Researchers link Çatalhöyük burials to maternal households
The Çatalhöyük finding is strongest as evidence for maternal-line households, not as proof of a fully matriarchal state.
In 30 seconds
- The lead report says ancient DNA from 131 skeletons points to maternal-line household organisation at Çatalhöyük.
- UNESCO describes Çatalhöyük as a 37-hectare World Heritage site with eastern mound levels dated 7400-6200 BC.
- The Çatalhöyük Research Project says Ian Hodder’s project ended in 2018, with data still available through its archive.
- Mazzucato, Coscia and colleagues argue that genetic kinship at Çatalhöyük should be read with material-culture evidence.
How we got here
- 7400-6200 BC
UNESCO dates the main Neolithic occupation levels of Çatalhöyük’s eastern mound to this period.
- 1961-1965
James Mellaart’s excavations made Çatalhöyük internationally famous.
- 1993-2018
Ian Hodder directed the modern Çatalhöyük Research Project.
- 2012
UNESCO inscribed the Neolithic Site of Çatalhöyük on the World Heritage List.
- 2024-06-27
Mazzucato, Coscia and colleagues submitted a paper on archaeogenomic and material-culture networks at Çatalhöyük.
Çatalhöyük (Neolithic settlement on the Konya Plain in central Türkiye, occupied for roughly two millennia) is one of the best-known early farming sites. The Konya Plain (central Anatolian plateau around the city of Konya) is the landscape in which the settlement developed. Anatolia (the Asian part of modern Türkiye) was a major corridor in the spread of farming into Europe. UNESCO (the UN cultural agency that maintains the World Heritage List) inscribed the Neolithic Site of Çatalhöyük in 2012. The Çatalhöyük Research Project (international excavation and archive project directed by Ian Hodder until 2018) preserves much of the modern field record. Ian Hodder (British archaeologist and former Stanford professor) led the long second phase of excavation. Ali Ozan (Pamukkale University archaeologist) is named by the project website as director of continuing excavations. Camilla Mazzucato, Michele Coscia and Mehmet Somel (researchers on a 2024 archaeogenomics paper) studied how biological ties and material culture can be read together at Çatalhöyük.
Background
UNESCO says the eastern mound at Çatalhöyük contains Neolithic occupation levels dated between 7400 and 6200 BC, while the western mound reflects Chalcolithic occupation from 6200 to 5200 BC. James Mellaart’s 1960s excavations popularised interpretations of female figurines and goddess symbolism, but later work under Ian Hodder treated simple matriarchy claims more cautiously. A 2024 paper by Mazzucato, Coscia and colleagues argued that archaeogenomic data need to be interpreted alongside houses and material culture, because biological relatedness alone does not equal social identity.
Why now
The story is timely because the lead report published on 12 June 2026 presented the DNA interpretation as a new finding, prompting renewed attention to Çatalhöyük’s long-running gender debate.
What happens next
Watch for the underlying peer-reviewed paper, the authors’ own wording on matrilineal, matrilocal or female-led organisation, and any response from the Çatalhöyük excavation community or UNESCO-linked heritage specialists.
What to do
Nothing changes directly for Belgian residents in daily life. The useful takeaway is interpretive: when this story appears in classrooms, museums or social media, readers should look for whether the evidence proves maternal kinship, residence patterns, burial status or actual political leadership, because those are different claims.
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- 12 Jun 2026, 02:00
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- 12 Jun 2026
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- 16 Nov 2021, 01:00
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- 27 Jun 2024, 02:00
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- 21 Jun 2025, 02:00
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