Native American origins: Japan, Siberia?

New study overturns idea that 1st Americans originated from Japan. It was likely Siberia.

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Did Native Americans originally migrate from Japan [or was it Siberia]?

The Great Spirit placed us here protect it.

The long-standing theory that the earliest Native Americans migrated to the Western Hemisphere from Japan is facing significant scientific scrutiny. A new study challenges the idea that these early populations, often referred to as First Peoples, descended from the Jomon people, who lived in Japan 15,000 years ago.

• NOTE: This is of interest to Wisdom Quarterly because Indigenous populations have strong links to Buddhism both from pre-Christian missionary work (Edward Payson Vining, 1885) and from migration from either Buddhist Japan or Buddhist Siberia, where a great deal of shamanism is blended with the Buddha Dharma. 
• An Inglorious Columbus; or, Evidence that Hwui Shan and a party of Buddhist monks from Afghanistan discovered America in the 5th century, AD (by Edward P. Vining/Internet Archive)
• Buddhism in Russia (Siberia)
• Buddhism in Japan
• How the Swans Came to the Lake: A Narrative History of Buddhism in America

Chukchi nomads became American Indians?

Harsh life of Chukchi nomads in Arctic with no gadgets or Pampers

An Inglorious Columbus (Edward P. Vining)

This research, published in the journal PaleoAmerica, disrupts the established narrative by analyzing genetics and skeletal biology which, according to the authors, do not support the connection.

For decades, archeologists have pointed to similarities in stone tools to support the theory. They argue that early Indigenous populations followed a coastal route along the northern Pacific, crossing the Bering Land Bridge [between Siberia, Russia and Alaska, USA] to reach North America.

Once there, they spread rapidly across the [American] continent, reaching South America’s southernmost tip within 2,000 years.

Central to this hypothesis has been the resemblance of stone artifacts crafted by the Jomon [縄文, "straw rope pattern"] people and those found at early First Peoples sites in the Americas.

However, this latest study, conducted by experts in human teeth biology and Ice-Age genetics, suggests otherwise.

Led by Prof. Richard Scott, an anthropologist with nearly 50 years of experience studying dental structures worldwide, the research team employed advanced statistical methods to compare tooth samples from populations in the Americas, Asia, and the Pacific.

Many archeologists currently believe that Indigenous Americans, or "First Peoples," migrated to the Americas from about 15,000 years ago (© The Brighter Side of News).

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THE RESULTS revealed minimal overlap between the Jomon and Native American samples. Only 7% of the teeth showed any connection to non-Arctic Native Americans.

"We found that the human biology simply doesn’t match up with the archeological theory," said Prof. Scott. "These people who lived in Japan 15,000 years ago are an unlikely source for Indigenous Americans. Neither the skeletal biology nor the genetics indicate a connection. The most likely origin for Native Americans appears to be Siberia."

The genetic evidence aligns with the dental findings. Co-author Prof. Dennis O’Rourke, an expert in the genetics of Indigenous Americans, explained that maternal and paternal lineages in early Jomon and American populations do not overlap.

Diorama of Jomon people at Sannai Maruyama: food gatherers, hunters, with some agriculture.

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"Recent studies of ancient DNA from Asia show that the two groups diverged from a common ancestor much earlier than previously thought," he stated.

This view was echoed by co-author Prof. Jennifer Raff, who has extensively studied the genetics of Ice-Age populations.

Their findings build on earlier work by O’Rourke and Raff, including a groundbreaking analysis of ancient DNA from Ice-Age remains in Alaska in 2016. This latest study, supported by archeological and ecological experts, adds another layer of complexity to the story of human migration to the Americas.

Adding weight to the study’s conclusions is a recent genetics paper on the Japanese population, which found evidence of three distinct migrations into Japan, rather than two as previously believed.

This supports the idea that the Jomon population’s genetic makeup is distinct from that of Indigenous Americans.

Moreover, a separate archeological discovery in New Mexico unveiled human footprints dating back 23,000 years. These footprints, described as definitive evidence of human presence in North America before the Last Glacial Maximum, challenge previous timelines. Yet, they offer no support for the theory that Indigenous Americans originated from Japan.

Jomon teeth vs. Native American teeth (G. Richard Scott, University of Nevada Reno)

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The study’s authors acknowledge limitations, such as the relatively young age of available Jomon DNA and dental samples, which date back less than 10,000 years. Despite this, they argue these samples are reliable proxies for earlier populations in Japan.

"We assume they represent the Incipient Jomon or the people who made stemmed points in Japan 16,000–15,000 years ago," the authors wrote.

The findings call for a reevaluation of how we understand the migration of the First Peoples. While it remains likely that they reached the Americas via the Northwest Pacific coast, their origins appear to lie in Siberia, not Japan.

Prof. Scott emphasized, "The Incipient Jomon population represents one of the least likely sources for Native American peoples among non-African populations."

This study marks a significant shift in our understanding of early human migration. By combining advanced genetic and dental analyses, it highlights the importance of revisiting long-held assumptions. 

The search for definitive answers continues, with scientists exploring new evidence to refine the complex story of how humans first populated the Americas. Source

• NOTE: Materials provided above by The Brighter Side of News. Content may be edited for style and length. Like these kind of feelgood stories? Get the' newsletter.
• Joseph Shavit, 1/25/25, thebrighterside.news, Did Native Americans originally migrate from Japan?; Xochitl, Ashley Wells (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly