# Where did the people buried in the earliest Tarim Basin cemeteries come from? · Tarim Basin mummies (Xiaohe) > Five answers have been proposed. They descended from an old, isolated local population of mainly Ancient North Eurasian ancestry. leads, with evidence 2… Source: https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/tarim-mummies/questions/QST0D90E32C1HN0/where-did-the-people-buried-in-the-earliest-tarim-basin Publisher: Mysteries Department Licence: CC BY 4.0 (credit Mysteries Department and link the page) Updated: 2026-10-26T11:58:56+00:00 --- **0** # Where did the people buried in the earliest Tarim Basin cemeteries come from? Asked 26 Oct 2026 by [**apollo** ](https://mysteriesdept.com/u/apollo)·5 answers·0·0 following **Answered: They descended from an old, isolated local population of mainly Ancient North Eurasian ancestry.** Passed its tests and review. ## Where it stands Five answers have been proposed. They descended from an old, isolated local population of mainly Ancient North Eurasian ancestry. leads, with evidence 2 for, 1 against: supported by its tests. Four are still possible. Of the one narrower question under it, none is answered yet. ## Why it matters For thirty years the mummies were the main physical evidence offered for an eastward migration of Indo-European speakers into Inner Asia⁠[[1]](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0D90DW7M0BWK/review-of-the-tarim-mummies-ancient-china-and-the-mystery-of). Each migration reading predicts migrant ancestry in the founders; the 2021 genomes were the first test with the power to see it⁠[[2]](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0D90DSHP05J1/the-genomic-origins-of-the-bronze-age-tarim-basin-mummies). ## Answers 5 [**They descended from an old, isolated local population of mainly Ancient North Eurasian ancestry.** ](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/tarim-mummies/answers/ANS0D90E67Y4NEW/they-descended-from-an-old-isolated-local-population-of) Supported by its tests Evidence: 2 for, 1 against Most likely [**None of these.** ](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/tarim-mummies/answers/ANS0D90E776753A/none-of-these) Failed a test; not refuted outright Evidence: none yet Disputed [**They descended from Afanasievo herders of the Altai, themselves derived from the Yamnaya of the…** ](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/tarim-mummies/answers/ANS0D90E41M0WR4/they-descended-from-afanasievo-herders-of-the-altai) Failed a test; not refuted outright Evidence: 1 for, 2 against Disputed [**They descended from agropastoralists of the Inner Asian Mountain Corridor to the west and north of the basin.** ](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/tarim-mummies/answers/ANS0D90E5RA2FT8/they-descended-from-agropastoralists-of-the-inner-asian) Failed a test; not refuted outright Evidence: 1 against Disputed [**They descended from farmers of the Bactria-Margiana Archaeological Complex who came from the Central Asian…** ](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/tarim-mummies/answers/ANS0D90E50W64K1/they-descended-from-farmers-of-the-bactria-margiana) Failed a test; not refuted outright Evidence: 1 for, 1 against Disputed ## History 1. 2002[Di Cosmo puts forward: they descended from Afanasievo herders of the Altai, themselves derived from the Yamnaya of the…](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0D90DW7M0BWK/review-of-the-tarim-mummies-ancient-china-and-the-mystery-of) 1. 2010[Li et al.: males of the lowest Xiaohe layer carry Y haplogroup R1a1a, read in 2010 as a western link.](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0D90DT942E3R/evidence-that-a-west-east-admixed-population-lived-in-the)For: They descended from Afanasievo herders of the Altai, themselves derived from the Yamnaya of the… 1. 2015[Li et al.: maternal lineages traced to Europe, Siberia and South Asia were read as admixture.](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0D90DTGY1NAH/analysis-of-ancient-human-mitochondrial-dna-from-the-xiaohe)Against: They descended from an old, isolated local population of mainly Ancient North Eurasian ancestry. 1. 2021[Zhang et al. puts forward: they descended from farmers of the Bactria-Margiana Archaeological Complex who came from the Central Asian…](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0D90DSHP05J1/the-genomic-origins-of-the-bronze-age-tarim-basin-mummies) 1. 2021[Zhang et al. puts forward: they descended from agropastoralists of the Inner Asian Mountain Corridor to the west and north of the basin.](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0D90DSHP05J1/the-genomic-origins-of-the-bronze-age-tarim-basin-mummies) 1. 2021[Zhang et al. puts forward: they descended from an old, isolated local population of mainly Ancient North Eurasian ancestry.](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0D90DSHP05J1/the-genomic-origins-of-the-bronze-age-tarim-basin-mummies) 1. 2021[Zhang et al.: no Afanasievo-related ancestry in any of the 13 Tarim individuals; qpAdm models with steppe sources fail.](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0D90DSHP05J1/the-genomic-origins-of-the-bronze-age-tarim-basin-mummies)Against: They descended from Afanasievo herders of the Altai, themselves derived from the Yamnaya of the… 1. 2021[Zhang et al.: no BMAC-related ancestry detected.](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0D90DSHP05J1/the-genomic-origins-of-the-bronze-age-tarim-basin-mummies)Against: They descended from farmers of the Bactria-Margiana Archaeological Complex who came from the Central Asian… 1. 2021[Zhang et al.: ritual Ephedra and desert irrigation practices resemble BMAC.](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0D90DSHP05J1/the-genomic-origins-of-the-bronze-age-tarim-basin-mummies)For: They descended from farmers of the Bactria-Margiana Archaeological Complex who came from the Central Asian… 1. 2021[Zhang et al.: models with Inner Asian Mountain Corridor sources fail.](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0D90DSHP05J1/the-genomic-origins-of-the-bronze-age-tarim-basin-mummies)Against: They descended from agropastoralists of the Inner Asian Mountain Corridor to the west and north of the basin. 1. 2021[Zhang et al.: all 13 individuals from Gumugou, Xiaohe and Beifang fit about 72% ANE and 28% Baikal_EBA ancestry.](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0D90DSHP05J1/the-genomic-origins-of-the-bronze-age-tarim-basin-mummies)For: They descended from an old, isolated local population of mainly Ancient North Eurasian ancestry. 1. 26 Oct 2026Asked on this site ## Discussion 0 [Add to the discussion](https://mysteriesdept.com/signin?next=/mysteries/tarim-mummies/questions/QST0D90E32C1HN0/where-did-the-people-buried-in-the-earliest-tarim-basin%23discussion) Help with this question [ **Propose an answer** Something the evidence could support or rule out ] [ **Propose an answer** Something the evidence could support or rule out ](https://mysteriesdept.com/signin?next=/mysteries/tarim-mummies/questions/QST0D90E32C1HN0/where-did-the-people-buried-in-the-earliest-tarim-basin%23add-answer) [ **Add evidence** A result for or against an answer ] [ **Add evidence** A result for or against an answer ](https://mysteriesdept.com/signin?next=/mysteries/tarim-mummies/questions/QST0D90E32C1HN0/where-did-the-people-buried-in-the-earliest-tarim-basin%23add-evidence) [ **Ask a sub-question** A smaller question that would help settle this one ] [ **Ask a sub-question** A smaller question that would help settle this one ](https://mysteriesdept.com/signin?next=/mysteries/tarim-mummies/questions/QST0D90E32C1HN0/where-did-the-people-buried-in-the-earliest-tarim-basin%23add-question) [ **Add a source** A paper, archive record or image ] [ **Add a source** A paper, archive record or image ](https://mysteriesdept.com/signin?next=/mysteries/tarim-mummies/questions/QST0D90E32C1HN0/where-did-the-people-buried-in-the-earliest-tarim-basin%23add-source) Where it fits Tarim Basin mummies (Xiaohe) **Where did the people buried in the earliest Tarim Basin cemeteries come from?** Key question · you're here [What language did the Bronze Age Tarim people speak?](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/tarim-mummies/questions/QST0D90E3ST5JQ5/what-language-did-the-bronze-age-tarim-people-speak)Open · 3 answers, inconclusive [ Ask a question under this one ]