358: Rewriting the Peopling of the Americas: A Genetic Journey Through Time

Guest

Jennifer Raff is an Associate Professor of Anthropology at the University of Kansas.  She works with Indigenous communities and tribes across North America who wish to use DNA as a tool for investigating questions of recent and more distant histories. Her first book, “Origin: A Genetic History of the Americas,” is a New York Times bestseller and has won multiple awards, including the Phi Beta Kappa book award in science. In 2024 she was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship (General Nonfiction) to support work on her second book.

Why This Episode Matters

Professor Raff discusses how genetic evidence has changed our understanding of the peopling of the Americas. Rather than a simple crossing of the Bering Land Bridge 13,000 years ago, DNA research suggests a more complex story involving population isolation during the Last Glacial Maximum (26,000-20,000 years ago), followed by multiple migration waves. Recent discoveries, like footprints at White Sands dating to 25,000+ years ago, continue to challenge existing theories.

Three Important Takeaways

1. Genetic evidence shows the ancestors of indigenous Americans descended from an isolated East Asian population that experienced gene flow with ancient North Siberians around 25,000 years ago.

2. Beringia wasn't just a narrow "land bridge" but a lost continent twice the size of Texas, with its southern coast relatively habitable during the Last Glacial Maximum.

3. Research in this field requires a multidisciplinary approach that respectfully incorporates indigenous knowledge and perspectives alongside scientific methods.

Referenced

Origin: A Generic History of the Americas

https://anthropology.ku.edu/people/jennifer-raff