ANT210H5 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: Gavin Menzies, John Cabot, Zheng He
ANT210 LECTURE 5: WHO DISCOVERED THE AMERICAS? (02-13-19)
Gavin Menzies
• Argued that Chinese Admiral Zheng He’s fleet extended its trip to North America
North/South American Indigenous Groups
• Statistics show that 90% of Indigenous groups died after encounters with Europeans
• Ancestry: mtDNA and Language Families
o MtDNA = mitochondrial DNA, traces, matrilineages (female lines)
o Haplogroups: long-existing genetic sequence variants that correlate with geographic
origins of populations (ancestry)
o Shows us genetic makeup of people in North and South America in past vs. present
First Contact: Europeans in the Americas (including Canada)
• Norse: ca. AD 985-1000
• Columbus in Carribean: 1492
• John Cabot (Giovanni Coboto) landed in Newfoundland and Cape Breton: 1497, would have seen
Beothuk/Mi-maq people
• 1530-1600 Basque fishermen and whalers in Red Bay (Labrador)
• Jacques Cartier 1534-1542 (Gaspe and St. Lawrence)
o By 1550, “Canada” starts appearing on maps
Does Archaeology Contribute to the Issue of Contact?
• Archaeology discovers stuff that populations have left behind, which tells us about their
cultures, behaviours, ways of living, etc.
o People leave trail of evidence—archaeology shows us where to look and how to find it
• By showing how Indigenous and European people were affected by first contact
Archaeology’s Message
• Research is active
• Evidence for both culture and human biology converges on a clear picture
• There are still debates among specialists about some issue
Asian Connection Confusion: An Example of a Misrepresentation
Zheng He’s Voyages from China in 1405 to 1433
• Made 7 exploratory voyages from China around the world
• Question of “could he have reached America (before Columbus)”
o Via “Kelp Highway” from Asia straight down alongside North and then South America
Document Summary
Ant210 lecture 5: who discovered the americas? (02-13-19) Gavin menzies: argued that chinese admiral zheng he"s fleet extended its trip to north america. First contact: europeans in the americas (including canada: norse: ca. John cabot (giovanni coboto) landed in newfoundland and cape breton: 1497, would have seen. Beothuk/mi-maq people: 1530-1600 basque fishermen and whalers in red bay (labrador) Jacques cartier 1534-1542 (gaspe and st. lawrence: by 1550, canada starts appearing on maps. Archaeology"s message: research is active, evidence for both culture and human biology converges on a clear picture, there are still debates among specialists about some issue. Asian connection confusion: an example of a misrepresentation. Claims: venetian map shows the atlantic, therefore chinese ships could have crossed the atlantic, and conditions were favourble to do so. 1524 in what is now new york/manhattan resembled chinese people, they were chinese.
