SummaryRecent genomic analyses show that the earliest peoples reaching Remote Oceania – associated with Austronesian-speaking Lapita culture – were almost completely East Asian, without detectable Papuan ancestry. Yet Papuan-related genetic ancestry is found across present-day Pacific populations, indicating that peoples from Near Oceania have played a significant – but largely unknown – ancestral role. Here, new genome-wide data from 19 South Pacific individuals provide direct evidence of a so-far undescribed Papuan expansion into Remote Oceania starting ~2,500 years before present, far earlier than previously estimated and supporting a model from historical linguistics. New genome-wide data from 27 contemporary ni-Vanuatu demonstrate a subsequent and almost complete replacement of Lapita-Austronesian by Near Oceanian ancestry. Despite this massive demographic change, incoming Papuan languages did not replace Austronesian languages. Population replacement with language continuity is extremely rare – if not unprecedented – in human history. Our analyses show that rather than one large-scale event, the process was incremental and complex, with repeated migrations and sex-biased admixture with peoples from the Bismarck Archipelago.

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Modification of amino acids is an important strategy in organic and bioorganic chemistry. In contrast to common side‐chain functionalization, backbone modification is much less explored. Especially glycine units seem to be attractive and versatile since a wide range of functionality can be potentially introduced. We report here oxidative modification of glycinates that are stable and enable further functionalization. Selective glycinate enolate oxidation by TEMPO or a FeCp2PF6/TEMPO reagent combination provides stable alkoxyamines in good to excellent yields. The methodology is expanded to glycine‐containing dipeptides demonstrating selective oxygenation at the glycine unit. The orthogonal reactivity potential of oxygenated glycines for transformation to other amino acid derivatives is explored.

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