A transition to agriculture and fishing during the Neolithic era marked a pivotal departure from traditional practices of hunting and gathering, giving rise to heightened population densities and the formation of more extensive, permanent human settlements.

However, this Neolithic boom was followed by a sudden population decline in Northern Europe around 5300–4900 years ago.

Researchers have long debated the underlying cause of this phenomenon. Recent findings suggest that an epidemic may have played a significant role.

DNA analyses of 108 skeletal remains from the Neolithic period, unearthed in Scandinavia, point to this hypothesis. Scientist Frederik Valeur Seersholm and his team at the University of Copenhagen performed genetic testing and discovered the presence of the Yersinia pestis bacterium in 18 of the specimens.

This microorganism is believed to have sparked highly lethal epidemics in the past, such as the infamous Black Death that devastated the population of Europe during the Middle Ages.

Neolithic plague

Recent research has pointed to an ancestral form of Yersinia pestis as a potential factor in the population decline some 5,000 years ago.

In Scandinavia, the Neolithic decline coincides with the disappearance of the Funnelbeaker (TRB) cultural complex and the cessation of early megalith construction.

Recent analysis of ancient DNA from nine Scandinavian burial sites aimed to investigate the frequency of plague infections and the social structures within these communities.

The presence of different plague strains in various generations and sites supports the notion that plague infections were recurrent rather than resulting from a single epidemic.