Pacific settlement nearly 500 years older than thought - research [To'aga, Ofu Island, American Samoa]

RNZ ^ | February 24, 2020 | Dateline Pacific

[SunkenCiv]

A University of Waikato archaeological scientist is helping rewrite the history of ancient human movement across the Pacific.

Dr Fiona Petchey, working with archaeologists, has been using radiocarbon dating - technology that is now much more precise than when dating was first done 40 odd years ago.

She has most recently worked with a researcher from Berkeley to date the ancient site of To'aga, on Ofu Island in American Samoa.

The research showed the site had been settled nearly 500 years earlier, 2800 years ago, than had previously been thought.

Dr Petchey told Don Wiseman there has been a lot of progress in the field.

[SunkenCiv]

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[SunkenCiv]

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[SuperLuminal]

"... the site had been settled nearly 500 years earlier, 2800 years ago, than had previously been thought."

Hmmm... That's not news here on FR... Pretty sure FR had surmised the truth about Ofu Island back in 99...

[Wuli]

“The research showed the site had been settled nearly 500 years earlier, 2800 years ago, than had previously been thought.”

Or in common terms that avoids common folk having to do the math - about 800 B.C.

Or along the same time frame as (as incomplete record):

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/8th_century_BC

[fishtank]

It fits in the flood chronology....

Fermi’s paradox for the Pacific.

[CharleysPride]

Fascinating!

Travel and migration across the Pacific is riveting stuff.
Especially at the frontier extremes.

Why Did they leave Pitcairn Island?...

[SunkenCiv]

That's not very much math; anyone who struggles with it is unlikely to gain much by reading, or listening to the podcast.

[SunkenCiv]

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/australiaandthepacific/pitcairnislands/11418280/Why-will-nobody-move-to-Pitcairn-the-Pacific-island-with-free-land.html

[SunkenCiv]

I'm just glad Epstein didn't find the island.

[CharleysPride]

Always 62 degrees above, trees, the beach and a little geography sounds like paradise.

For a few weeks at least!

[SunkenCiv]

As long as there's wi-fi. /jk

[Cruising Speed]

Question: what is the full spelling of To'aga?

The apostrophe indicates a missing letter but I don't know what it is.

[SunkenCiv]

I think that indicates the gutteral sound, basically "ha", because there are so many vowels.

[Nabron]

It indicates a “glottal” stop. “Hawaii” is actually “Hawai’i;” just pronounce the “i” sound (”ee”) twice.

[SunkenCiv]

Whoops, yes, glottal, not gutteral.