{"id":793692,"date":"2026-10-06T12:16:17","date_gmt":"2026-10-06T12:16:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/793692\/"},"modified":"2026-10-06T12:16:17","modified_gmt":"2026-10-06T12:16:17","slug":"first-indigenous-americans-reached-the-americas-no-earlier-than-21000-years-ago-study-suggests","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/793692\/","title":{"rendered":"First Indigenous Americans reached the Americas no earlier than 21,000 years ago, study suggests"},"content":{"rendered":"

Genetic evidence places the ancestors of today\u2019s Indigenous Americans<\/a> in the Americas no earlier than about 21,000 years ago. A new review of ancient DNA supports migration during or near the end of the Last Glacial Maximum.<\/p>\n

\"First<\/a>Three Native American women holding beaded bags, Warm Springs Indian Reservation, Wasco County, Oregon, circa 1902. Colorized by Archaeology News Online Magazine<\/p>\n

The finding adds to a debate lasting more than a century. Researchers still disagree over when humans first reached the American continents.<\/a> Three main models have shaped the debate. One places migration before the Last Glacial Maximum, more than 25,000 years ago. Another places the first major migration between 20,000 and 14,000 years ago. The third places arrival after 14,000 years ago.<\/p>\n

Researchers reviewed genetic evidence for these models. Their study, published in Current Opinion in Genetics & Development, compares ancient DNA with archaeological evidence.<\/p>\n

Genetic data point to a population linked to ancient groups from northern Asia and Beringia. During the Last Glacial Maximum, this population developed several distinct lineages. Ancient Native Americans<\/a> and Ancient Beringians were among them. Other groups appear only through genetic signals, with no sampled remains so far.<\/p>\n

\"First<\/a>Map depicting all published pre-contact whole-genome data in the Americas, scaled by sample size. Includes both whole-genome and genome-wide data. Credit: B. Potter et al., Current Opinion in Genetics & Development (2026)<\/p>\n

Researchers have now published about 257 whole genomes from ancient people in the Americas. Genome-wide data from another 1,204 ancient individuals also exist. Yet these samples cover only a small part of the continent\u2019s past.<\/p>\n

The oldest sampled genome from the Americas belongs to the Anzick-1 child from Montana. The child lived about 12,800 years ago. Genetic models based on Anzick-1 and other ancient people place the first major diversification of First Peoples no earlier than about 21,000 years ago.<\/p>\n

This timing supports archaeological evidence for people living in the Americas before the Clovis period. It also points to an arrival before the end of the Last Glacial Maximum.<\/p>\n

One debated site is White Sands in New Mexico<\/a>. Human footprints there have been dated to about 23,000 years ago. If those dates hold, people lived in the region before the Last Glacial Maximum.<\/p>\n

No ancient genome from the White Sands population has been recovered. Current genetic evidence also shows no clear major contribution from this group to later Indigenous populations.<\/p>\n

Several explanations remain possible. The White Sands people might belong to a lineage not yet sampled. Their descendants might also have left only a small genetic trace. Another possibility is that their lineage left no surviving descendants among later populations.<\/p>\n

\"First<\/a>Native Americans with a whale, 1910. Photograph by Asahel Curtis. Public domain<\/p>\n

The lack of DNA from large parts of the Americas limits the picture. The researchers point to the Great Plains as one major gap. No published ancient genomes from the region were available for their review.<\/p>\n

More samples from North America could change the current picture. Ancient DNA from early sites would help researchers test whether separate groups entered the Americas before the main ancestral population of today\u2019s Indigenous peoples.<\/p>\n

Genetic evidence also shows a complex spread after the first migration. Northern and Southern Native American lineages split roughly 15,000 years ago. Other groups separated earlier, while some lineages appear only through genetic traces.<\/p>\n

People then spread across North and South America. Their descendants experienced population movements, isolation and mixing over thousands of years. South America also received several distinct waves of ancestry at different times.<\/p>\n

The genetic record does not rule out a pre-LGM migration. Such a model needs evidence linking earlier populations with later Indigenous peoples. Ancient DNA from those early groups would provide an important test.<\/p>\n

The researchers also stress the need for ethical work with descendant communities. Ancient DNA studies involve human remains and questions linked to living Indigenous peoples. Archaeology, genetics and tribal historical knowledge each provide evidence about the first peoples.<\/p>\n

For now, genetic evidence places the diversification of the ancestors of today\u2019s Indigenous Americans no earlier than about 21,000 years ago. Earlier human groups remain possible, but their place in the ancestry of later populations is still unresolved.<\/p>\n

Publication: Potter, B., Hay, S., Singh, A., & Raff, J. (2026). Genomic insights regarding early migrations into the Americas. Current Opinion in Genetics & Development, 101(102534), 102534. doi:10.1016\/j.gde.2026.102534<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Genetic evidence places the ancestors of today\u2019s Indigenous Americans in the Americas no earlier than about 21,000 years…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":793693,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[127393,59,39123,261297,4051,90,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-793692","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-science","tag-archaeogenetics","tag-gb","tag-ice-age","tag-native-american-civilization","tag-north-america","tag-science","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/793692","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=793692"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/793692\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/793693"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=793692"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=793692"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=793692"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}