124 | Nature | Vol 637 | 2 January 2025
Article
continuity from the EIA in Norway and northern Sweden (Fig. 4a). When 
considered collectively, the individuals who show evidence of central 
European-related ancestry are mostly observed in regions histori -
cally within the Danish sphere of influence and rule. Currently, no such 
individuals, for example, are noted in eastern central Sweden, which 
was a focus of regional power of the Svear (Fig. 4a). The difference in 
distribution could suggest that the central European-related ancestry 
was more common in regions dominated by the historical Götar and 
groups inhabiting the lands on the borders of the Danish kingdom.
T o test the extent to which the variation in ancestry was consistent 
with mobility during the lifetime of the individuals or, alternatively, 
that of established groups, we focused on the island of Öland in south-
east Sweden, where 23 individuals for whom we could reconstruct 
ancestry portraits also had associated strontium stable isotope data66. 
Strontium isotope data from dental enamel reflect the geology of the 
region where an individual grew to maturity, and there are considerable 
differences in expectations between Öland and many other regions 
in northern Europe. The full range of strontium isotope ratios in 109 
individuals show two modes, a majority group with low ratios and a 
second minority group with high ratios falling outside the expected 
range of local fauna (Fig. 4b). Among 23 individuals with genomes in 
our data, all 5 individuals with 100% ancestry relating to central Europe 
Southern Europe
Scandinavian Peninsula EIA
Central
Europe
Eastern Europe
Britain
Southern Europe
Scandinavian Peninsula EIA
Central
Europe
Eastern Europe
Britain
Southern Europe
Scandinavian Peninsula EIA
Central
Europe
Eastern Europe
Britain
Southern Europe
Scandinavian Peninsula EIA
Central
Europe
Eastern Europe
Britain
Proportion of ancestry
Scandinavian Peninsula
70.5
87Srf/86Sr
0.71 0.72 0.73 0.74 0
0.5
1.0
0
0.5
1.0
1 2 1
3.2
3.1
17.0
1.7
15.7
6.1
20.8
17.5
1.6
2
0
0.25
0.50
0.75
1.00
b
0
10
20
30
40
50Stable isotope histogram counts
Ancestry proportion
Continental-related ancestry
67.5
64.5
61.5
58.5
55.5
Central Europe Britain
Norway_VA
Latitude
Denmark_VA Far/f_lung_VA
Sweden_VA
0
0.25 0.50 0.75 1.00
1 2 1 2 1 2
All SNPs
Twigstats 1,000
Faroes
Ireland
Isle of Man
Orkney_VA
Oxford_VA
Zealand_VA(7)Langeland_VA(18)Jutland_VA(13)Funen_VA(12)Denmark_EVA(3)
c
d
e
f
a
Scandinavian Peninsula EIA Central Europe Iron Roman Britain Iron RomanS outhern Europe Eastern Europe
Dorset_VA
Iceland
Greenland
Slovenia.Roman.oNorthEurope
Slovenia.lronRoman
Slovakia.MigrationPeriod
Slovakia_Zohor_Germanic_Roman
Scandinavian_Peninsula_EIA(II)
Scandinavian_Peninsula_EIA(I)
Saami
Russia_Sarmatian
Portugal.lronRoman
PolandUkraine_MLBA(II)
PolandUkraine_MLBA(I)
Poland_Wielbark(III)
Poland_Wielbark(II)
Poland_Wielbark(I)
Poland_Middle_Ages(II)
Poland_BA
Netherlands_Friesland_Saxon
Longobard_EMED(II)
Montenegro_EM
Longobard_EMED(I)
Lithuania.lronRoman
Kyrgyzstan_TianShanHun
ltaly.lronRepublic
ltaly.lmperial(lI)
Italy.lmperial(l)
IrelandOrkney_BA
HungarySlovakia.lronRoman
Hungary_EM(II)
Hungary_EM(I)
England.Roman.Gladiator.Scandinavia
England_Saxon_midCNE
England_Saxon_lowCNE
England_Saxon_highCNE
Denmark_IA
Denmark_EVA
Denmark_BA
Croatia.lronRoman_oNorthEurope
CordedWare_EBA
CentraIEurope.IronRoman(lII)
CentraIEurope.lronRoman(lI)
CentraIEurope.lronRoman(l)
Britain.lronRoman
Baiuvarii_EMED
Austria_Klosterneuburg_Roman
Anatolia EBA
Poland_Middle_Ages(I)
Russia
Ukraine
0
0.25 0.50 0.75 1.00
0
0.25 0.50 0.75 1.00
Fig. 4 | Ancestry in the Viking world. a, Map showing ancestry carried by 
Scandinavian Viking Age individuals as inferred using the best-fitting qpAdm 
model. These are chosen by either choosing the one-source model with largest 
P value and P > 0.01 or the two-source model with the largest P value and P > 0.01.