Where did the people come from?
Rocky Mountains
Some people who are descended from the people who lived here before the Europeans came don't agree that they themselves came originally from East Asia. These Native American people believe that their ancestors were always in North or South America. Old Cree stories, for example, say that s
There's no really definite evidence either way, yet. Archaeologists and
historians who think that Native American people came from East Asia say
that mainly because the first archaeological traces of people in North America
seem to be about the same time as a time when it would have been possible
to walk to North America from East Asia on a land
bridge. Also, recent genetic DNA evidence seems to show that North Americans
are genetically related to East Asians.
Archaeologists and historians who think that Native American people originated
in North America, or came to North America much earlier, say that mainly
because the Native American traditions themselves say that, and also because
they believe that there is archaeological evidence that shows that people
lived in North America before the land bridge existed. The whole question
needs more work, and many historians, geneticists, and archaeologists are
still working on it.
To find out more about this controversy, check out these books from Amazon.com or from your library:
Bread Comes to Life: A Garden of Wheat and a Loaf to Eat, by George Levenson (2004). From wheat to bread, lavishly illustrated, for kids.
Ancient Agriculture: From Foraging to Farming, by Michael and Mary Woods (2000). For middle schoolers, with plenty of information about how farming got started, and how it worked.
North American History before 1500
AD
North American History after
1500 AD
Main North America page
Main South America page
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