Wuzhuangguoliang: Voices of Late Neolithic Shaanxi

The Wuzhuangguoliang horizon sits on the loess-cloaked terraces of central Shaanxi between ca. 3400 and 2702 BCE, at the cusp of the Late Neolithic and the Early Chalcolithic. Archaeological data indicates a settled, agrarian lifeway with recognizable ceramic traditions and burial practices that link this community to broader networks across the Yellow River margins. The site of Wuzhuangguoliang itself yields discrete mortuary contexts and household debris that speak to generational occupation and local adaptation to the plateau environment.

Genetically, the small assemblage of 11 genomes provides a first, tentative window into population makeup during this dynamic interval. The prevalence of East Asian maternal haplogroups (notably B and A lineages) and the occurrence of Y-chromosome F lineages are consistent with continuity from earlier Yellow River Neolithic groups, while also allowing for regional heterogeneity. Limited geographic sampling and modest sample numbers mean that narratives of migration or large-scale replacement must remain cautious. Archaeology and ancient DNA together suggest a picture of local communities rooted in the Loess Plateau, engaged in regional exchange and cultural interaction rather than abrupt demographic overturn.

Eleven ancient genomes from Wuzhuangguoliang provide a compact but informative snapshot of ancestry in Late Neolithic Shaanxi. Among the sequenced individuals, Y-chromosome F is observed in at least two males — a lineage widespread across East and Southeast Asia in ancient and modern datasets. On the maternal side, mtDNA haplogroups recorded include B (3 individuals), A (including A7, together 2), G (1), and D (1). These maternal lineages are commonly associated with Neolithic and post-Neolithic populations of northern and eastern Asia.

Together the uniparental markers and genome-wide affinities point toward strong local East Asian ancestry, consistent with continuity from earlier Yellow River Neolithic populations and with the demographic substrate that would later contribute to regional genetic landscapes. However, the sample size is modest and geographically restricted to a single locality; some haplogroups present in the assemblage are missing or undersampled and broader population structure (admixture with northern hunter-gatherers or southern groups) may not be fully captured. Therefore, conclusions about population movements, sex-biased migration, or long-term continuity should be treated as provisional pending larger, geographically diverse sampling and higher-resolution analyses.