Chiara Barbieri
@chiarabarbieri.bsky.social
Genetics at Uni Cagliari. Research Group "Human genetic diversity across languages and cultures" Uni Zurich.
Pinned
Our paper is out! We linked genetic and linguistic data to study how contact changes language and found consistent patterns of borrowing across contact situations
@balthasarbickel.bsky.social @chiarabarbieri.bsky.social @nccrlanguage.bsky.social @isle-uzh.bsky.social
doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adv7521
@balthasarbickel.bsky.social @chiarabarbieri.bsky.social @nccrlanguage.bsky.social @isle-uzh.bsky.social
doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adv7521
Patterns of genetic admixture reveal similar rates of borrowing across diverse scenarios of language contact
Human population contact leads to consistently similar rates of linguistic borrowing, but effects vary across linguistic features.
www.science.org
A very special paper where we did something NEW! 🔥combining a large genetic dataset 🧬, a large linguistic dataset 💬, and Bayesian multilevel logistic regressions 📈, counting the effects of areal contact (geographic constrains) 🌎. Genetic admixture explains higher levels of linguistic exchanges...
Reposted by Chiara Barbieri
We have a few remaining seats left in the “Programming for Evolutionary Biologists” course - 10th edition, Berlin, Feb 17 to Mar 6
evop.bioinf.uni-leipzig.de
A highly motivated and experienced team is waiting for you with an updated curriculum!
evop.bioinf.uni-leipzig.de
A highly motivated and experienced team is waiting for you with an updated curriculum!
Programming for Evolutionary Biology School (EVOP) | February 18th – March 5th 2026
evop.bioinf.uni-leipzig.de
October 7, 2025 at 9:55 AM
We have a few remaining seats left in the “Programming for Evolutionary Biologists” course - 10th edition, Berlin, Feb 17 to Mar 6
evop.bioinf.uni-leipzig.de
A highly motivated and experienced team is waiting for you with an updated curriculum!
evop.bioinf.uni-leipzig.de
A highly motivated and experienced team is waiting for you with an updated curriculum!
"DNA tells story of language
Methodologically, the study’s move is elegant. Historical documents can be rich but patchy, and for many regions and eras they simply don’t exist.
Genes keep a different kind of ledger. When populations intermix, they leave an imprint that persists for thousands years."
Methodologically, the study’s move is elegant. Historical documents can be rich but patchy, and for many regions and eras they simply don’t exist.
Genes keep a different kind of ledger. When populations intermix, they leave an imprint that persists for thousands years."
Our DNA holds the hidden history of human language
New research reveals how human DNA preserves the story of language contact, showing when and where languages converged, diverged, and evolved.
www.earth.com
September 10, 2025 at 10:09 PM
"DNA tells story of language
Methodologically, the study’s move is elegant. Historical documents can be rich but patchy, and for many regions and eras they simply don’t exist.
Genes keep a different kind of ledger. When populations intermix, they leave an imprint that persists for thousands years."
Methodologically, the study’s move is elegant. Historical documents can be rich but patchy, and for many regions and eras they simply don’t exist.
Genes keep a different kind of ledger. When populations intermix, they leave an imprint that persists for thousands years."
A very special paper where we did something NEW! 🔥combining a large genetic dataset 🧬, a large linguistic dataset 💬, and Bayesian multilevel logistic regressions 📈, counting the effects of areal contact (geographic constrains) 🌎. Genetic admixture explains higher levels of linguistic exchanges...
Our paper is out! We linked genetic and linguistic data to study how contact changes language and found consistent patterns of borrowing across contact situations
@balthasarbickel.bsky.social @chiarabarbieri.bsky.social @nccrlanguage.bsky.social @isle-uzh.bsky.social
doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adv7521
@balthasarbickel.bsky.social @chiarabarbieri.bsky.social @nccrlanguage.bsky.social @isle-uzh.bsky.social
doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adv7521
Patterns of genetic admixture reveal similar rates of borrowing across diverse scenarios of language contact
Human population contact leads to consistently similar rates of linguistic borrowing, but effects vary across linguistic features.
www.science.org
August 30, 2025 at 1:56 PM
A very special paper where we did something NEW! 🔥combining a large genetic dataset 🧬, a large linguistic dataset 💬, and Bayesian multilevel logistic regressions 📈, counting the effects of areal contact (geographic constrains) 🌎. Genetic admixture explains higher levels of linguistic exchanges...
Reposted by Chiara Barbieri
📰When populations meet, they exchange genes, but also language features. According to a new study by NCCR researchers, contact between human populations increases the resemblance between their languages to similar extents all over the world, but differently.
evolvinglanguage.ch/capturing-la...
evolvinglanguage.ch/capturing-la...
Capturing language change through the genes - NCCR Evolving Language
When populations meet, they typically exchange genes. Their languages meet too, and such encounters can change languages. But how much do languages actually change through contact, and do these change...
evolvinglanguage.ch
August 29, 2025 at 7:45 PM
📰When populations meet, they exchange genes, but also language features. According to a new study by NCCR researchers, contact between human populations increases the resemblance between their languages to similar extents all over the world, but differently.
evolvinglanguage.ch/capturing-la...
evolvinglanguage.ch/capturing-la...
New paper! ⚡ With Gabriel Aguirre and Marcelo Sánchez, looking at patterns of blowgun types and use across societies of the world. We find areal patterns, similarities mediated by cultural connections, and specific types characterizing distinct branches of the Austronesian language tree. 🎯
A global database on blowguns with links to geography and language | Evolutionary Human Sciences | Cambridge Core
A global database on blowguns with links to geography and language - Volume 7
www.cambridge.org
August 27, 2025 at 9:38 PM
New paper! ⚡ With Gabriel Aguirre and Marcelo Sánchez, looking at patterns of blowgun types and use across societies of the world. We find areal patterns, similarities mediated by cultural connections, and specific types characterizing distinct branches of the Austronesian language tree. 🎯
@annagraff.bsky.social presenting our work on effects of isolation and contact in linguistic diversity - with a peak from population genetics! #ichl27
August 18, 2025 at 6:46 PM
@annagraff.bsky.social presenting our work on effects of isolation and contact in linguistic diversity - with a peak from population genetics! #ichl27
"Outsourcing thought: why writing must remain central to human knowledge in Higher Education". Thinking of our role at University in the age of AI - by Giorgio Iemmolo. "Protect writing as the space where knowledge emerges" osf.io/preprints/so...
OSF
osf.io
August 16, 2025 at 4:58 PM
"Outsourcing thought: why writing must remain central to human knowledge in Higher Education". Thinking of our role at University in the age of AI - by Giorgio Iemmolo. "Protect writing as the space where knowledge emerges" osf.io/preprints/so...
Reposted by Chiara Barbieri
I'm pleased to share this new article by @svenkasser.bsky.social, Laura Fortunato @anthrolog.bsky.social, Marc Feldman and myself.
The article extends gene-culture coevolution to recognize evolutionary effects of culture arising through drift and migration.
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
The article extends gene-culture coevolution to recognize evolutionary effects of culture arising through drift and migration.
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
August 13, 2025 at 1:54 PM
I'm pleased to share this new article by @svenkasser.bsky.social, Laura Fortunato @anthrolog.bsky.social, Marc Feldman and myself.
The article extends gene-culture coevolution to recognize evolutionary effects of culture arising through drift and migration.
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
The article extends gene-culture coevolution to recognize evolutionary effects of culture arising through drift and migration.
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Some facts about biological sex, genetic sex, and why it is not so clear cut as people think:
World Athletics’ mandatory genetic test for women athletes is misguided. I should know – I discovered the relevant gene in 1990
World Athletics says its genetic test for women ensures ‘the integrity of women’s sport’ – but science does not support this overly simplistic idea.
theconversation.com
August 5, 2025 at 10:09 AM
Some facts about biological sex, genetic sex, and why it is not so clear cut as people think:
Reposted by Chiara Barbieri
New paper on the genetic legacy of living inhabitants of the Northern Coast of Peru. With Ricardo Fujita and José Sandoval of USMP Lima,master student Lea Huber,@epifaniaarango.bsky.social,@kkshimizu1.bsky.social Genetic lineages characteristic of the region link to aDNA from local archaeo sites...
Peru's Hidden Genetic Legacy links to Ancient Moche Populations - NCCR Evolving Language
The northern coast of Peru is a region known for its rich archaeological heritage, but its people’s history is still underexplored. An international team of geneticists and linguists investigated the ...
evolvinglanguage.ch
July 29, 2025 at 10:30 AM
New paper on the genetic legacy of living inhabitants of the Northern Coast of Peru. With Ricardo Fujita and José Sandoval of USMP Lima,master student Lea Huber,@epifaniaarango.bsky.social,@kkshimizu1.bsky.social Genetic lineages characteristic of the region link to aDNA from local archaeo sites...
Feels like time travelling. Science and art reconstruct the life of our ancestors
See the Face of a 10,500-Year-Old Woman, Reconstructed by Archaeologists and Artists
Using well-preserved ancient DNA, researchers have created a life-like facial reconstruction of a woman who lived in Belgium's Meuse Valley during the Mesolithic period
www.smithsonianmag.com
July 29, 2025 at 8:52 AM
Feels like time travelling. Science and art reconstruct the life of our ancestors
New volume on the interface between languages, human history, anthropology, archaeology and (a bit of) genetics, curated by M. Robbeets and M. Hudson. A very rich table of content for everyone interested in these multidisciplinary studies of the human past. I contributed two chapters:
The Oxford Handbook of Archaeology and Language
Abstract. Linguists have long described their findings in an archaeological context, while archaeologists have been interested in what language can tell th
academic.oup.com
July 23, 2025 at 4:45 PM
New volume on the interface between languages, human history, anthropology, archaeology and (a bit of) genetics, curated by M. Robbeets and M. Hudson. A very rich table of content for everyone interested in these multidisciplinary studies of the human past. I contributed two chapters:
Reposted by Chiara Barbieri
Our new paper is out in @science.org! By exploring the rich genetic diversity of Brazil, we show how fine-scale genomic analyses reveal that this diversity, rooted in Indigenous ancestry and centuries of complex demographic history, plays a key role in population health.
May 15, 2025 at 7:46 PM
Our new paper is out in @science.org! By exploring the rich genetic diversity of Brazil, we show how fine-scale genomic analyses reveal that this diversity, rooted in Indigenous ancestry and centuries of complex demographic history, plays a key role in population health.
SIBE Summer School: evolution of populations at a scale. Ferrara 7-11 September. Application deadline 11 May. Travel grants available. A very nice format to learn about population genetics, conservation genomics, grant application, outreach, and networking. See you in Ferrara!
SIBE summer school
SIBE SUMMER SCHOOL 2025
7th − 11th September 2025
FERRARA (ITALY)
Overview
The analysis of genomic data has become increasingly feasible, even in non-model organisms, thanks to the “omics” revolution...
sites.google.com
April 28, 2025 at 9:09 AM
SIBE Summer School: evolution of populations at a scale. Ferrara 7-11 September. Application deadline 11 May. Travel grants available. A very nice format to learn about population genetics, conservation genomics, grant application, outreach, and networking. See you in Ferrara!
Reposted by Chiara Barbieri
NEW PAPER: Linguistics has long debated the scientific cost of narrow sampling, but growing language endangerment makes this debate urgent. We compare studied and unstudied languages in child language acquisition to assess how narrow sampling limits our understanding
doi.org/10.1162/opmi...
doi.org/10.1162/opmi...
April 10, 2025 at 9:29 AM
NEW PAPER: Linguistics has long debated the scientific cost of narrow sampling, but growing language endangerment makes this debate urgent. We compare studied and unstudied languages in child language acquisition to assess how narrow sampling limits our understanding
doi.org/10.1162/opmi...
doi.org/10.1162/opmi...
Reposted by Chiara Barbieri
What defines ethnicity: culture or genetics?🧬
ERC Grantees found that two Avar cemeteries had nearly identical artifacts but distinct DNA—proving culture and genetics don’t always align!📜
👉 buff.ly/3Dbkbrr
#FrontierResearch @maxplanck.de Eötvös Loránd University Austrian Academy of Sciences IAS
ERC Grantees found that two Avar cemeteries had nearly identical artifacts but distinct DNA—proving culture and genetics don’t always align!📜
👉 buff.ly/3Dbkbrr
#FrontierResearch @maxplanck.de Eötvös Loránd University Austrian Academy of Sciences IAS
March 10, 2025 at 8:17 AM
What defines ethnicity: culture or genetics?🧬
ERC Grantees found that two Avar cemeteries had nearly identical artifacts but distinct DNA—proving culture and genetics don’t always align!📜
👉 buff.ly/3Dbkbrr
#FrontierResearch @maxplanck.de Eötvös Loránd University Austrian Academy of Sciences IAS
ERC Grantees found that two Avar cemeteries had nearly identical artifacts but distinct DNA—proving culture and genetics don’t always align!📜
👉 buff.ly/3Dbkbrr
#FrontierResearch @maxplanck.de Eötvös Loránd University Austrian Academy of Sciences IAS
Reposted by Chiara Barbieri
Reposted by Chiara Barbieri
Recently in @pnas.org we reported first spatial transcriptomic analyses of human brain regions supporting language. Genes active in excitatory neurons & with differing laminar expression in frontal vs temporal cortex showed association with white-matter connectivity & language-related conditions...🧪
The neocortical infrastructure for language involves region-specific patterns of laminar gene expression | PNAS
The language network of the human brain has core components in the inferior frontal
cortex and superior/middle temporal cortex, with left-hemispher...
www.pnas.org
February 17, 2025 at 6:39 PM
Recently in @pnas.org we reported first spatial transcriptomic analyses of human brain regions supporting language. Genes active in excitatory neurons & with differing laminar expression in frontal vs temporal cortex showed association with white-matter connectivity & language-related conditions...🧪
*New linguistic data release* curated by @annagraff.bsky.social. We are already cooking interesting multidisciplinary analysis with this rich and solid resource... and you should try it, too! check the paper and the documentation www.nature.com/articles/s41... @nccrlanguage.bsky.social
Curating global datasets of structural linguistic features for independence - Scientific Data
Scientific Data - Curating global datasets of structural linguistic features for independence
www.nature.com
January 24, 2025 at 10:01 AM
*New linguistic data release* curated by @annagraff.bsky.social. We are already cooking interesting multidisciplinary analysis with this rich and solid resource... and you should try it, too! check the paper and the documentation www.nature.com/articles/s41... @nccrlanguage.bsky.social
Reposted by Chiara Barbieri
📣The @isle-uzh.bsky.social is now an official institute of the University of Zurich. Its mission is to deepen interdisciplinary research in the field of language evolution. The ISLE also serves as the host institution of the NCCR Evolving Language.
More info⬇️
evolvinglanguage.ch/an-institute...
More info⬇️
evolvinglanguage.ch/an-institute...
An Institute for the Interdisciplinary Study of Language Evolution at the University of Zurich - NCCR Evolving Language
On January 1, 2025, the University of Zurich (UZH) created a new institute, the Institute for the Interdisciplinary Study of Language Evolution (ISLE). Its mission is to deepen interdisciplinary resea...
evolvinglanguage.ch
January 17, 2025 at 11:20 AM
📣The @isle-uzh.bsky.social is now an official institute of the University of Zurich. Its mission is to deepen interdisciplinary research in the field of language evolution. The ISLE also serves as the host institution of the NCCR Evolving Language.
More info⬇️
evolvinglanguage.ch/an-institute...
More info⬇️
evolvinglanguage.ch/an-institute...
Reposted by Chiara Barbieri
The Shimizu group seeks a Postdoctoral Researcher in population genomics at the University of Zurich to study genetic and language evolution. Applications are open now. More info: https://jobs.uzh.ch/job-vacancies/postdoc-in-population-genomics/40227b73-2360-4e79-8924-844e5f5ed4c0 #postdoc
UZH: Postdoc in population genomics
The NCCR Evolving Language invites applications for a Postdoctoral Researcher in population genomics to study the demography of humans and domesticated crop species related to language evolution at the Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich.
jobs.uzh.ch
January 10, 2025 at 4:33 PM
The Shimizu group seeks a Postdoctoral Researcher in population genomics at the University of Zurich to study genetic and language evolution. Applications are open now. More info: https://jobs.uzh.ch/job-vacancies/postdoc-in-population-genomics/40227b73-2360-4e79-8924-844e5f5ed4c0 #postdoc
Words for emotions are differently connected in human groups from various regions and language families. Emotion experiences may vary across cultures. Analyzing the diverse ways that people use language can yield insights into human cognition. An interesting read! www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Emotion semantics show both cultural variation and universal structure
Analysis of the terms used for emotions across a sample of 2474 spoken languages reveals low similarity across cultures.
www.science.org
January 7, 2025 at 10:42 AM
Words for emotions are differently connected in human groups from various regions and language families. Emotion experiences may vary across cultures. Analyzing the diverse ways that people use language can yield insights into human cognition. An interesting read! www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
MORE JOB ALERTS! 👀 at University of Cagliari (IT), 1 year research assistant to work in BIOINFORMATICS, HUMAN GENOMIC DATA🧬from the Mediterranean Islands - here a video I made at Cagliari beach in October 😎 Bando per assegno di ricerca dirpersonale.unica.it/concorsi/?pa...
December 20, 2024 at 4:14 PM
MORE JOB ALERTS! 👀 at University of Cagliari (IT), 1 year research assistant to work in BIOINFORMATICS, HUMAN GENOMIC DATA🧬from the Mediterranean Islands - here a video I made at Cagliari beach in October 😎 Bando per assegno di ricerca dirpersonale.unica.it/concorsi/?pa...
JOB ALERT📢 #postdoc position #BIOINFORMATICS and #POPGEN, in Zurich with Kentaro Shimizu and my co-supervision to work with GeLaTo database, gene-language comparisons and human+plant history! 🧬 job starting ASAP! with national project @nccrlanguage.bsky.social jobs.uzh.ch/job-vacancie...
UZH: Postdoc in population genomics
The NCCR Evolving Language invites applications for a Postdoctoral Researcher in population genomics to study the demography of humans and domesticated crop species related to language evolution at th...
jobs.uzh.ch
December 18, 2024 at 10:57 AM
JOB ALERT📢 #postdoc position #BIOINFORMATICS and #POPGEN, in Zurich with Kentaro Shimizu and my co-supervision to work with GeLaTo database, gene-language comparisons and human+plant history! 🧬 job starting ASAP! with national project @nccrlanguage.bsky.social jobs.uzh.ch/job-vacancie...