PROJECT PRESS
A new analysis of the DNA of the remains of ancient people in the jungles of Belize reveals that farming technology arrived from the south.
Ancient migrants carrying maize from south were early Maya ancestors, says study
New research published this week by University of New Mexico archeologist Keith Prufer shows that a site in Belize was critical in studying the origins of the ancient Maya people and the spread of maize as a staple food.
The Maya—and the maize that sustained them—had surprising southern roots, ancient DNA suggests
Migrants from the south may have helped spread early farming in Central America.
The Great Maize Migration
According to a new study, more than half of the modern Maya genome is derived from ancient populations who migrated to the Yucatán Peninsula from southern Central America and South America at least 5,600 years ago.
New Study Finds Migrants Brought Maize to the Maya
DNA analysis of skeletal remains in Belize helps piece together how corn cultivation came to thrive in Central America.
UNM researchers document the first use of maize in Mesoamerica
New research published in the journal Science Advances
