The Settlement of North America

The settlement of North America took place during the last glacial period known as the "Wisconsinan glaciation." During this era, glacial advances lowered sea levels due to ice accumulation, resulting in the exposure of a land bridge in the Bering Strait connecting Siberia and Alaska. It is assumed that through this land bridge, known as Beringia, humans moved from Northeast Asia to North America, from where they gradually dispersed across the continent. The migration routes, which still generate debates, illustrate how humans moved inland through ice-free corridors during brief periods of thaw.

Traces of the early inhabitants of North America are often buried under layers of sediment accumulated over thousands of years. Direct evidence of early human presence, whether in the form of stone tools, animal remains, fire sites, or structures, is rarely discovered unless they emerge due to valley slope erosion or are accidentally unearthed under debris from shelters or stone caves. However, every find, no matter how modest, contributes to the reconstruction of human life in North America during the last glacial period.

Available archaeological materials indicate that over ten thousand years ago, groups of hunter-gatherers lived in geographically distant regions. These areas included the Northeast, the Western Plains, the Southwest, and northern Alaska. In this ancient world, the population was sparse, and these groups hunted a variety of animals, including mammoths, mastodons, giant bison, and medium and small-sized animals like deer and rabbits. Hunters moved according to the availability of game and lived in temporary shelters, reflecting a nomadic lifestyle that persisted in the subarctic forests of northern Canada until relatively recent times.

The Oldest Human Findings in America date from a much later time compared to those found in Asia. During the last ice age, the Beringia land bridge connected North America and Asia into one continent. This geography, along with the physical similarities between Native peoples of North America and those from northern Asia, suggests the possibility of mammoth hunters coming to America from the west. Over the past 40,000 years, although extensive glaciers covered much of the north, there were periods of warmer climates that created ice-free corridors extending into the interior of the continent. One of these corridors likely followed the coast, while others were located parallel to the eastern edge of the Rocky Mountains.

However, the opportunity to migrate across Beringia came to an end due to climate warming, the last ice retreat, and rising sea levels, which led to the submersion of the land bridge. The theory that human occupation of the continent is relatively recent is based on the lack of archaeological sites in North America that can be securely dated before 15,000 BCE. However, evidence found in South America suggests a much more complex pattern of occupation. In the southern region, such as in Patagonia, sites have been found dating as early as in North America. This suggests that humans may have migrated to North America much earlier than initially thought.

Recent excavations in Brazil have yielded surprising findings, including artifacts that archaeologists estimate could be over 30,000 years old. These discoveries indicate the possibility that humans moved to North America at a time when Beringia did not yet exist as a land bridge. While the absence of irrefutable evidence of human presence in North America before approximately 15,000 BCE remains a mystery, this complex and ever-evolving scenario reveals a fascinating history of migration and settlement on the continent.

The discussion about the settlement of North America goes beyond the existence or absence of dated evidence. Europeans, with their inclination toward scientific solutions, often focus on migratory hypotheses derived from the analysis of archaeological sites, artifacts, chronological sequences, and maps. However, a fundamental fact is often overlooked: the early inhabitants of North America did not see themselves as emigrants leaving one continent to start a new life on another. Instead, they lived their daily lives and moved in search of game animals.

Another perspective to understand human presence in America suggests that people have occupied this land since time immemorial. This idea is rooted in the traditions of many indigenous cultures and still persists as a significant religious and political issue today. The mythologies of various contemporary indigenous groups, such as the Ojibwa and Hopi, tell stories of the first people who wandered from the place of origin to their later homes. Creation stories also reflect the way of life of each group. For example, creation narratives in agricultural communities refer to the emergence of the land in specific places in the landscape. Meanwhile, stories of traditional hunter-gatherer groups reflect their lives dedicated to hunting animals or visionary quests.

As the climate became warmer and drier, glaciers and tundra retreated northward, giving way to meadows and forests. Large animals from the glacial period disappeared, possibly hunted to extinction. Humans adapted their lives to focus on hunting and gathering. Over time, advances like the bow, arrow, and pottery developed. In regions with favorable climate and fertile soil, people began to cultivate maize, beans, and other crops. The introduction of agriculture allowed for the rise of great civilizations in fertile valleys like the Mississippi and Ohio rivers, where cities, earthworks, impressive artwork, and complex religious belief systems were built. In other areas, populations continued their hunting, fishing, and gathering traditions.

The inhabitants of North America did not remain static or isolated in the millennia leading up to the arrival of the Europeans. They traveled great distances to exchange materials, such as stones and shells, which they used to create tools and ornaments, respectively. As these groups moved from one place to another, different languages emerged and spread. The extent of this activity is evident in the fact that today, people who speak related languages are separated by vast distances. The languages of the Navajo and Apache in the southwest have connections to those of hunters in Alaska and the Yukon Territory.

Therefore, just before the European invasion, North America was a place where humans had thrived for at least fifteen millennia, and possibly much longer. The drastic changes that were triggered and had a devastating impact on indigenous populations were largely due to profound differences in understanding that separated native cultures from European ones. From the perspective of Native Americans, the land was a place occupied, managed, and known, while white explorers and colonizers only saw an empty expanse waiting to be conquered.