Ancient DNA is rewriting the migration history of the western Pacific.

A new Cell study analyzed genome-wide data from 72 ancient individuals spanning Fiji, Vanuatu, Tonga and the eastern Solomon Islands across the last 3,000 years.

The first Lapita-associated settlers carried predominantly Southeast Asian-related ancestry and reached Fiji around 2,900 years ago. But only a few centuries later, a second ancestry was already spreading east.

The earliest direct evidence of Papuan-related ancestry appears in Vanuatu around 2,700 years ago. Across Vanuatu, Fiji and Tonga, this ancestry is best proxied by populations related to the Bismarck Archipelago, and its spread appears to have been male-biased.

Fiji experienced at least two distinct Papuan-related influxes, around 2,000–1,700 and 1,300–900 years ago. The later movement may have come from Vanuatu or another nearby population, although missing ancient genomes prevent an exact identification.

Migration later reversed direction. Around 1,200–800 years ago, Polynesian-related ancestry moved westward into Vanuatu. A woman from Aniwa dated to about 900 years ago was genetically best modeled as recently Polynesian-related, with no detectable local Vanuatu admixture.

DNA also revealed social structure in early Fiji. At Sigatoka, one biological kin group carried more Southeast Asian-related ancestry and included higher-status individuals, suggesting wealth or status may have been preserved within the lineage.

The Pacific was not peopled by one migration, but repeatedly reshaped by movements traveling in both directions across the ocean.

📚 Source: Feldman et al. (2026), Cell
Ancient genomes reveal distinct human dispersals and social stratification in the settlement history of western Remote Oceania

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