The Peopling of the Americas How did the First Nations Peoples arrive in North America? What evidence is there to support current theories?

Two Views of Origins ArchaeologicalAboriginal Perspectives Before 1990 archaeologists and historians agreed the first inhabitants came from Asia across the Bering Strait when sea levels were lower (~ years BP) Since 1990 many questions surfaced contradicting this theory: Shared plant life, structures, diversity of native languages and so on fostered this questioning Many First Peoples see Canada as their homeland They believe they have been here since “Time Immemorial.” Aboriginal creation stories vary, but share one thing in common – Aboriginal peoples have no bond with any other place

Gathering Archaeological Evidence Archaeologists use artifacts as evidence to help understand past societies Artifacts can deteriorate with age therefore the method known as radiocarbon dating is used This process measures the age of carbon in artifacts and therefore tells how old an artifact is Tools, utensils and weapons are all artifacts archaeologists use to learn many things about the way people lived DNA analysis is now being used, however is quite expensive

Traditional Archaeological Theory The earliest evidence came in the form of spear points Style of spear points determined age and culture The Clovis Period – BP Many researchers believe hunters used spears to hunt some mammals into extinction Archaeologists believed in this model so much they virtually stopped digging any deeper

Traditional Archaeological Theory The Plano Period – years BP Large mammals like the camel and mammoth disappeared around this time During this time the Plano peoples – descendants of Paleo-Indian began hunting bison Change in spear and arrowhead design came with the Plano peoples

Linguistic Evidence Archaeology does not provide all the answers Linguistics show how language of cultures evolves over time Language can explain culture, its interrelations and its differences Linguistics shows that the more diversity there is in language – the more time has passed North America is one of the most linguistically diverse areas suggesting that First Peoples arrived here long before the Clovis period

Physical Anthropology Study past by examining human remains (“CSI Historians”) Believe there were several migrations of people to the Americas They also believe early peoples came from different places at different times

Theories of First People’s Origins The Land Route Geologists believe during the last Ice Age (Pleistocene Era) sea levels were lower across the Bering Strait allowed for the appearance of a vast grassy plain, or land bridge, called Beringia, linking what is now called Siberia with Alaska. It is widely believed that many peoples may have migrated across this land bridge into N.A. between – years BP

A Land Route: Evidence? Similar fossils discovered on both continents prove that large grazing animals – bison, caribou, horses, mammoths and musk oxen migrated across. Early peoples probably followed the herds of animals.

Theories of First People’s Origins A Pacific Route This theory suggests people first came to N.A. by watercraft over the Pacific Ocean Fossil evidence in the Northwest Coast of sea and land wildlife suggests there were enough natural resources for people to survive May have inhabited South America first then moved on to North America Genetic links There has been little archaeological exploration in this area due to the belief it was covered by glaciers

Theories of First People’s Origins An Atlantic Route Both land bridge and Pacific theories are challenged by researchers who argue that early Asians didn’t have technology that matched those of the Clovis period They’ve found evidence showing more similarities to technology used along the Northern coast of Spain There is also DNA evidence linking Aboriginals to Europeans and not Asians This suggests First Peoples may have come across the Atlantic

Your Theory? Could be a combination of all three which would explain the diversity of the First Peoples of the Americas. What do you think?