Martin RundkvistIn the US, most people aren't descendants of the people who lived there before 1492. This tends to colour everyone's attitude to prehistoric archaeology. Archaeogenetics have now shown Scandinavians something unexpected. We are almost unrelated to the various groups living here before 2800 BC, including the builders of our most impressive megalithic tombs. We are not a First Nation. 2800 BC is our AD 1492.
Virginicus@mrundkvist Surveys have shown that 90% of Americans whose family arrived before last Thursday have Native ancestry.
@Virginicus Tiny amounts. The densely populated parts of Northern America seem to have been almost laid waste by unfamiliar epidemic diseases long before any Europan person showed up to say hi.
@mrundkvist The number of us whose parents told us we had native ancestry far exceeds the genetic markers. In many cases, it was a way to justify the family fighting on the wrong side in the Civil War.
@Virginicus Cf. genetic and cultural make-up of recognised First Nations members today.