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https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ggn2.10051

Intro:

"The local folklore of the South Caucasus region of Abkhazia records a “wild woman” named Zana, who lived in the 19th century, who was referred to by some locals as a female Abnauayu or Almasty: names for a creature similar to the infamous Yeti of the Himalayas and Bigfoot of North America, that supposedly lives in the Caucasus and Central Asia.1, 2 Originally captured while living outdoors in the forest, Zana was later enslaved by a succession of local wealthy individuals, and was finally bought by the Abkhaz nobleman Edgi Genaba who took her to his estate at Tkhina, where she lived until her death around 1890.3

Inspired by the speculation that she might have been a female Yeti, Soviet scientists visited the region in 1962 to gather descriptions and accounts from the elders living in the village of Tkhina, who still recalled her. The locals described her as being “part human and part animal,” 2 m tall and dark-skinned, covered with thick hair, who was able to lift a 50 kg sack of flour with one hand, and outrun a horse in a race.1, 3 According to the eyewitness accounts she also lacked speech, which along with her alleged strange behavior and appearance, likely resulted in her reputation as an Almasty. Zana is also documented to have given birth to two sons and two daughters from local men. Following her death, she was buried in the Genabas' family cemetery, and although the exact location of Zana's burial site was unknown, the grave of her youngest son, Khwit, was identified in 1971. After several attempts to locate Zana's burial site, the remains of an anonymous female were discovered in the Genaba's family cemetery, leading to speculation that they may have belonged to Zana herself"

Conclusion:

"In summary, our results based on genome-wide analysis reveal that Zana's genome had a sub-Saharan African genetic origin, consistent with the results of previous (unpublished) craniometric and mtDNA analyses. This suggests that her presence in the region may have been linked to the Ottoman Empire slave trade to Istanbul, that was one of the main hubs for the slave trade in the region in the 19th century. Moreover, Zana's largely eastern African ancestry is consistent with the historical records indicating that most of the African slaves in the Ottoman Empire originated around areas of the African Great Lakes and present-day Sudan."