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turanian_552 4 points ago +4 / -0

Mummy DNA unravels ancient Egyptians’ ancestry

Genetic analysis reveals a close relationship with Middle Easterners, not central Africans.

https://www.nature.com/news/mummy-dna-unravels-ancient-egyptians-ancestry-1.22069

From TFA:

"The findings show that the mummies’ closest kin were ancient farmers from a region that includes present-day Israel and Jordan."

Ancient Egypt was two different countries: the Upper Kingdom (present-day S.Egypt into Sudan), and the Lower Kingdom (from near the pyramids downstream to the Mediterranean). Upper Kingdom was Black African, Lower Kingdom was genetically related to Levantine people.

Whether Levantine=White is a separate minefield of its own :-)

This split between the Upper and Lower Kingdom helps fuel the argument about how 'black' or 'white' the Ancient Egyptians were.