The maternal genetic make-up of the Iberian Peninsula between the Neolithic and the Early Bronze Age

Agriculture first reached the Iberian Peninsulaaround 5700 BCE. However, little is known about the genetic structure and changes of prehistoric populations in different geographic areas of Iberia. In our study, we focus on the maternal genetic makeup of the Neolithic (~ 5500–3000 BCE), Chalcolithic(~ 3000–2200 BCE) and Early Bronze Age(~ 2200–1500 BCE). We report ancient mitochondrial DNA results of 213 individuals (151 HVS-I sequences) from the northeast, central, southeast and southwest regions and thus on the largest archaeogeneticdataset from the Peninsulato date. Similar to other parts of Europe, we observe a discontinuity between hunter-gatherersand the first farmers of the Neolithic. During the subsequent periods, we detect regional continuity of Early Neolithic lineages across Iberia, however the genetic contribution of hunter-gatherersis generally higher than in other parts of Europe and varies regionally. In contrast to ancient DNAfindings from Central Europe, we do not observe a major turnover in the mtDNA record of the Iberian Late Chalcolithicand Early Bronze Age, suggesting that the population history of the Iberian Peninsulais distinct in character.