Uploaded February 2024 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
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Britain’s DNA: The Culture that Changed Britain Forever… Meet the Bell Beakers
'We found that the skeletal remains of individuals from Britain who lived shortly after this time have a very different DNA profile to those who came before. It seems that there is a large population turnover.' These are the words of Prof Ian Barnes, Research Leader in Ancient DNA at the National History Museum. But what culture and period is he discussing?
Well he is not discussing the Vikings, Anglo-Saxons, Normans or any other later group. He is discussing a culture that existed thousands of years prior to these influences: namely, the Bell Beaker culture. Given how impactful this group was on the genetics of Britain, you could definitely argue that the Bell Beaker period is a forgotten part of our history.
But who were the Bell Beakers, what was their culture like and how profound was their impact on the genetics of Britain? Very quickly, you can support this work by buying me a coffee, top link in the video description below… Thank you and now on with the video.
Now before we move onto discussing the Bell Beaker culture specifically in more detail, an overview of the main population movements into ancient Britain since the last Ice Age will help us understand their position within this. About 11,700 years ago, glaciers that had covered most of Britain and which had essentially made these lands uninhabitable for thousands of year, receded for good. Hunter gatherers then moved in shortly after this. Then about 6,000 years ago, farmers originating from the Mediterranean moved into Britain. Their ancestors had come from modern-day Turkey.
This farming population was probably much larger than that of the hunter-gatherers, and brought new technologies into Britain. Then about 4,400 years ago, a second population of farmers entered Britain, bringing with them distinctive Beaker pottery. These Bell Beakers came over from continental Europe but their ancestors had mostly come from the Eurasian Steppe.
Sources:
National History Museum, The Beaker people: a new population for ancient Britain nhm.ac.uk/discover/news/2018/february/the-beaker-people-a-new-population-for-ancient-britain.html
Nature (Olade et al.) The Beaker phenomenon and the genomic transformation of northwest Europe nature.com/articles/nature25738
Britannica, Beaker folk britannica.com/topic/Oguz
Bell Beaker culture en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bell_Beaker_culture
Barry Cunliffe (2018) The Ancient Celts (Oxford University Press)
Corded Ware culture en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corded_Ware_culture
Funnelbeaker culture en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Funnelbeaker_culture
#bellbeakers #ancestry #history
Please Buy Me a Coffee - buymeacoffee.com/celtichistory
Subscribe to Celtic History Decoded: youtube.com/channel/UCCS3M_uNHH2iOJkpGhkO2SA?sub_confirmation=1
Please support this channel on Patreon and get ad-free videos and other benefits: patreon.com/historydecoded
Check out my merch store and please help support this channel - celtic-history-decoded.creator-spring.com - Full terms and conditions can be found on Spring’s website.
Check out my photographs on Etsy - etsy.com/uk/shop/WildScotlandStudio?ref=shop_sugg_market
Please donate through PayPal using this link: paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=QFB9ZECHZJDF6 – chdecoded@gmail.com
Follow Celtic History Decoded on Instagram - instagram.com/celtichistorydecoded
Britain’s DNA: The Culture that Changed Britain Forever… Meet the Bell Beakers
'We found that the skeletal remains of individuals from Britain who lived shortly after this time have a very different DNA profile to those who came before. It seems that there is a large population turnover.' These are the words of Prof Ian Barnes, Research Leader in Ancient DNA at the National History Museum. But what culture and period is he discussing?
Well he is not discussing the Vikings, Anglo-Saxons, Normans or any other later group. He is discussing a culture that existed thousands of years prior to these influences: namely, the Bell Beaker culture. Given how impactful this group was on the genetics of Britain, you could definitely argue that the Bell Beaker period is a forgotten part of our history.
But who were the Bell Beakers, what was their culture like and how profound was their impact on the genetics of Britain? Very quickly, you can support this work by buying me a coffee, top link in the video description below… Thank you and now on with the video.
Now before we move onto discussing the Bell Beaker culture specifically in more detail, an overview of the main population movements into ancient Britain since the last Ice Age will help us understand their position within this. About 11,700 years ago, glaciers that had covered most of Britain and which had essentially made these lands uninhabitable for thousands of year, receded for good. Hunter gatherers then moved in shortly after this. Then about 6,000 years ago, farmers originating from the Mediterranean moved into Britain. Their ancestors had come from modern-day Turkey.
This farming population was probably much larger than that of the hunter-gatherers, and brought new technologies into Britain. Then about 4,400 years ago, a second population of farmers entered Britain, bringing with them distinctive Beaker pottery. These Bell Beakers came over from continental Europe but their ancestors had mostly come from the Eurasian Steppe.
Sources:
National History Museum, The Beaker people: a new population for ancient Britain nhm.ac.uk/discover/news/2018/february/the-beaker-people-a-new-population-for-ancient-britain.html
Nature (Olade et al.) The Beaker phenomenon and the genomic transformation of northwest Europe nature.com/articles/nature25738
Britannica, Beaker folk britannica.com/topic/Oguz
Bell Beaker culture en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bell_Beaker_culture
Barry Cunliffe (2018) The Ancient Celts (Oxford University Press)
Corded Ware culture en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corded_Ware_culture
Funnelbeaker culture en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Funnelbeaker_culture
#bellbeakers #ancestry #history
