Genetic composition of domestic animals as a marker of human migrations

Reconstruction of migration processes is a key component of the regional genetic history of the human population. Genetic composition of domesticated animals that could accompany humans can be an informative and independent marker of human migrations. In addition to direct analysis of the genetic composition in diachronic human populations by methods of physical paleoanthropology and paleogenetics. Although this approach has obvious chronological and geographic limitations, it allows one to obtain independent data on key migration processes that took place in various regions of Eurasia, including southern regions of Siberia, during a significant part of the Holocene: from the Neolithic and Early Bronze Age to modern times. To increase the objectivity of this approach, it is necessary to correctly form a series of samples from the groups of domestic animals, which are compared with each other (synchronous groups from different regions or groups of different times from the same territory, analyzed within the diachronic approach). Special attention should be paid to the selection of informative genetic markers analyzed in the study. When interpreting data on animal genetic composition in the context of human migrations, the possibilities of alternative processes (exchange, trade, etc.) should be taken into account. The study will meet the listed criteria only if the features of the archaeological context of the studied paleozoological materials are taken into account, including their cultural and chronological attribution. The paper provides examples of using the analysis of the genetic composition of domestic animals to reconstruct the history of human migration in different regions, both for Siberia and other regions. The authors‘ experience shows that the analysis of the genetic composition of domesticated animals is the most informative as an additional study for the analysis of the genetic structure of human populations. These two approaches allow mutual verification of the results and detailing of the resulting picture of the migration processes under study.