Deep ancestry of collapsing networks of nomadic hunter–gatherers in Borneo

Abstract

Theories of early cooperation in human society often draw from a small sam- ple of ethnographic studies of surviving populations of hunter-gatherers, most of which are now sedentary. Borneo hunter-gatherers (Punan, Penan) have seldom figured in comparative research because of a decades-old controversy about whether they are the descendants of farmers who adopted a hunting and gathering way of life. In 2018 we began an ethnographic study of a group of still-nomadic hunter-gatherers who call themselves Punan Batu (Cave Punan). Our genetic analysis clearly indicates that they are very unlikely to be the de- scendants of neighbouring agriculturalists. They also preserve a song language that is unrelated to other languages of Borneo. Dispersed traveling groups of Punan Batu with fluid membership use message sticks to stay in contact, co- operate and share resources as they journey between rock shelters and forest camps. Message sticks were once widespread among nomadic Punan in Bor- neo, but have largely disappeared in sedentary Punan villages. Thus the small community of Punan Batu offers a rare glimpse of a hunting and gathering way of life that was once widespread in the forests of Borneo, where prosocial behaviour extended beyond the face-to-face community, facilitating successful collective adaptation to the diverse resources of Borneo's forests.

Hunter–gatherer genetics research: Importance and avenues

“…This was particularly the case for groups inhabiting islands or those who were displaced to isolated forested highlands or plateaus that are not suitable and/or fertile enough for extensive agriculture, such as the Paniyas and Mundas from India or the Senai, Kintak and Kensiu from mainland Malaysia. A similar pattern is found among the Punan groups in Indonesia, who despite showing a signal of deep cultural and genetic ancestry (Lansing et al, 2022;Kusuma et al, 2023) currently harbour unusually long intra-population identity-by-descent segments and runs of homozygosity, indicative of their current geographical isolation.…”

“…In addition, while population genetics research has traditionally focused on documenting ‘broad strokes’ of continental patterns of migrations and interactions between different populations or large demographic fluctuations, such patterns emerge from the local-scale behaviour of individuals and groups (He et al, 2019 ; Ávila-Arcos et al, 2023 ). Consequently, more sampling of individuals within regions and a coupling of genetic and anthropological data are required for understanding the local level processes that give rise to the observed continental level patterns (see Lansing et al, 2022 for examples).…”

Hunter-gatherer genetics research: Importance and avenues

“…In addition, whilst population genetics research has traditionally focused on documenting "broad strokes" of continental patterns of migrations and interactions between different populations or large demographic fluctuations, such patterns emerge from the local-scale behaviour of individuals and groups (He et al 2019;Ávila-Arcos et al 2023). Consequently, more sampling of individuals within regions and a coupling of genetic and anthropological data are required for understanding the local level processes that give rise to the observed continental level patterns (see Lansing et al 2022 for examples).…”

AMSD: The Australian Message Stick Database

“…After Australian message sticks became known internationally, European scholars retrospectively applied the term ‘message stick’ to engraved Upper Palaeolithic objects found in cave excavations in Switzerland [ 9 ] and France [ 18 ]. More recently, the term ‘message stick’ describes a communication practice in Borneo involving arrangements of wooden sticks and leaves that are marked in purposeful ways [ 19 ]. Another very similar practice is the use of mou khé among the Hmong, notched pieces of wood that interact with an oral message for important communications [ 20 ].…”