Migration to the New World

When did people first appear in North America? Where did they come from? What did they look like?

When did people first appear in North America? Part of a larger debated centered around two issues: – The traditional, undisputed evidence for the presence of a fluted point manufacturing Clovis culture throughout most of the inhabitable continent between about 13,500 12,000 cal. (clovis/short chronology) – New evidence of sites in Americas dating to 19 and 15 kya. (pre-clovis/long chronology)

Climatological/Migration evidence for modern Humans in the New World – – – – – Earliest modern humans outside Africa ca. 100,000 The last lands to inhabit: Sumatra and Borneo before 20,000 B.P. connected by land bridge to SE Asia People could walk to new areas.

Sea level was much lower because water taken up in polar ice.

Approximately 120 meters lower than at present.

Oldest Australians-35 kya How did they get there and where did they come from?

Invention of water transport (boats), modern computer simulations have shown that at certain times of the year it would take seven days to go from Borneo/Java to Australia/New Guinea (55 miles of open water).

North America

Peaks of glacial max-lower sea levels Siberia and Alaska connected by Bering Land Bridge Ca. 50,000 ya during the “Happy” interval of Pleistocene (level 200 ft lower) Ca. 20,000 ya during the Duvanny Yar Interval (level 300 ft lower)

Two Conflicting Theories

The antiquity of the earliest Americans is controversial, much debate Short Chronology (Clovis) – No evidence of humans in New World before 12-13 kya.

Long Chronology (Pre-Clovis) – Humans in many migrations in New World, as early as 20 kya.

Short Chronology (Clovis)

No evidence of humans in New World before 12-13 kya.

Crossed Bering Land Bridge during last glacial maximum, moved between major ice sheets-Laurentide (C. Canada), Labrador (E. Canada), and Cordilleran (W. Canada). All touched at glacial maximum.

Ice free areas developed during last periods (20-12 kya) and people crossed Beringia, following larger herds of bison, Mammoth, and Mastodon.

People carried large spears-Clovis Points and lived in highly mobile groups traveling rapidly across unglaciated N. America into S. America in very short period of time. Called the Paleoindians.

Possible that the rapid expansion of humans in conjunction with warmer climate (ca 10 kya) caused extinction of megafauna in New World.

Many sites in New World date to this period-Clovis, NM; Blackwater Draw, NM; Kimmswick, Missouri (clovis and mastodon), Shoop, PA; Williamson, VA; Debert, Nova Scotia. Hundreds of Clovis points found isolated in N. Am.

Possible Migration Routes Bering Land Bridge

Clovis “Fluted” Technology

Flute

Long Chronology (Pre-Clovis) Humans in many migrations in New World, as early as 20 kya.

Smaller groups than indicated by Clovis hypothesis, largely a wood and bone tool industry. Also chopper and scraper industry.

Postulated due to recent finds of sites which date to before 15 kya.

– Meadowcroft Rockshleter, PA (16-19,5 kya) artifacts include stone blades, scrapers and knives.

– Cactus Hill, VA (17 kya) – Wilson Butte Cave, Idaho (14,5 kya) – Most compelling are S. American sites Flea Cave, Peru 14,7 kya Pedra Furadarockshleter, Brazil 30-12 kya Monte Verde, Chile excavated by Tom Dillehay – One area of site dates to ca. 13 kya houses, preserved by an overlayer of peat. Wood, bone, skin, meat, botanicals are extremely well preserved.

– Ambiguous lower level of three possible cultural features and some stone tool fragments dated to 33 kya. Affiliation unclear, but more recent research suggests early dates very compelling.

Pre-Clovis Sites

Meadowcroft Rockshelter

Meadowcroft Rockshelter

Cactus Hill, VA

Monte Verde, Chile

Monte Verde, Chile

Monte Verde, Chile

Monte Verde Culture

Asian-Coastal Western North America

Asian-Coastal Western North America Tool found Submerged Underwater In coastal Pacific

Atlantic Coastal Route

Clovis vs. Solutrean

Different shapes, but similar technology

Inuit Skin boats

Three wave theory

People came in three waves of migration – Amerinds (21,000+) – NaDene (ancestors of Navajo, Apache, and Dine) (12,000) – Eskimo-Aleut (6,000)

Evidence for 3-wave

Biological Evidence Very few skeletal remains dating to this time period (>9,000 B.P.).

– Browns Valley, Wyoming – Horn Shelter, Texas – Hourglass Cave, Colorado – Spirit Cave, Nevada – Wizard Beach, Nevada – Gore Creek, British Columbia – Kennewick Man, Washington

Evidence for 3-Wave

Genetic research. mtDNA-mitochondria passed down by women, shows relationships.

All modern, native americans are descended from a single group of Asians.

But, earlier migrations of people from Europe could have died out.

Evidence for 3-wave

Linguistic evidence Glottochronology – Words change gradually but at steady rate – Comparison of contemporary native languages can give a time frame for their first divergence, and can say reconstruct proto-language Linguistic evidence. Joseph Greenberg suggested three separate migrations: – Amerind before 11,000 BP, – Na-Denes (Athabaskan) ca. 9000 Bp, – and AleutEskimo about 4000 Bp.

Kennewick Man

9,300 year old skeleton discovered recently on Columbia river – Man killed by arrow – Physically appears Caucasian – Debate over race and who got here first Did he represent a race of Europeans who were killed out or absorbed?

Probably not, but simply the fact that physical features can change greatly over 9 millennia in response to a new environment.

Cascade Point

Cat Scan

Kennewick Man or Capt. Picard?

Sundadont and Sinodont

Kennewick/ Many Europeans Modern Native Americans

Scientific Comparison

Comparisons of Kennewick skull with world populations suggest he looks most like the Ainu.

A sea hunting, fishing and trading people who are still centered on Hokkaido, the northern island of Japan.

Kennewick not the only one: Spirit Cave Man ca. 9,100 BP.

Kennewick

Native American Position

Have been here “forever” Emerged from earth or were dropped down from sky by creator Bering Strait is a White Man’s myth All human remains predating Europeans are Native American