Where did the first Americans come from?

Clovis Points

When talking to an archeologist last week, I learned about an interesting theory concerning the origins of native americans. The current theory states that the first human entry into the Americas was a crossing of a land-ice bridge that spanned the Bering Strait about 13,500 years ago.

Researchers analyzed American spearheads, called Clovis points, and found some inconsistencies. Clovis points match up much closer with Solutrean-style tools - but Solutrean toolmakers lived in France and Spain.

According to the Solutrean theory, Solutrean hunters may have made their way through the floating ice chunks that unite immense seal populations in Canada and Europe each year. A hunting party in several boats, containing men, women, and children, might have made it all the way to Nova Scotia. Dennis Stanford, of the Smithsonian Institution, and Bruce Bradley, of the University of Exeter, believe that these early Europeans might have been the first settlers in America.


Critics of the Solutrean theory point out that crossing the Atlantic in kayaks is not very plausible. In addition, genetic analysis of haplotypes found no evidence for early European influences. It is interesting to see what future genetic and archeological research will find.


Solutreans - the first Americans