A centuries-old mystery buried in a Finnish hillside has just taken a surprising turn.
New analysis of ancient DNA has revealed that a medieval warrior, long believed to be female, may have been nonbinary, challenging traditional assumptions about gender in early European societies.
The study, published in the European Journal of Archaeology, reexamines a grave unearthed in 1968 in Suontaka Vesitorninmäki, southern Finland.
According to the journal, the burial site contained a sword, a symbol often associated with masculinity in the period, alongside jewelry and fragments of woolen clothing typically worn by women at the time.
For decades, archaeologists interpreted the site as the grave of a high-status woman warrior. But new genetic testing tells a more complex story.
A small sample of ancient DNA revealed that the individual likely had Klinefelter syndrome, a condition in which someone is born with an extra X chromosome (XXY), per National Health Service. Though anatomically male, people with Klinefelter often have traits that don’t neatly align with traditional male or female categories, such as low testosterone, breast development, and infertility.
Lead researcher Ulla Moilanen, an archaeologist at the University of Turku, says the findings suggest that early medieval communities may have recognized and respected gender diversity.
“If the characteristics of Klinefelter syndrome were visible, this person might not have been considered strictly male or female,” Moilanen explains. “But the way they were buried, with both feminine and masculine items, shows they were accepted, even honored.”