Where did we 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.
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 there is archaeological evidence that some new people arrived in North America 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.
Why did people want to punch Socrates?
Where did Egyptians bury your liver?
How old are the Rocky Mountains?
What does a half-timbered house look like?
How do you spin wool?
(a project)
Archaeologists and historians who think that Native American people originated in North America, or came to North America much earlier, say that because the Native American traditions themselves say that, and also because there is more and more archaeological evidence that shows that at least some people lived in North America before the land bridge existed. These people may also have come over from East Asia on boats or rafts, perhaps as early as 30,000 BC. 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 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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