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Who are the Native Americans? When and how did they colonize the New World? What proportion of the biological variation in contemporary Amerindian populations was "made in America" and what was brought from Siberia? This book is a unique synthesis of the genetic, archaeological, and demographic evidence concerning the Native peoples of the Americas, using case studies from contemporary Amerindian and Siberian indigenous groups to unravel the mysteries. It culminates in an examination of the devastating collision between European and Native American cultures following Contact, and the legacy of increased incidence of chronic diseases that still accompanies the acculturation of Native peoples today.
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Who are the Native Americans? When and how did they colonize the New World? What proportion of the biological variation in contemporary Amerindian populations was 'made in America' and what was brought from Siberia? This book is a unique synthesis of the genetic, archeological and demographic evidence concerning the Native peoples of the Americas, using case studies from contemporary Amerindian and Siberian indigenous groups to unravel the mysteries. It culminates in an examination of the devastating collision between European and Native American cultures following Contact, and the legacy of increased incidence of chronic diseases that still accompanies the acculturation of Native peoples today. This compelling account will be required reading for all those interested in the anthropology of Native Americans, past, present and future. The Origins of Native Americans Evidence from anthropological genetics The Origins of Native Americans Evidence from anthropological genetics MICHAEL H. CRAWFORD Department of Anthropology, University of Kansas, U.S.A. CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS PUBLISHED BY THE PRESS SYNDICATE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE The Pitt Building, Trumpington Street, Cambridge, United Kingdom CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS The Edinburgh Building, Cambridge CB2 2RU, UK 40 West 20th Street, New York, NY 10011-4211, USA 10 Stamford Road, Oakleigh.VIC 3166, Australia Ruiz de Alarcon 13, 28014 Madrid, Spain Dock House, The Waterfront, Cape Town 8001, South Africa http://www.cambridge.org © Cambridge University Press 1998 This book is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press. First published in Spanish as Antropologia Biologia de los Indios Americanos, Editorial MAPFRE, S.A., 1992; revised English version (by the author) 1998. First paperback edition 2001 Printed in die United States of America Typeset in Leighton 9.5/13.5 pt. [WV] A catalog record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication data available ISBN 0 521 59280 1 hardback ISBN 0 521 00410 1 paperback to The native people who made the long journey from Siberia, and to their progeny who founded civilizations; and to Marshall T. Newman (1911-1994), a friend and colleague Contents 1 Preface xiii Acknowledgement xvii Origins of New World populations 1.1 Introduction 1 1.2 Early theories of origin 2 1.3 Scientific evidence for Amerindian origins 1.4 Ecological background 2 1 3 11 1.5 Siberian chronology and New World peopling 14 1.6 Archeological evidence 16 1.7 The new synthesis? 21 1.8 Siberian founders 27 1.9 Settlement of North America 28 1.10 Peopling of South America 30 Population size and the effects of European contact 32 2.1 Introduct