phenotype, Reconstruction, male, grave Novooleksiivka; Ukraine.png - Wikimedia Commons Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. Deed - Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International - Creative Commons
Matteo De Stefano/MUSE File:Homo sapiens - Neolithic - reconstruction - MUSE.jpg - Wikimedia Commons Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. Deed - Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported - Creative Commons
Qiaomei Fu, Peng Cao, Qingyan Dai, E. Andrew Bennett, Xiaotian Feng, Melinda A. Yang, Wanjing Ping, Svante Pääbo, Qiang Ji (2025) Denisovan mitochondrial DNA from dental calculus of the 146,000-year-old Harbin cranium, Cell, Elsevier doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2025.05.040 Creative Commons CC-BY license
#ancestry #dna #heritage
