Did ancient Polynesians visit California?

Interesting article in today's SF Chronicle:

Did ancient Polynesians visit California? Maybe so.
Scholars revive idea using linguistic ties, Indian headdress

• Keay Davidson, Chronicle Science Writer
  Monday, June 20, 2005

Scientists are taking a new look at an old and controversial idea: that ancient Polynesians sailed to Southern California a millennium before Christopher Columbus landed on the East Coast.

Key new evidence comes from two directions. The first involves revised carbon-dating of an ancient ceremonial headdress used by Southern California's Chumash Indians. The second involves research by two California scientists who suggest that a Chumash word for "sewn-plank canoe" is derived from a Polynesian word for the wood used to construct the same boat.

The scientists, linguist Kathryn A. Klar of UC Berkeley and archaeologist Terry L. Jones of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, had trouble getting their thesis of ancient contact between the Polynesians and Chumash published in scientific journals. The Chumash and their neighbors, the Gabrielino, were the only North American Indians to build sewn-plank boats, a technique used throughout the Polynesian islands.

But after grappling for two years with criticisms by peer reviewers, Klar and Jones' article will appear in the archaeological journal American Antiquity in July.

Full story:
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2005/06/20/CHUMASH.TMP&nl=top

They sure dressed/looked Polynesian.
And they thrive to this day.

I totally believe the Polynesians traded with the Indians in California. The Polynesians navigation techniques and courage are convincing signs for me that they must have found North America. If they could find Easter Island, how in the world would they miss a continent?

Well of course Polynesians had contacted with ancient Californians. Where do you think ambrosia salad came from?

Interesting read.

I have a tough time with the conclusions. The Tomol I have seen in Ventura bears no resemblance that I see to the hawaian technology. Neither do the paddles: Chumash used Kayak style double paddles.

The sweet potato is the definitive proof that at least a trading event occurred with south america in ancient times.

In more modern times wayward Hawaiian sailors hired on to european vessels formed little beach colonies in California and Baja which probably died out from lack of females.

Dave

On 2005-06-20 11:02, Unga Bunga wrote:

And they thrive to this day.

I went to one of their Pow Wow's once, visited a one-armed bandit, and saw the 80s band Wang Chung perform.

They did, but when they found out the line to get into the Enchanted Tiki Room would take 1500 years to get through, they left.

Seriously, though, cool article, seems very plausible. They managed to find Polynesia, after all!

On 2005-06-20 13:58, gonzo wrote:
In more modern times wayward Hawaiian sailors hired on to european vessels formed little beach colonies in California and Baja which probably died out from lack of females.

Can't live with 'em, can't live without 'em.

I've often thought that Haida art looks awfully "Polynesian" in style but that's probably just a coincidence.

Say, here's something I just googled: The Canadian Connection. Interesting!

[ Edited by: Kono on 2005-06-23 16:14 ]

I wish more of the ancient polynesians would have visited. It would have made for an interesting test of whether the tiki could have faced down the missions along the coast.

Bump

The History Channel has some great episodes about early man on right now. The episode about early Paleo American Indians reminded me of Shishalop.
The Channel Islands just of the coast of Ventura, California, has the earliest remains of American Indians in North America dated to 10,000 BC. Called the Arlington man.
In Ventura below Ojai Valley, on the land where the Chumash village in Shishalop stood for many thousands of years, The city is now called San Buena Ventura.
(City of Good Fortune) Not for Shishalop it wasn't.
There is a parking structure with this scale ocean canoe.

At end of Fiqueroa street is the former site of the village Shishalop. This village had stood for many thousands of years until the Padres and Conquistadors found them.

Developers are attenping to build on this land where the village once stood. This should be preserved for archaeologists and everyone interested.
The San Buena Ventura Conservancy is attempting to stop this.

[ Edited by: Ojaitimo 2008-06-16 15:04 ]