Did Polynesian voyagers visit Colombia? - General Tiki

STCB Sabu The Coconut Boy Tiki Socialite Carson, California Joined: Aug 20, 2002 Posts: 2813	STCB Sabu The Coconut Boy Posted posted on Tue, Sep 27, 2011 1:37 PM This is what I gleaned from Heyerdahl's writings as well - that there was contact between the Americas and Polynesia, but not necessarily migration. Especially powerful for me were the presence of sweet potatoes and pineapple as food crops in Polynesia, both of which had South American origins. The Polynesians' and South American Indians' names for the sweet potato also match closely and, in the case of Easter Island, match exactly. This wikipedia article is a good reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pre-Columbian_trans-oceanic_contact The word for sweet potato, at least, "constitutes near proof of incidental contact between inhabitants of the Andean region and the South Pacific", though the word for axe is not as convincing. That is, there appears to have been trade between Polynesia and South America, but not a mass movement of peoples.

This is what I gleaned from Heyerdahl's writings as well - that there was contact between the Americas and Polynesia, but not necessarily migration. Especially powerful for me were the presence of sweet potatoes and pineapple as food crops in Polynesia, both of which had South American origins. The Polynesians' and South American Indians' names for the sweet potato also match closely and, in the case of Easter Island, match exactly. This wikipedia article is a good reference:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pre-Columbian_trans-oceanic_contact

The word for sweet potato, at least, "constitutes near proof of incidental contact between inhabitants of the Andean region and the South Pacific", though the word for axe is not as convincing. That is, there appears to have been trade between Polynesia and South America, but not a mass movement of peoples.

Post #608251 by Sabu The Coconut Boy on Tue, Sep 27, 2011 1:37 PM