YANA RIVER, RUSSIA — A new study sheds light on how ancient human migration in Northeastern Siberia is linked to human populations today.

In a new paper published in the journal Nature, scientists studied the population history of Siberia by analyzing DNA from the remains of 34 ancient individuals from sites in northeastern Siberia, northern East Asia, and southwestern Finland that date back 31,600 to 600 years. They then compared them with DNA of ancient and modern humans from Eurasia and North America.

Results show the first human groups to arrive in the region were the Ancient North Siberians which are now extinct. Later on, two more migratory waves came from East Asia, the third of which was a group named Neo-Siberians. Modern Siberians can trace their ancestry back to this group.

Scientists also discovered a new group of humans they've named Ancient North Siberians by extracting DNA from teeth that belonged to two unrelated children whose remains were found near Siberia's Yana River at a location called the Yana Rhinoceros Horn Site.

They believed these would have ties with early native North Americans, however, they appear to be unrelated.

DNA collections indicate native North Americans came as a result of bonding between East Asians and a population distantly linked to Ancient Northern Siberians which occurred roughly 20,000 years ago.

Although the Ancient North Siberians are now long gone, Dr. Martin Sikora, first author of the paper said,

"These findings have changed a lot of what we thought we knew about the population history of northeastern Siberia but also what we know about the history of human migration as a whole."