The Human Inheritance: Genes, Languages, and Evolution

by Bryan Sykes (editor)

Human evolution is one of the most contentious areas of science. Genetics is beginning to offer powerful insights into our past, but the results continue to be controversial. This stimulating and challenging book of essays, written for a broad audience, looks at the links between genes, language, and the archeological record and evaluates the potential of genetics for uncovering our history.

Genres: Science, Linguistics

208 pages, Hardcover

First published November 25, 1999

About the author

Bryan Clifford Sykes was a renowned British geneticist and science writer who served as a Fellow of Wolfson College and Emeritus Professor of Human Genetics at the University of Oxford. He was a pioneering researcher in the field of ancient DNA and was among the first to retrieve DNA from ancient human remains, with his landmark 1989 study published in Nature. He played a significant role in high-profile cases, including the analysis of DNA from Ötzi the Iceman.
Sykes gained widespread recognition for his popular science books, especially The Seven Daughters of Eve (2001), in which he explained how mitochondrial DNA could trace maternal ancestry back to prehistoric women, whom he described as "clan mothers". In Blood of the Isles (2006), he explored the genetic roots of the British and Irish people, arguing that modern populations largely descended from early Mesolithic and Neolithic settlers, with limited genetic input from later groups like the Celts, Romans, Anglo-Saxons, and Vikings.
He was also known for investigating cryptozoological mysteries, including the alleged Yeti, suggesting some samples might belong to a rare bear hybrid, though later studies contested his findings.
Educated at Eltham College, the University of Liverpool, Bristol, and Oxford, Sykes authored numerous scientific papers. He died in December 2020, leaving a lasting impact on genetic genealogy and public understanding of human ancestry.