11/22/10

First American to Reach Europe Sailed With Vikings

New Scientist reported a scientific finding of genetic evidence of aboriginal Americans in the blood of select Icelanders. Mitochondrial D.N.A. evidence was found in 80 Icelanders with forbears dating on the island to 1710. Before that Iceland was basically insular.

The research was conducted by a Spanish Center for Evolutionary Biological Research.

http://tinyurl.com/2exxrnr

"As the island was virtually isolated from the tenth century, the most likely hypothesis is that these genes corresponded to an Amerindian woman who was brought from America by the Vikings around 1000.Curiously, this fact would have remained hidden because this woman was an anonymous character"-Carles Lalueza CSIC-Fox of the Institute of Evolutionary Biology

http://www.newscientist.com/blogs/shortsharpscience/2010/11/vikings-brought-first-native-a.html?DCMP=OTC-rss&nsref=online-news

Although the Vikings did establish two colonies on Greenland by the 10th century, there is no proof they were the first Europeans to reach North America. Farley Mowatt's book 'The Farfarers: Before the Norse' makes a convincing historical argument that Vikings followed the Albs of Ireland across the North Atlantic from the Orkneys to Iceland,Greenland and New Foundland as pirates.

An alternate hypothesis is that some Americans went boating east and stayed to enjoy Iceland's hot springs.

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