New research published this week by University of New Mexico archeologist Keith Prufer shows that a site in Belize was critical in studying the origins of the ancient Maya people and the spread of maize as a staple food.
The excavated skeletons revealed a range of ancient DNA information on the movements of early populations in the Americas: An early southward migration of people from the north by 9,600 to 7,300 years ago shows only distant relatedness to present-day Mesoamericans, including Maya-speaking populations; then, a previously unknown movement from the south starting about 5,600 years ago made a major demographic impact on the region, contributing more than 50 percent of the ancestry of all later...
The excavations and DNA analysis"support a scenario in which Chibchan-related horticulturalists moved northward into the southeastern Yucatan carrying improved varieties of, and possibly also manioc and chili peppers, and mixed with local populations to create new horticultural traditions that ultimately led to more intensive forms of maize agriculture much later in time…."