Atlas of Hispanic-American History

still widely held, many scholars now
argue that there were other avenues of
migration as well, including oceangoing
travel in the Pacific Rim region, sea trav-
el across the Bering Strait after Beringia
was submerged, and perhaps even
transatlantic voyages from Europe.
The date of the earliest human
arrival in the Americas is no clearer than
the route taken. The earliest widely
accepted archaeological evidence, at
Monte Verde, Chile, dates from 12,
years ago. Another early culture is the
Clovis culture, associated with Clovis,
New Mexico, and dating from 11,
years ago. But earlier sites keep being
uncovered: for example, some archaeolo-
gists believe that a site at Cactus Hill,
Virginia, dates from 15,000 years ago.
Analysis of contemporary people’s DNA
and linguistic studies of differences
between Native American languages indi-
cate that the common ancestors of New
World and Old World populations may
have lived even earlier, perhaps 20,000 to
40,000 years ago.

Cultural Development

Whatever the point of origin or time of

arrival of Native Americans, they were liv-

ing throughout North, Central, and

South America by 11,000 years ago. At

first, they lived by hunting, gathering,

and fishing. About 9,000 years ago, in the

valley of Tehuacán in south-central

Mexico, plant domestication began, about

a thousand years after it had been inde-

pendently developed in the Old World. In

subsequent millennia, agriculture spread

to many regions of the Americas, becom-

ing a major source of food and developing

much of the world’s current diet: crops

first cultivated by Native Americans

include potatoes, tomatoes, corn (also

called maize), red peppers, peanuts, cacao

(from which chocolate is made), and

pineapples, not to mention less healthy

substances such as tobacco and coca (the

plant that is used today to make cocaine).

However, unlike their Old World coun-

terparts, Native American farmers did not

have large domesticated animals. Dogs

THE ROOTS OF A PEOPLE 7

According to one of the most common theories regarding prehistoric settlement of the

Americas, the first Americans crossed the Bering Strait land bridge between Siberia and

Alaska some time between 14,000 and 20,000 years ago. In time, these early peoples

settled across North America, Central America, and eventually South America. The map

shown here illustrates possible migration routes in North America.

The Bering Strait Land Bridge