Chicken Bones Suggest Polynesians Found Americas Before Columbus

livescience.com ^ | 04 June 2007 | Heather Whipps

[Nikas777]

Chicken Bones Suggest Polynesians Found Americas Before Columbus

By Heather Whipps, Special to LiveScience

Which came first–the chicken or the European?

Popular history, and a familiar rhyme about Christopher Columbus, holds that Europeans made contact with the Americas in 1492, with some arguing that the explorer and his crew were the first outsiders to reach the New World.

But chicken bones recently unearthed on the coast of Chile—dating prior to Columbus’ “discovery” of America and resembling the DNA of a fowl species native to Polynesia—may challenge that notion, researchers say.

“Chickens could not have gotten to South America on their own—they had to be taken by humans,” said anthropologist Lisa Matisoo-Smith from the University of Auckland, New Zealand.

Polynesians made contact with the west coast of South America as much as a century before any Spanish conquistadors, her findings imply.

[Alas Babylon!]

No, it was his boss, the station owner.... Mr Carlson.

Les was giving the play-by-play from the ground, sounding eerily like the guy from the Hindenburg disaster (Oh the humanity!).

[blam]

"Blam will have the link I'm sure. :')"

Sorry, I don't.

[wolfcreek]

IMO, there were *Indians* before there were Europeans/white folks.

[LottieDah]

Someone had to come first...even the egg came before the chicken.

[OpeEdMunkey]

I figure I was born here, so I must be a native American. I like to check off the little race box. The HR people get so excited.

[DesertConservative]

Thanks for the clarification :)

What a terrific show. TV comedy has really gone downhill since.

[ZULU]

The first “outsiders” to reach America were probably several thousand Asians who later became American “Indians”.

[colorado tanker]

“As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly.”

[Nikas777]

Funniest TV line ever. I have not seen the show in decade or so and I still remember it!

[allmendream]

Thor Heyerdahl and Kon Tiki PING!!!

[colorado tanker]

The series is out in DVD. The consensus of the interviews was that was the funniest episode in what was IMHO a very funny series.

[SunkenCiv]

Blammit, Dam! ;') No no, let me do it. ;') Here's the chicken topics and more, chrono sorted:

• The aggressive dances of the Pacific Islands. Haka, Cibi, Siva Tau and Sipi Tau
• Rat DNA Clues To Sea Migration
• Did ancient Polynesians visit California? Maybe so. Scholars revive idea using linguistic ties...
• Gene study suggests Polynesians came from Taiwan
• Graves Of The Pacific's First Seafarers Revealed
• Drifters Could Explain Sweet-Potato Travel
• Polynesians Beat Columbus To The Americas
• First Chickens in Americas Were Brought From Polynesia (came before Columbus)
• Chicken bones show Polynesians went to Chile (Told ya so!)
• Early Polynesians Sailed Thousands Of Miles For Trade
• Archaeology Unearths Gout In Early Pacific People
• 2007 - Year Of The Lapita? (Polynesian Breakthroughs)
• Top 10 Discoveries of 2007 (Archaeology magazine)
• Pacific Islanders' Ancestry Emerges in Genetic Study
• Tonga archaeology discovery blow to Samoa's 'cradle' claim
• Fiji Jewellery Box Find Stuns Archaeologists (Lapita People)
• 'Chicken and Chips' Theory of Pacific Migration
• Rock art find highlights ancient east-west Polynesia links

[SunkenCiv]

Whoops.

• The aggressive dances of the Pacific Islands. Haka, Cibi, Siva Tau and Sipi Tau
• Rat DNA Clues To Sea Migration
• The Pacific's Pompeii
• Did ancient Polynesians visit California? Maybe so. Scholars revive idea using linguistic ties...
• Gene study suggests Polynesians came from Taiwan
• Graves Of The Pacific's First Seafarers Revealed
• Drifters Could Explain Sweet-Potato Travel
• Polynesians Beat Columbus To The Americas
• First Chickens in Americas Were Brought From Polynesia (came before Columbus)
• Chicken bones show Polynesians went to Chile (Told ya so!)
• Early Polynesians Sailed Thousands Of Miles For Trade
• Archaeology Unearths Gout In Early Pacific People
• 2007 - Year Of The Lapita? (Polynesian Breakthroughs)
• Top 10 Discoveries of 2007 (Archaeology magazine)
• Pacific Islanders' Ancestry Emerges in Genetic Study
• Tonga archaeology discovery blow to Samoa's 'cradle' claim
• Fiji Jewellery Box Find Stuns Archaeologists (Lapita People)
• 'Chicken and Chips' Theory of Pacific Migration
• Rock art find highlights ancient east-west Polynesia links

[blam]

"Blammit, Dam! ;') No no, let me do it. ;') Here's the chicken topics and more, chrono sorted:"

Well, you do get paid a lot more than me... Oops! (Sheeeh)

[Little Bill]

Damn, Blam forgets! There is a Haka Photo from WW1 from the ANZAC CORPS in France that was posted on the NZ Blacks Thread, must network

[blam]

"Damn, Blam forgets! "

Age does take it's toll. (ahem)

[Little Bill]

Bill you are only two years older than I, resist the descent.

[blam]

"Bill you are only two years older than I, resist the descent."

Okay...maybe laziness then?

[Little Bill]

Probably, I have to fight off the same thing myself. I just had to give you a chance for a rebuttal.

There is so much stuff out there that doesn’t conform to those things that we were brought up to believe it makes my head spin.

[Flag_This]

"Soft tyranny of low expectations."

LOL!