Researchers have sequenced the complete DNA genome of ancient dogs from the Korean Peninsula for the first time, revealing a distinct 2,000-year-old lineage in Korea. The Korea Heritage Service announced the findings on Thursday. The study was published in the international journal PLOS ONE.
A joint research team studied dog remains from two archaeological sites in South Korea. The remains came from the Neukdo site in Sacheon and the Bonghwang-dong site in Gimhae.
The team included researchers from the Gaya National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage, the Conservation Science Division of the National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage, the Seokdang Museum of Dong-A University, and Japan’s Graduate University for Advanced Studies.
Four ancient dogs studied
The researchers analyzed the remains of four dogs that lived about 2,000 years ago. They used next-generation sequencing technology to rebuild the animals’ complete genomes.
The work took place in a dedicated ancient DNA cleanroom at the Conservation Science Division of the National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage.
The results give scientists one of the clearest genetic looks yet at ancient dogs from Korea. They also show that early dog populations in East Asia were more diverse than researchers once believed.
A separate Korean lineage
The ancient Korean dogs were genetically closest to the Australian dingo and the New Guinea singing dog. But they did not belong to either group.
Researchers have sequenced ancient dog DNA from the Korean Peninsula for the first time, revealing a distinct 2,000-year-old Korean dog lineage. pic.twitter.com/2rMADLGP8U
— Tom Marvolo Riddle (@tom_riddle2025) May 7, 2026
Instead, the dogs formed their own distinct lineage. That finding challenges the earlier view that East Asian dogs came from one broad population.
The study suggests ancient East Asia had several separate dog lineages. Korea’s dogs were part of that wider genetic diversity.
Western genes entered later
Researchers also found traces of Western Eurasian dog ancestry in the ancient Korean specimens. The share of those genes increased in dogs from later periods.
The pattern suggests dog populations from Eastern and Western Eurasia mixed over thousands of years. Such genetic exchange may have followed the movement of people, goods, and animals across regions.
Modern Korean breeds also carry this history. Native breeds such as the Jindo and Sapsaree have more Western lineage ancestry than the ancient dogs in the study.
Wolf links add another layer
The study also found evidence of gene flow between ancient Korean dogs and wolves. The strongest link appeared with the Japanese wolf, a subspecies considered extinct since 1905.
That connection suggests ancient dogs in Korea may have interacted with nearby wolf populations during their development.
The Gaya National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage said it plans to study more Neolithic dog genomes. Researchers hope that the work will help trace the formation of the Korean Peninsula’s dog lineage to an even earlier period.
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