Ideas about our European ancestors are being transformed through archaeology, linguistics and the new genetic revolution
Unprecedented in the scope of its research, this paradigm-shifting, highly readable book challenges our established ways of looking at Europe's past and its people. It will be essential reading for the growing number of people who want to trace their ancestry through DNA and understand what the results mean. The concept of migration in prehistory, so long out of favour, is back on the agenda. Visions of continuity now have to give way to a more dynamic view, with one wave of migration following another, from the first human arrivals to the Vikings.
The discovery of ancient DNA provides evidence that the European gene pool was stirred vigorously many times. Genetic clues are also enhancing our understanding of European mobility in periods with written records, including the arrival of the Anglo-Saxons, the spread of the Slavs and the adventures of the Vikings.