Ethnic Clothing and Costume: Native Americans--Race and Origins


Figure 1.--Here is a lovely modern portrait by B. Ferrari. We know nothing about the artist. He provides a wonderful impresionistiv view of Native American regalia. We do not think he has the boy quite right. He looks more like a Caucasian boy with dark skin than a Natove American boy.

Anatomically modern Native Americans generally resemble Mongolian and Siberian tribes evidence of the migration over a land bridge that existed between Siberia and Alaska. The culture of those original Asian peoples was very primitive at the time, without domestic animals other than the dog. This explains the lack of cultural similarity between Native Americans and modern Asian people. These migrations occurred in sucessive waves. Some archeologists have identified three principal waves from different Asian areas, but the number is not totally accepted. The number of individuals was probably very small. This was generally believed to have ocurred some 12,000 years ago, but the dates are also not known with ny precission. They eventully peopled peopled the Americas to the tip of Patagonia. Recent finding has begun to indicate a vastly more complicated settlement pattern, a steady influx of small groups from different parts of the world, and probably somewhat earlier than what had assumed. Some of these groups lived, some may have died out.

Accepted Momgolian/Siberian Origins

Anatomically modern Native Americans generally resemble Mongolian and Siberian tribes evidence of the migration over a land bridge that existed between Siberia and Alaska. The culture of those original Asian peoples was very primitive at the time, without domestic animals other than the dog. This explains the lack of cultural similarity between Native Americans and modern Asian people. These migrations occurred in sucessive waves. Some archeologists have identified three principal waves from different Asian areas, but the number is not totally accepted. The number of individuals was probably very small. This was generally believed to have ocurred some 12,000-15,000 years ago. The precise dates are not known with precission. They eventully peopled peopled the Americas to the tip of Patagonia.

More Complicated Asian Settlement Pattern

Recent finding has begun to indicate a vastly more complicated settlement pattern, a steady influx of small groups from different parts of the world, and probably somewhat earlier than what had assumed. Some of these groups lived, some may have died out. Recent anthropolical discoveries have found the remains of Native Americans remains that bear no resemblence to modern Native Americans. These remains have been dated at 9,000-13,000 years old at scattered western locations. They are referred to as Kennewick Man after a discovery near the banks of the Colombia River in Washington during 1996. Other discoveries have been made in locations as diverse as a south Florida sink hole and a cave in Brazil's central plateau. Kennewick Man's skull features do not fit any known population, lending credence to the theory that there were many migrations to North America from various points of origin. Other ancient remains shiw afinities with native Australians, Aftrican bushmen, Polynesians, and Ainu from northern Japan, as well as central, southern, and southeast Asians. Much of these claims are still very controversial.

European Origins

Some archeologists believe that Europeans participated in the early peopling of America, although this idea has been dismissed by many archeologists. Not only do some archeologists believe that Europeans entered North America in pre-historic times, but that this occurred earlier than the Bearing Sea land bridge crossing, something like 22,000 yers ago. They apparently paddeled along the retreatingvice shelf sunsistuingv on seals and fish. The people involved are believed to be the little-knownm Solutrians from thge Iberian Peninsula and southern France. [Stanford] Archelogists have found evidence which they claim point to the Solutrians in North America. One of the most important find was a mastodon tusk and an associated stone tool hawled up by a Virginia scllop fisherman in 1970. There are many other reports of medeival Europeans reaching the Amercas, including the Irish, Portuguese, and Scandinavians.

Sources

Stanford, Dennis. Smithsonian Institution.







HBC





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Created: 4:17 AM 8/10/2006
Last updated: 1:23 AM 3/5/2012