Native Americans and Polynesians met around 1200 A.D.

by Brian Handwerk, July 8, 2020

A new genetic analysis has shed light on the incredible journeys of Polynesians across the Pacific Ocean and their interactions with Native Americans long before Europeans arrived in the Americas. This study suggests that Polynesians and Native Americans first made contact around the year 1200, predating the settlement of Easter Island, which has been suggested as a possible site of their initial encounter.

Legendary Voyagers

Polynesians, known for their remarkable navigational skills, embarked on one of history’s great eras of exploration, journeying by canoe across the vast Pacific Ocean. They managed to find and populate the habitable islands scattered between Oceania and the Americas over several centuries. The study published in Nature, based on the genetic analysis of modern peoples living across the Pacific and along the South American coast, indicates that voyages between eastern Polynesia and the Americas resulted in a mixture of those populations in the remote South Marquesas archipelago.

Polynesian Heritage

The genetic evidence suggests that the Native Americans who mixed with Polynesians came from the coastal regions of Ecuador and Columbia. However, the exact location of their first meeting, whether on a Polynesian island or the coast of the Americas, remains unknown.

Who Met Whom

The study posits that if Native Americans reached these remote islands by around 1200, they likely did so by following the prevailing currents and winds, as demonstrated by explorer Thor Heyerdahl's famed Kon-Tiki journey in 1947. This genetic study supports the possibility of either Native South Americans reaching the South Marquesas before Polynesians or Polynesians sailing to the Americas and then carrying Native American ancestry with them as they settled the last of the most remote islands, including Easter Island.

Mysteries of Easter Island

The study also provides insights into the history of Easter Island, where the inhabitants erected the famed Moai monoliths. While previous studies have been inconclusive about the island's settlement history, this new research found that admixture between Native American and Polynesian peoples on Easter Island did not occur until around 1380, although the island was settled by at least 1200. This suggests that the cultural impact of such admixture might have been stronger in Easter Island than in other parts of East Polynesia.

The findings of this study not only highlight the incredible voyaging capabilities of the Polynesians but also suggest a shared history between South Americans and Polynesians on the Pacific Ocean, with many mysteries still to be solved regarding the exact details of their interactions.

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/native-americans-polynesians-meet-180975269/