Do Genetic Studies Refute the Etruscans’ Anatolian Origin?

The origin of the Etruscans is something that has fascinated researchers for many years. In fact, there was even some debate about it in antiquity, although the vast majority of ancient writers accepted that they came from Anatolia. Herodotus is the earliest source of this tradition.

With the benefit of modern science, we do not have to rely on ancient writings, nor even on archaeology, which is often difficult to interpret. What have genetic studies revealed about the origin of the Etruscans? Do they refute or support their legendary Anatolian origin?

When genetic studies first started to be used to investigate the identity of the Etruscans, they appeared to reveal striking support for their Anatolian origin. Many news articles were written about how science had confirmed the veracity of Herodotus’ claim. This was particularly the case after a study in 2007. After analyzing modern DNA from Tuscany and from the Near East, researchers found what appeared to be an unusually close connection between the two.

However, this study (Achilli et al.) has been severely criticized. For one thing, it does not reveal when this supposedly close connection began. It could be a result of migrations during the Roman Imperial period, for example. It also only applied to one small area of Tuscany. Furthermore, additional research has revealed that the supposedly strong similarities with Near Eastern haplogroups are actually widespread all over Italy and other parts of Europe. Therefore, there is no good reason, on the basis of this study alone, to connect the Etruscans to Anatolia.

More Recent Studies

In contrast, modern genetic studies have gone in the opposite direction. They have presented evidence that the Etruscans were actually the native inhabitants of Italy. For example, a study published in 2013 that used ancient DNA in their dataset estimated that the connection between the Etruscans and Anatolia goes back some 5,000 years. This is much further back than the supposed migration recorded by Herodotus. This study also concluded that ancient Etruscan DNA is more similar to modern European populations than it is to modern Anatolian populations.

Another study, from 2021, strongly supported this conclusion. This study examined 48 Iron Age individuals, from 800 BCE onwards. These researchers were able to clearly see how the genetic makeup of the Etruscans had changed over time. From this evidence, they found that the Etruscans displayed no particular similarities to the ancient Anatolians. Rather, they were most similar to ancient European populations. This appeared to strongly refute the legendary Anatolian origin.

However, using genetic studies to assess the historicity of the supposed Anatolian origin of the Etruscans is complicated by one crucial factor: chronology. Traditionally, the migration in question is supposed to have occurred during the Bronze Age. This is based on the account of Herodotus and subsequent writers, who placed the migration of the Etruscans broadly at the time of the Trojan War. Since the Trojan War has traditionally been dated to c. 1200 BCE, this is the date that has almost always been used in discussions of the Etruscans.

In the Bronze Age, Anatolia was composed of nations such as the Hittites, the Luwians, and a variety of more minor nations. Therefore, if the Etruscans had migrated from Anatolia to Italy during the Bronze Age, they would logically display similarities to those nations. The genetic evidence is clear, however, that they do not. In view of this evidence, genetic research does appear to rule out a migration in the Bronze Age.

However, not all scholars agree with the traditional date of the Trojan War. The idea that it occurred in c. 1200 BCE comes directly from ancient Greek estimates of when it occurred. Greek archaeologist and historian Nikos Kokkinos argued that a re-examination of the actual data used by ancient Greek historians points to a more recent date. The evidence shows that the ancient historians had a tendency to use exaggerated generational lengths—up to 45 years in some cases—to extend their own antiquity as far back as possible. A more realistic average generational length would, of course, be closer to 25 years.

Of course, we cannot state definitively when the Trojan War really occurred, if at all. Furthermore, the exact chronological relationship between the Trojan War and the migration of the Etruscans is open to debate, since the ancient sources are not entirely consistent concerning this. Nevertheless, we are faced with the distinct possibility that Herodotus was actually attempting to describe far more recent events.

This conclusion makes a lot of sense when we consider the archaeological evidence. In about 700 BCE, the Etruscans entered what is called the “Orientalizing Period.” At this time, they experienced an “Oriental inundation,” as the Encyclopedia Britannica puts it. As historian Jodi Magness explained, from this era onward:

“Near Eastern influence is evident on almost all aspects of Etruscan life, including art, clothing, chariots, military equipment and warfare, hairstyles, dining habits, religion or cult, and technology.”

In addition to this profound and sudden Oriental influence on Etruscan society in general, we also see this in tomb designs. In c. 700 BCE, the Etruscans began building monumental tombs which bear striking similarities to those found in contemporary Anatolia. They are particularly similar to Phrygian and Lydian tombs.

In view of this evidence, a number of scholars have concluded that there was a migration of a Near Eastern elite class at this time. This is clearly better supported than a Bronze Age migration, for which there is no evidence at all.

The Consequences of the Genetic Studies

How does this evidence for a migration from Anatolia in c. 700 BCE tie in with the results from genetic research? To examine this properly, we would do well to consider some of the specific details from the 2021 study. Note the following quotation from the results of the study:

“C.Italy_Etruscan can be modeled successfully as having derived its entire ancestry from other European populations such as the earlier Bell Beaker group from northern Italy and Iron Age populations from southern Europe (Iberia, Croatia, and Greece).”

As we see here, the Iron Age Etruscans display clear similarities to the European Bell Beaker people of the Bronze Age. However, they can also be successfully modeled as having descended in large part from Iron Age populations of southern Europe. The researchers point to Iberia, Croatia, and Greece in particular. This is very significant in view of the evidence that the Anatolian migration, if it occurred at all, would have occurred in c. 700 BCE rather than in the Bronze Age.

Significantly, we know that there were several Iron Age southern European populations who had recently migrated to western Anatolia by 700 BCE. For instance, the Greeks had been gradually settling the western coast of that region throughout the Iron Age. The Troad, for example, was settled by Greeks from about 900 BCE onward. Furthermore, the Phrygians were originally from the Balkans. They, too, migrated to Anatolia after the start of the Iron Age.

Also notable are the Pelasgians. We do not know when some or all of them migrated to Anatolia, but we do know that they were commonly presented as being the original, pre-Greek inhabitants of Greece. Yet, some records also place them in western Anatolia. Notably, there is specifically a tradition that Pelasgians traveled with the Etruscans from the western coast of Anatolia and settled with them in Italy. This is recorded by Strabo, referring to the writings of Anticleides, a 3rd-century BCE historian. In fact, the 5th-century BCE historian Hellanicus of Lesbos also recorded that the Pelasgians had founded Etruria.

What This Means for the Genetic Studies of the Etruscans

This evidence has a significant impact on how we should interpret these genetic studies. If we compare the results with the idea of a Bronze Age migration from Anatolia to Italy, then we do indeed see that the evidence refutes the legend. On the other hand, there is good evidence to suggest that Herodotus’ account had its origin in much more recent events. Archaeology lends support to the idea of a migration from Anatolia around 700 BCE, at the start of the Orientalizing Period. At this time, western Anatolia was extensively populated by recent arrivals from southern European nations, particularly those of the Balkans.

The Greeks and the Phrygians are particularly notable. The Pelasgians, also from that same area, are specifically reported to have been part of the migration that led to the founding of Etruria. The Greeks, Phrygians, and Pelasgians are all consistent with the “Iron Age populations from southern Europe” mentioned in the 2021 genetic study on the Etruscans. Far from contradicting the legend of the Etruscan migration from Anatolia, the genetic results are consistent with it when we account for this chronological issue.