雅思阅读 090: After Rome Fell — Soldiers and Northerners Married in Peace

Adapted from "What happened after the fall of Rome? Ancient genomes offer new clues" by Emma Gometz, Scientific American, 29 April 2026.

Reading Passage

When the Western Roman Empire collapsed in the fifth century CE, the traditional story says Europe descended into chaos: Germanic warriors swept south, Roman civilisation crumbled, and cultures clashed violently. A new genetic study tells a very different tale — one of peaceful integration and shared culture.

Researchers led by population geneticist Joachim Burger of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz analysed 258 ancient genomes from graves in what is now southern Germany, dating from 400 to 660 CE. The results reveal that two genetically distinct communities — former Roman soldiers and people from northern Europe — intermarried and merged after the empire's fall.

The Roman soldiers carried a mix of DNA from Italy, south-eastern Europe and the Balkans. Their neighbours, who lived on the empire's northern frontier, carried ancestry from regions that are now northern Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands.

Before 476 CE, the two groups rarely mixed. After that date, their families were buried together in what archaeologists call "row-grave cemeteries" — so named because the graves were laid out in neat, parallel rows. This burial style began among the northern European community but became common after the two groups merged.

The graves also show a strong emphasis on monogamy and the nuclear family, with relatives buried side by side. The researchers say these practices likely came from Roman culture, where they had been codified in law.

"Traditionally this was seen as a clash of civilisations," Burger says. "But it's actually more a story of peaceful integration."

Independent experts note that the kinship bonds in these cemeteries are unusually tight. "It was really a tight kin group," says Toomas Kivisild of the Catholic University of Leuven in Belgium. Other post-Roman communities, such as those in England, show far weaker family ties.

The findings suggest that late Roman culture did not simply disappear with the empire. Instead it transformed into a new, less urban, more agricultural society that merged Roman and Germanic traditions.

Questions 1–5

Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.

1. How many ancient genomes did the researchers analyse?

   • A. 58
   • B. 158
   • C. 258
   • D. 558

2. The graves dated from

   • A. 100 to 300 CE.
   • B. 400 to 660 CE.
   • C. 800 to 1000 CE.
   • D. 1000 to 1200 CE.

3. The Roman soldiers' DNA originated from

   • A. Britain and France.
   • B. Italy, south-eastern Europe and the Balkans.
   • C. Spain and North Africa.
   • D. Scandinavia and Russia.

4. "Row-grave cemeteries" are so called because

   • A. the graves contained rows of weapons.
   • B. the graves were laid out in parallel lines.
   • C. the people were buried in rows of houses.
   • D. the gravestones had rows of writing.

5. The emphasis on monogamy and the nuclear family likely came from

   • A. northern European culture.
   • B. Roman culture.
   • C. Celtic culture.
   • D. Byzantine culture.

Questions 6–10

Do the following statements agree with the claims of the writer?

Write:

• YES
• NO
• NOT GIVEN

6. The traditional view of Rome's fall is one of violent conflict.
7. The two groups mixed freely before 476 CE.
8. The researchers also studied graves in England.
9. Kivisild was a member of the research team.
10. The merged society was less urban than Roman cities.

Questions 11–13

Complete the summary. Choose ONE WORD ONLY.

After Rome fell, the two groups merged, with 11 buried together. Their burial style, called row-grave cemeteries, started among the 12 community but became shared practice. The findings show that Roman culture 13 rather than simply disappearing.

Answers

1. C — "258 ancient genomes."
2. B — "between C.E. 400 and 660."
3. B — "mix of DNA from Italy, southeastern Europe and the Balkans."
4. B — "because the graves were perfectly parallel to one another."
5. B — "likely came from Roman culture."
6. YES — "a clash of civilisations."
7. NO — "these two groups didn't mix much before the fall of Rome."
8. NOT GIVEN — England is mentioned only as comparison.
9. NO — Kivisild "was not involved in the study."
10. YES — "a new, less urban and more agricultural society."
11. families
12. northern
13. transformed

Key Vocabulary