For centuries, the Picts, the ancient people of Scotland, have been shrouded in mystery.

Known for their fearsome reputation, the Picts were described by Roman writers as painted warriors, feared even by the mighty Roman Empire.

They lived in the northern reaches of Scotland, where they formed a powerful and sophisticated society that was able to resist Roman conquest.

But who were the Picts really? Were they an indigenous people, or did they come from faraway lands, as some ancient accounts suggested? For years, historians and archaeologists have debated their origins, piecing together fragments of their culture and history.

Now, after centuries of speculation, new DNA evidence has uncovered shocking truths about the Picts’ origins, rewriting everything we thought we knew about Scotland’s ancient warriors.

The Picts have long been a source of fascination due to their mysterious disappearance from history.

They were the first people to dominate the land north of modern-day England, and their society was far more than just a group of isolated tribes.

The Picts were organized, military-minded, and artistically brilliant.

They built kingdoms, fortifications, and were skilled warriors who held back Roman expansion into their territory.

The Romans, who had conquered much of Europe, were unable to conquer northern Scotland, and instead built Hadrian’s Wall to keep the Picts out.

Despite being known as the ultimate “other” in Roman texts, the Picts’ legacy has been overshadowed by their enigmatic presence in history.

For centuries, historians have wondered who the Picts were and where they came from.

The answers, it turns out, have been hidden within their DNA.

The history of the Picts is one of mystery and contradiction.

The first recorded mention of the Picts came in 297 AD, when Roman writers referred to them as the “Picti,” meaning the “painted ones.

” This name came from the Picts’ custom of painting their bodies with intricate designs, a practice that frightened the Roman soldiers.

The Picts were portrayed as barbaric warriors, a threat at the very edge of the Roman Empire.

They were fierce fighters, often charging into battle with their bodies covered in tattoos and war paint.

Their presence in Roman accounts was one of fear and awe, but also curiosity.

The Romans, despite their military might, could never fully conquer the Picts.

Hadrian’s Wall was built to defend Roman territory from the Picts, but the Picts proved too resilient and too difficult to subdue.

Roman accounts of the Picts described them as an unyielding force, but left their origins a mystery.

The Picts left behind no written records of their own.

Instead, they left behind stone monuments—carved stones scattered throughout Scotland, especially in the northern and eastern parts of the country.

These monuments, known as Pictish symbol stones, are among the greatest mysteries of archaeology.

There are about 350 of these stones still standing today, and they are covered in symbols that no one has yet been able to fully decipher.

The carvings depict animals, everyday objects, and abstract symbols, many of which are believed to represent religious or cultural significance.

One of the most famous of these symbols is the “Pictish beast,” a strange, elephant-like creature that has baffled scholars for centuries.

Some have speculated that it could be an early representation of the Loch Ness monster, but no one knows for sure what it symbolizes.

The Picts were not just a group of isolated, barbaric tribes—they were a sophisticated people with an advanced culture.

They were artistically brilliant, leaving behind monuments that showcase their craftsmanship and ingenuity.

They were also politically astute, forming powerful kingdoms and resisting the might of the Roman Empire.

But despite their strength, the Picts eventually faded from history around the 9th century.

Their culture, language, and identity disappeared as they merged with the Gaels of Dalriada, creating the kingdom of Alba, which would later become Scotland.

The question remained: where did the Picts come from, and why did they vanish?

Historians and archaeologists have long debated the origins of the Picts.

Some believed they were indigenous to Scotland, the original inhabitants of the land, while others speculated that they were invaders from distant lands.

The most popular theory, advanced by the Anglo-Saxon scholar Bede in the 8th century, claimed that the Picts were a group of invaders from a land called “Scythia,” near the Black Sea.

According to Bede, the Picts arrived by sea, missed Ireland, and eventually landed in Scotland.

Over the centuries, other theories emerged, suggesting that the Picts were from regions such as Thrace in the Balkans or mysterious islands in the north.

These stories painted a romantic picture of the Picts as mysterious outsiders, arriving in Scotland with strange customs and unknown languages.

However, despite the allure of these exotic origins, the truth has always been elusive.

There was no conclusive evidence to support the idea that the Picts were invaders or foreign settlers.

Instead, they left behind only their symbolic art, mysterious monuments, and the records of Roman historians.

For centuries, their origins remained a mystery.

But everything changed in 2023, when a team of scientists, led by researchers from Liverpool John Moores University and the University of Aberdeen, decided to take a new approach.

Instead of relying on ancient texts and stone carvings, they turned to DNA.

 

The team of researchers embarked on a groundbreaking project to extract ancient DNA from Pictish remains.

Given the acidic soil of Scotland and the peculiar burial practices of the Picts, ancient remains from this period are incredibly rare.

However, a key breakthrough came when the team focused on two important Pictish cemeteries: London Lynx, located in southern Pictland, and Balentor in Easter Ross, in the northern Pictish kingdom.

These sites were significant due to their unique burial structures and the rich archaeological evidence they provided.

The team faced immense challenges in extracting DNA from the ancient remains.

The bones, which had been buried for over a thousand years, were fragile and fragmented.

Contamination was a major concern, as even the smallest amount of modern DNA could ruin the samples.

The researchers worked in specialized clean rooms, using advanced techniques to carefully extract bone powder from the densest parts of the skeletons, like the inner ear bone.

The painstaking work paid off when the team successfully extracted DNA from eight individuals—seven from London Lynx and one from Balentor.

This was a remarkable achievement in the field of ancient genetics.

 

Once they had obtained the DNA, the researchers sequenced the genomes of these individuals, comparing them to a massive database of over 8,000 ancient and modern genomes.

The results were nothing short of extraordinary.

The DNA evidence shattered many of the long-held theories about the Picts’ origins.

Contrary to the popular belief that the Picts were invaders from the east, the genetic analysis revealed that the Picts were not outsiders at all.

They were indigenous to Scotland, descended from the local Iron Age populations who had lived in Britain for thousands of years.

The results confirmed that the Picts were part of a larger genetic group that had been in the British Isles since the Iron Age.

Their DNA showed no signs of foreign ancestry, and their genetic markers were closely related to the ancient populations of Britain.

This discovery was a huge blow to the idea that the Picts were invaders from distant lands.

Instead, they were the original inhabitants of Scotland, and their unique culture and identity had developed over thousands of years.

 

The revelation that the Picts were not invaders, but instead indigenous to Scotland, raises new questions about their role in history and their eventual disappearance.

The Picts were a powerful and sophisticated people who had successfully resisted Roman expansion and established one of the most dominant kingdoms in early medieval Britain.

Yet, by the 9th century, their culture and language seemed to vanish without a trace.

The DNA evidence suggests that the Picts did not disappear entirely.

Rather, their bloodlines survived, albeit in a more diluted form.

When the Picts merged with the Gaels of Dalriada to form the kingdom of Alba, their genetic legacy was absorbed into the new society.

The Gaelic language and culture became dominant, but the Pictish bloodlines persisted in the population, particularly in the western parts of Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

The genetic evidence shows that modern people in these regions carry the same genetic markers that were present in the Picts.

 

This discovery challenges the long-held belief that the Picts were wiped out by the Gaels or by Viking invasions.

Instead, the Picts’ legacy is alive and well in the genetic makeup of the people of western Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

The DNA analysis has revealed that the Picts were not a lost civilization, but rather a people whose bloodlines have persisted through the centuries.

They may have lost their language and culture, but their genetic legacy endures.

As the DNA analysis continues to reshape our understanding of the Picts, researchers are left with one final puzzle: why did the Picts seem to disappear so suddenly from history? The answer lies in the process of cultural assimilation.

In the 9th century, when the Picts merged with the Gaels to form the kingdom of Alba, it wasn’t through violence or conquest, but through marriage and political alliances.

The two cultures, although distinct, were genetically very similar.

As the Gaelic culture became dominant, the Pictish culture gradually faded away, absorbed into the larger kingdom.

 

However, the genetic evidence shows that the Picts did not vanish completely.

They were simply absorbed into the broader population, their bloodlines living on in the people of western Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

The Picts’ legacy is not lost—it is alive in the DNA of the modern population.

This groundbreaking discovery has not only solved the mystery of the Picts’ origins but also shed light on the complex history of Scotland’s early inhabitants.

The Picts were not outsiders; they were the indigenous people of Scotland, and their genetic legacy continues to shape the country today.

The DNA analysis has rewritten history, providing a new understanding of the Picts’ role in Scotland’s past and offering a glimpse into the deep, ancient roots of the Scottish people.

The Picts may no longer be the painted warriors of legend, but their bloodlines still run strong, a testament to their enduring legacy in the land they once called home.