The Huns are known to history mainly through the exploits of their greatest leader Attila, who ruled over a vast and powerful empire in the fifth century AD that attacked the Romans and helped hasten the fall of the Western Roman Empire. The Huns suddenly appeared in Europe in the 370s, establishing one of the most influential although short-lived empires in Europe.
Scholars have long debated whether the Huns were descended from the Xiongnu, a confederation of nomadic people who dominated the steppes of East Asia on the Mongolian Plateau from the third century BC through the first century AD. The Xiongnu Empire dissolved around 100 CE, leaving a 300-year gap before the Huns appeared in Europe. Can DNA lineages that bridge these three centuries be found?
To address this question, a team of genetic researchers analyzed the DNA of 370 individuals who lived in historical periods spanning around 800 years. The oldest samples came from the second century BC, while the youngest came from the sixth century AD, encompassing sites in the Mongolian steppe, Central Asia, and the Carpathian Basin of Central Europe.
In particular, they examined 35 newly sequenced genomes, ranging from: a third–fourth century site in Kazakhstan and fifth–sixth century contexts in the Carpathian Basin (modern-day Hungary), including exceptional Hun-period burials that exhibit Eastern or "steppe" traits often linked to nomadic traditions (i.e. "eastern-type" burials).
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The results showed that there was not a large Asian- or steppe-descended community living in the Carpathian Basin after the Huns' arrival. However, they identified a small but distinct set of individuals—often belonging to the "eastern-type" burials—who did carry significant East Asian genetic signatures.
Advanced comparisons of genealogical connections (the analysis of shared DNA segments known as identical-by-descent, or IBD) led to a remarkable discovery.
"It came as a surprise to discover that few of these Hun-period individuals in Europe share IBD links with some of the highest-ranking imperial elite individuals from the late Xiongnu Empire," said study co-first author Guido Alberto Gnecchi-Ruscone of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology. “These connections also include an individual from the largest terrace tomb ever discovered in a Xiongnu context.”
Wax statue of Attila the Hun on display at Istanbul Sapphire, İstanbul, Turkey. (Bassem/CC BY-SA 4.0).
The study was carried out as part of the project HistoGenes, by a multidisciplinary research team of geneticists, archaeologists and historians, including researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany. The research is published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Connections Across the Steppe and a Mixed Genetic Legacy
This link suggests that some among the Huns in Europe could trace their lineage back to important late Xiongnu burials from the Mongolian steppe. Yet the genetic picture for most Hun and post-Hun period individuals in the Carpathian Basin is far more varied.
"DNA and archaeological evidence reveal a patchwork of ancestries, pointing to a complex process of mobility and interaction rather than a mass migration," stated study co-first author Zsófia Rácz from Eötvös Loránd University in Budapest.
While these connections confirm the presence of some direct descendants of Xiongnu elites, the study also shows that the population of the Hun empire in Europe was genetically highly heterogeneous. Another key conclusion of the study is that the fifth century "eastern-type" burials from Central Europe are highly diverse in both their cultural and genetic heritage.
The findings also underscore that the Huns' arrival in Europe contrasts with that of the Avars two centuries later.
"The Avars came directly to Europe after their East-Asian empire had been destroyed by the Turks, and many of their descendants still carried considerable East Asian ancestry until the end of their rule in c. 800,” explained co-corresponding author Walter Pohl of the Austrian Academy of Sciences. “The ancestors of Attila's Huns took many generations on their way westward and mixed with populations across Eurasia."
Excavation photo of a Hun-period “eastern-type” burial in Budapest. (BHM Aquincum Museum/Max Planck Institute).
Once the Huns had built their empire they began to menace their neighbors, including the Romans, and it was these military adventures—and the successes they enjoyed in these endeavors—that made it seem as if the Huns had appeared out of nowhere. In reality, as the new genetic study shows, their migration to the west was stealthily executed over the course of centuries, merging with local populations before ultimately (in many cases) conquering them under Attila.
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Implications for European History
This research illuminates how past societies in the Carpathian Basin adapted and changed in response to new arrivals.
"Although the Huns dramatically reshaped the political landscape, their actual genetic footprint—outside of certain elite burials—remains limited," said study co-corresponding author Zuzana Hofmanová of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology.
Map showing the full territorial extent of the Hun Empire in 451 AD, late in Attila’s period of rule. (Sandorgyori1/CC BY-SA 4.0).
Instead, the population as a whole appears to be predominantly of European origin and have continued local traditions, with some newly arrived steppe influences woven in.
Co-corresponding author Johannes Krause, director of the Department of Archaeogenetics at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, commented on the value of genetic analysis for the study of history and the proper interpretation of archaeological finds.
"From a broader perspective, the study underscores how cutting-edge genetic research, in combination with careful exploration of the archaeological and historical context, can resolve centuries-old debates about the composition and origin of past populations," he stated.
While many questions remain, this work offers compelling evidence for direct connections between the Hun period population, the steppe and the Xiongnu Empire, deepening our understanding of the dynamic networks that linked East and West Eurasia in the past.
Top image: Illustration of Attila the Hun leading his men into battle, from the book ‘Great Men and Famous Women Volume 1 - ATTILA, THE SCOURGE OF GOD (1894, artist Ulpiano Checa).
Source: Public Domain.
This article is an edited version of a press release issued by the Max Planck Institute, entitled Origin and Diversity of Hun Empire Populations.’
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