When the Canary Islands were conquered by the Spanish crown during the late 15th century the society went through massive changes. In a very short time a society of stone age farmers became a globalisation hub for trade between the old and the new world.
In a recent article, researchers at Linköping and Stockholm University together with researchers at University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, show that during the societal upheavals the same barley was cultivated. By genetically analysing archaeological barley grains from Gran Canaria, the researchers could examine changes in a single cultivated population over 1,400 years. Longitudinal studies spanning such a long time period has virtually never been possible with cultivated plants. The findings indicate that despite the drastic social changes and technological advances during the period studied, the cultivated barley underwent minimal changes. The few alterations that have occurred appear to be associated with climate adaptation in response to centuries of climatic fluctuations. Taken together the results show the critical importance of climate adaptation to agriculture.
Article: Utilising ancient DNA to understand crop population dynamics across a millennium: A case study of archaeological barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) from Gran Canaria, Spain, Jenny Hagenblad, Jacob Morales, Matti W. Leino, Robin Abbey-Lee, Amelia C. Rodríguez-Rodríguez, Jonathan Santana, Journal of Archaeological Science Volume 167, 2024, 106001.