Modern Human Women May Have Interacted with Neanderthals
A Clue to Understanding the Social and Cultural Structures of Ancient Human Societies
A recent study has drawn attention by suggesting that women of modern humans (Homo sapiens) preferred Neanderthal men.
A research team from the University of Pennsylvania announced in a study published in the international journal Science on February 27, 2026 (local time), that “unions between Homo sapiens women and Neanderthal men were more common than the opposite pairing.”
On average, modern humans possess about 2% Neanderthal DNA. In some African population groups, up to 1.5% of Neanderthal DNA has been detected.
For this reason, scientists have long questioned how Homo sapiens absorbed Neanderthal DNA. In addition, there are regions on the X chromosome-present in at least one copy in all humans-where no Neanderthal DNA is detected. These regions have been referred to as the “Neanderthal deserts.”
Alexander Platt, Senior Researcher in Population Genetics at the University of Pennsylvania, who led the study, explained, “Until now, it was assumed that certain Neanderthal genes were biologically incompatible with modern humans, resulting in these deserts.” He added, “The idea was that these genes caused health problems and were eliminated through natural selection.”
However, the research team took a different approach and conducted a detailed analysis of the Neanderthal genome. This yielded the opposite result. The X chromosome of Neanderthals contained 62% more modern human DNA than other chromosomes. If the X chromosomes of the two species had been incompatible, Neanderthals would also have a lower proportion of Homo sapiens DNA.
Therefore, the research team ran new mathematical models and simulations, confirming that if more children were born to Homo sapiens women and Neanderthal men, it would result in the genetic patterns observed today.
In other words, this suggests that Homo sapiens women preferred Neanderthal men. However, Platt clarified, “This does not necessarily mean that Neanderthal men were especially more attractive to modern human women.” Instead, it is more likely that social or cultural factors made such unions easier when the two groups met.
The research team hopes this study will deepen our understanding of ancient human societies. They also plan to use genetic clues to specifically analyze whether women tended to remain with their birth group or whether men moved to other tribes to spread their genes.
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