Stone Age Scotland tombs reveal male-line kinship webs across Neolithic sites

DNA from 22 people across five Neolithic tombs in northern Scotland (Caithness and Orkney, 3800–3200 BCE) shows close male relatives—father–son pairs, brothers, uncles and nephews—buried together, while female remains show no close kin ties, indicating patrilineal descent and ‘webs of descent’ spanning islands.