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Genetic analysis of Deep Maniot Greeks reveals a unique lineage in the Balkans
https://phys.org/news/2026-02-genetic-analysis-deep-maniot-greeks.htmlUniversity of Oxford
A Roman mosaic in Cape Matapan (also known as Cape Tainaro), thought to have been the floor of a bath. In the early Roman period, Deep Mani was a bustling center of economic activity and attracted people from across the Empire. Credit: Leonidas-Romanos Davranoglou.
A new genetic study has revealed that the people of Deep Mani, who inhabit one of the remotest regions of mainland Greece, represent one of the most genetically distinctive populations in Europe, shaped by more than a millennium of isolation. The findings, published in Communications Biology, reveal that many lineages can be traced back to the Bronze Age, Iron Age and Roman period of Greece.
Set among rugged mountains, dramatic coastlines, and distinct stone tower houses, the Mani Peninsula of the Peloponnese, Greece, has long captivated travelers, historians, and writers, most famously, Jules Verne and Sir Patrick Leigh Fermor.
Now, an international research group has found that the Deep Maniots living at the very southernmost tip of the peninsula form a rare genetic "island" within mainland Greece--predating the major population movements that reshaped the ancestry of mainland Greeks and other populations in the Balkans after the fall of Rome.
The research team, comprising scientists from the University of Oxford, Tel Aviv University, the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, the Areopolis Health Center, the European University Cyprus, and FamilyTreeDNA, found that Deep Maniots largely descend from local Greek-speaking groups living in the region before the Medieval era.
Team member Anargyros Mariolis, Director of Areopolis Health Center, has built deep bonds within the Deep Maniot community, through years of dedicated medical and social service. Credit: Anargyros Mariolis
In contrast to many other mainland Greek populations, they show little evidence of absorbing later incoming groups, such as the Slavs, whose arrival transformed the genetic and linguistic landscape of much of southeastern Europe.
. . .
Set among rugged mountains, dramatic coastlines, and distinct stone tower houses, the Mani Peninsula of the Peloponnese, Greece, has long captivated travelers, historians, and writers, most famously, Jules Verne and Sir Patrick Leigh Fermor.
Now, an international research group has found that the Deep Maniots living at the very southernmost tip of the peninsula form a rare genetic "island" within mainland Greece--predating the major population movements that reshaped the ancestry of mainland Greeks and other populations in the Balkans after the fall of Rome.
The research team, comprising scientists from the University of Oxford, Tel Aviv University, the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, the Areopolis Health Center, the European University Cyprus, and FamilyTreeDNA, found that Deep Maniots largely descend from local Greek-speaking groups living in the region before the Medieval era.
Team member Anargyros Mariolis, Director of Areopolis Health Center, has built deep bonds within the Deep Maniot community, through years of dedicated medical and social service. Credit: Anargyros Mariolis
In contrast to many other mainland Greek populations, they show little evidence of absorbing later incoming groups, such as the Slavs, whose arrival transformed the genetic and linguistic landscape of much of southeastern Europe.
. . .