Posts
Discovery Channel :: News :: Da Vinci Fingerprint Reveals Arab Heritage?
Rossella Lorenzi, Discovery News
Part of article (for full article, click on link)
. . . After scouring manuscripts and notebooks, the researchers found two other fingerprints that matched and completed the Ermine markings. The result was an entire fingertip, possibly belonging to the left forefinger.
Fingerprints are unique and don't change over a lifetime. Analysis of the skin's arches, loops and whorls — a science known as dermatoglyphics — has shown that there is a link between fingerprints and populations.
In the case of Leonardo's fingertip, patterns and ridges pointed to the Middle East, the researchers concluded.
"The fingerprint features patterns such as the central whorl that are dominant in the Middle East. About 60 percent of the Middle Eastern population display the same dermatoglyphic structure found in the fingerprint," Capasso said.
The discovery would support Vezzosi's claim that Leonardo's mother was not a local peasant girl as previously thought, but a Middle Eastern slave. . . .
Showing posts with label Ethnic Identity. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ethnic Identity. Show all posts
11 April 2008
10 April 2008
Defining Mixed-Blood Indians
Defining Mixed-Blood Indians
“A Rose by any other name is a Cactus”
~ Defining mixed-blood Indians in colonial Virginia and the Carolinas ~By Steven Pony Hill
Augusta County, VA (Orders 1773-1779)
19 AUG 1777….Nat, an Indian boy in the custody of Mary Greenlee who detains him as a slave complains that he is held in unlawful slavery. Commission to take depositions in Carolina or elsewhere.
17 SEP 1777….On the complaint of Nat an Indian or Mustee Boy who says he is to be set free from service of Mary Greenlee…nothing appeared to this Court but a bill of sale for ten pounds from one Sherwood Harris of Granville County, NC that through several assignments was made over to James Greenlee deceased, late husband to the said Mary….said Mulattoe or Indian Boy is a free man and no slave. ( Nat was most likely half-Indian, so therefore Mulatto or Mustee could be used interchangeably, use of these terms were influenced by the status of his servitude)
Charles City County, VA (Orders 1687-95)
DEC 1690….Thomas Mayo an Indian belonging to Jno. Evans is adjudged 14 years old.
Chesterfield County, VA (Orders 1767-71)
6 APR 1770…On motion of Sibbell, an Indian woman held in slavery by Joseph Ashbrooke, have leave to prosecute for her freedom in forma pauperis. -
Sibbell an Indian wench V. Joseph Ashbrooke, for pltf. To take deposition of Elizabeth Blankenship and Thomas Womack. -
Sybill a Mulatto V. Joseph Ashbrooke – dismissed. (Sibell was most likely less than full blooded Indian…she was described as Indian up to the point it was determined that she was legally a slave, then she was described as mulatto…use of the term is influenced by the status of her servitude)
NOTE: The above is just a fraction of the similar items posted at this site. Click on link for the rest of the data.
“A Rose by any other name is a Cactus”
~ Defining mixed-blood Indians in colonial Virginia and the Carolinas ~By Steven Pony Hill
Augusta County, VA (Orders 1773-1779)
19 AUG 1777….Nat, an Indian boy in the custody of Mary Greenlee who detains him as a slave complains that he is held in unlawful slavery. Commission to take depositions in Carolina or elsewhere.
17 SEP 1777….On the complaint of Nat an Indian or Mustee Boy who says he is to be set free from service of Mary Greenlee…nothing appeared to this Court but a bill of sale for ten pounds from one Sherwood Harris of Granville County, NC that through several assignments was made over to James Greenlee deceased, late husband to the said Mary….said Mulattoe or Indian Boy is a free man and no slave. ( Nat was most likely half-Indian, so therefore Mulatto or Mustee could be used interchangeably, use of these terms were influenced by the status of his servitude)
Charles City County, VA (Orders 1687-95)
DEC 1690….Thomas Mayo an Indian belonging to Jno. Evans is adjudged 14 years old.
Chesterfield County, VA (Orders 1767-71)
6 APR 1770…On motion of Sibbell, an Indian woman held in slavery by Joseph Ashbrooke, have leave to prosecute for her freedom in forma pauperis. -
Sibbell an Indian wench V. Joseph Ashbrooke, for pltf. To take deposition of Elizabeth Blankenship and Thomas Womack. -
Sybill a Mulatto V. Joseph Ashbrooke – dismissed. (Sibell was most likely less than full blooded Indian…she was described as Indian up to the point it was determined that she was legally a slave, then she was described as mulatto…use of the term is influenced by the status of her servitude)
NOTE: The above is just a fraction of the similar items posted at this site. Click on link for the rest of the data.
04 April 2008
Project to safeguard Aboriginal secrets
Project to safeguard Aboriginal secrets - 03 Apr 2008 - NZ Herald: World / International News:
Partial quotations [follow link for entire article]:
"Vines says that most Aborigines do not make wills, and that inheritances can be enmeshed in issues such as property and children.
'Is it common law property or native title? What happens to children and other relatives in a kinship system totally unlike that of Western society?
'Without a will, there is no executor to make decisions about disposal of the body and if there is a dispute, it has to go to court. 'That's a difficulty in itself.'
Vines says the Australian system reflects Western kinship structures, not the Aboriginal family structure, in which words indicating kinship often do not exactly match Australian legal meanings."
Partial quotations [follow link for entire article]:
"Vines says that most Aborigines do not make wills, and that inheritances can be enmeshed in issues such as property and children.
'Is it common law property or native title? What happens to children and other relatives in a kinship system totally unlike that of Western society?
'Without a will, there is no executor to make decisions about disposal of the body and if there is a dispute, it has to go to court. 'That's a difficulty in itself.'
Vines says the Australian system reflects Western kinship structures, not the Aboriginal family structure, in which words indicating kinship often do not exactly match Australian legal meanings."
Clue to early Americans lies in origin of the feces | Seattle Times Newspaper
Clue to early Americans lies in origin of the feces | Seattle Times Newspaper
Archaeologists have found 14,300-year-old fossilized feces in a cave in Oregon.
DNA analysis of the dried excrement shows the people who lived in the caves were closely related to modern Native Americans. Their genetic roots reach across the Bering Strait to Siberia and eastern Asia.
"These are probably the ancestors of some of the Native Americans living in America now," said Eske Willerslev, director of the Centre for Ancient Genetics at the University of Copenhagen.
[For full article, click on link.]
Archaeologists have found 14,300-year-old fossilized feces in a cave in Oregon.
DNA analysis of the dried excrement shows the people who lived in the caves were closely related to modern Native Americans. Their genetic roots reach across the Bering Strait to Siberia and eastern Asia.
"These are probably the ancestors of some of the Native Americans living in America now," said Eske Willerslev, director of the Centre for Ancient Genetics at the University of Copenhagen.
[For full article, click on link.]
The Deliveryman: An Ill-Fitting Tongue
The Deliveryman: An Ill-Fitting Tongue
Thursday, April 3, 2008
An Ill-Fitting Tongue
Today I attended a guest speaker seminar about radio and the internet and learned about Melungeons, an ethnic group of mixed-race people living in Appalachia. They are generally considered a tri-racial mix of European, African, and Native American descent, though hereditary lines vary from family to family. In his study, the researcher found that various Melungeon people living throughout the region and in diaspora had sort of found each other through the internet after a few of them had linked up while studying their genealogy. They have had several annual gatherings since.
This is an interesting group, certainly marginalized -- as the researcher put it, they were 'other' to the 'others,' spited even among the maligned Appalachian and Black populations. I realized as I looked them up this evening that I served my mission in a couple places with Melungeon populations. If I met any at the time, I wasn't aware of it.
[Continued on other topics]
Thursday, April 3, 2008
An Ill-Fitting Tongue
Today I attended a guest speaker seminar about radio and the internet and learned about Melungeons, an ethnic group of mixed-race people living in Appalachia. They are generally considered a tri-racial mix of European, African, and Native American descent, though hereditary lines vary from family to family. In his study, the researcher found that various Melungeon people living throughout the region and in diaspora had sort of found each other through the internet after a few of them had linked up while studying their genealogy. They have had several annual gatherings since.
This is an interesting group, certainly marginalized -- as the researcher put it, they were 'other' to the 'others,' spited even among the maligned Appalachian and Black populations. I realized as I looked them up this evening that I served my mission in a couple places with Melungeon populations. If I met any at the time, I wasn't aware of it.
[Continued on other topics]
Cyndie's Musings: William Goyens, Jr of Nacogdoches, TX
William Goyens, Jr of Nacogdoches, TX
Cyndie discusses her ancestor William Goyens Jr and his family origins in North Carolina. She speculates on white versus black, but notes her family were free people of color and considered to be Croatan or Lumbee. She relates an interesting story of a NC cemetery, where some of her family are buried, stating that the bodies were buried in a standing up position. It looks as if some of her other posts may be quite interesting too.
Cyndie discusses her ancestor William Goyens Jr and his family origins in North Carolina. She speculates on white versus black, but notes her family were free people of color and considered to be Croatan or Lumbee. She relates an interesting story of a NC cemetery, where some of her family are buried, stating that the bodies were buried in a standing up position. It looks as if some of her other posts may be quite interesting too.
18 March 2008
Kinship Studies: New Book
Kinship Studies
A new book entitled The Genius of Kinship: The Phenomenon of Human Kinship and the Global Diversity of Kinship Terminologies by German V. Dziebel; From Cambria Press, published on January 28, 2008.
You can purchase it on Amazon.com
(Uunfortunately, the price is $139.95! )
What’s new about this book?
+It is a new theory of human kinship
+It contains a new historiography of kinship studies that takes into account related disciplines
+It offers a new look at American Indian kinship systems
+It attempts to synthesize anthropology, linguistics and population genetics
+It critisizes the Out-of-Africa theory and outlines a new model of human origins and dispersals
+It is built on a new database and a new bibliography
+It exemplifies a new methodology of social sciences as applied to human origins
+It is a new step in the critique of anthropology
+It overcomes post-modernism
+It is not nostalgic
+It leads to a new vision of anthropology and reconciles it with its roots
+It is creative and optimistic
NOTE by CEB: I have not yet read this book. This information is from the author's site.
Another site has information about the author's theories and explains the book in more detail. Frankly, it sounds a little wacky to me, so, at this point, I'm going to wait to see if it gains any momentum in the anthropology world and what kind of reviews it gets.
A new book entitled The Genius of Kinship: The Phenomenon of Human Kinship and the Global Diversity of Kinship Terminologies by German V. Dziebel; From Cambria Press, published on January 28, 2008.
You can purchase it on Amazon.com
(Uunfortunately, the price is $139.95! )
What’s new about this book?
+It is a new theory of human kinship
+It contains a new historiography of kinship studies that takes into account related disciplines
+It offers a new look at American Indian kinship systems
+It attempts to synthesize anthropology, linguistics and population genetics
+It critisizes the Out-of-Africa theory and outlines a new model of human origins and dispersals
+It is built on a new database and a new bibliography
+It exemplifies a new methodology of social sciences as applied to human origins
+It is a new step in the critique of anthropology
+It overcomes post-modernism
+It is not nostalgic
+It leads to a new vision of anthropology and reconciles it with its roots
+It is creative and optimistic
NOTE by CEB: I have not yet read this book. This information is from the author's site.
Another site has information about the author's theories and explains the book in more detail. Frankly, it sounds a little wacky to me, so, at this point, I'm going to wait to see if it gains any momentum in the anthropology world and what kind of reviews it gets.
17 March 2008
Ariela Gross | "Of Portuguese Origin": Litigating Identity and Citizenship among the "Little Races" in Nineteenth-Century America
Ariela Gross "Of Portuguese Origin": Litigating Identity and Citizenship among the "Little Races" in Nineteenth-Century America Law and History Review, 25.3 The History Cooperative
ABSTRACT: The history of race in the nineteenth-century United States is often told as a story of black and white in the South, and white and Indian in the West, with little attention to the intersection between black and Indian. This article explores the history of nineteenth-century America's "little races"—racially ambiguous communities of African, Indian, and European origin up and down the eastern seaboard. These communities came under increasing pressure in the years leading up to the Civil War and in its aftermath to fall on one side or the other of a black-white color line. Drawing on trial records of cases litigating the racial identity of the Melungeons of Tennessee, the Croatans/Lumbee of North Carolina, and the Narragansett of Rhode Island, this article looks at the differing paths these three groups took in the face of Jim Crow: the Melungeons claiming whiteness; the Croatans/Lumbee asserting Indian identity and rejecting association with blacks; the Narragansett asserting Indian identity without rejecting their African origins. Members of these communities found that they could achieve full citizenship in the U.S. polity only to the extent that they abandoned their self-governance and distanced themselves from people of African descent.
ABSTRACT: The history of race in the nineteenth-century United States is often told as a story of black and white in the South, and white and Indian in the West, with little attention to the intersection between black and Indian. This article explores the history of nineteenth-century America's "little races"—racially ambiguous communities of African, Indian, and European origin up and down the eastern seaboard. These communities came under increasing pressure in the years leading up to the Civil War and in its aftermath to fall on one side or the other of a black-white color line. Drawing on trial records of cases litigating the racial identity of the Melungeons of Tennessee, the Croatans/Lumbee of North Carolina, and the Narragansett of Rhode Island, this article looks at the differing paths these three groups took in the face of Jim Crow: the Melungeons claiming whiteness; the Croatans/Lumbee asserting Indian identity and rejecting association with blacks; the Narragansett asserting Indian identity without rejecting their African origins. Members of these communities found that they could achieve full citizenship in the U.S. polity only to the extent that they abandoned their self-governance and distanced themselves from people of African descent.
06 January 2008
Colon cancer risk traced to common ancestor
Colon cancer risk traced to common ancestor | U.S. | Reuters:
LONDON (Reuters) - "A married couple who sailed to America from England around 1630 are the reason why thousands of people in the United States are at higher risk of a hereditary form of colon cancer, researchers said on Wednesday.
Using a genetic fingerprint, a U.S. team traced back a so-called founder genetic mutation to the couple found among two large families currently living in Utah and New York."
Follow link to read full article.
LONDON (Reuters) - "A married couple who sailed to America from England around 1630 are the reason why thousands of people in the United States are at higher risk of a hereditary form of colon cancer, researchers said on Wednesday.
Using a genetic fingerprint, a U.S. team traced back a so-called founder genetic mutation to the couple found among two large families currently living in Utah and New York."
Follow link to read full article.
Ethics in Publishing Family Histories
Steve’s Genealogy Blog » Ethics in Publishing Family Histories
Not only is the article of interest, but the numerous comments by readers add much to the discussion of what can be published and what should be published. Do we continue to hide family secrets, because someone might be upset or ashamed, or do we publish the truth as we find and can document it? How do we deal with people who "steal" our research? Weighty questions and some great opinions, well expressed.
Not only is the article of interest, but the numerous comments by readers add much to the discussion of what can be published and what should be published. Do we continue to hide family secrets, because someone might be upset or ashamed, or do we publish the truth as we find and can document it? How do we deal with people who "steal" our research? Weighty questions and some great opinions, well expressed.
23 December 2007
Melungeon Information at NativeAmericans.com
Native Americans - Melungeon
This site has all kinds of links to a wide variety of information about Melungeons. For example:
ALHN Melungeon Webpage - This is the Melungeon information page for the American Local History Network.
Appalachian Quarterly Magazine, Wise County (VA) Historical Society- A magazine which regularly covers items on Melungeons. Link to the Melungeon Registry, which traces family histories of many Melungeon families. List of common Melungeon names.
Black Dutch - Six different meanings for the term Black Dutch or Black German.
Black Dutch and Irish, Melungeons, Moravians, Pennsylvania Dutch - Shirley Hornbeck's This and That Genealogy Tips, Genealogy Tips on Black Dutch and Irish, Melungeons, Moravians, Pennsylvania Dutch
Brent Kennedy's response to Virginia DeMarce: Kennedy defending his book after DeMarce wrote a review attacking it.
See this site for many more links to Melungeon data.
This site has all kinds of links to a wide variety of information about Melungeons. For example:
ALHN Melungeon Webpage - This is the Melungeon information page for the American Local History Network.
Appalachian Quarterly Magazine, Wise County (VA) Historical Society- A magazine which regularly covers items on Melungeons. Link to the Melungeon Registry, which traces family histories of many Melungeon families. List of common Melungeon names.
Black Dutch - Six different meanings for the term Black Dutch or Black German.
Black Dutch and Irish, Melungeons, Moravians, Pennsylvania Dutch - Shirley Hornbeck's This and That Genealogy Tips, Genealogy Tips on Black Dutch and Irish, Melungeons, Moravians, Pennsylvania Dutch
Brent Kennedy's response to Virginia DeMarce: Kennedy defending his book after DeMarce wrote a review attacking it.
See this site for many more links to Melungeon data.
Wantabes and Outalucks: Searching for Indian Ancestors in Federal Records
Article on Native American Research:
by Kent Carter Director, National Archives-Fort Worth Branch
This very in-depth article is a step-by-step explanation of how to research your Native American roots, complete with helpful links.
by Kent Carter Director, National Archives-Fort Worth Branch
This very in-depth article is a step-by-step explanation of how to research your Native American roots, complete with helpful links.
Black Dutch
Shaking Your Family Tree, April 2, 1998
IN SEARCH OF THE BLACK DUTCH, by Myra Vanderpool Gormley, C.G.
"The so-called 'Black Dutch' have long been an enigma in American genealogy. Their descendants are widely reported, yet no authoritative definition exists for this intriguing term,'' James Pylant says in an article entitled "In Search of the Black Dutch,'' which appears in American Genealogy Magazine (Volume 12, No. 1).
Many readers of this periodical responded to a survey about their "Black Dutch'' ancestry as did several professional genealogists. The results were interesting but inconclusive. [Follow link for the rest of this article.]
IN SEARCH OF THE BLACK DUTCH, by Myra Vanderpool Gormley, C.G.
"The so-called 'Black Dutch' have long been an enigma in American genealogy. Their descendants are widely reported, yet no authoritative definition exists for this intriguing term,'' James Pylant says in an article entitled "In Search of the Black Dutch,'' which appears in American Genealogy Magazine (Volume 12, No. 1).
Many readers of this periodical responded to a survey about their "Black Dutch'' ancestry as did several professional genealogists. The results were interesting but inconclusive. [Follow link for the rest of this article.]
22 December 2007
The Croatan Indians of Sampson County, North Carolina. Their Origin and Racial Status. A Plea for Separate Schools
George Edwin Butler, 1868-1941. The Croatan Indians of Sampson County, North Carolina. Their Origin and Racial Status. A Plea for Separate Schools: "The Croatan Indians of Sampson County, North Carolina. Their Origin and Racial Status. A Plea for Separate Schools:
Electronic Edition.
The digitalized book includes names of petitioners and the history of the Lumbee or Croatan Indians of this region.
This is from the web site: "Documenting the American South (DocSouth)," which includes ten thematic collections of primary sources for the study of southern history, literature, and culture. Their homepage is located at: http://docsouth.unc.edu/
Electronic Edition.
The digitalized book includes names of petitioners and the history of the Lumbee or Croatan Indians of this region.
This is from the web site: "Documenting the American South (DocSouth)," which includes ten thematic collections of primary sources for the study of southern history, literature, and culture. Their homepage is located at: http://docsouth.unc.edu/
12 December 2007
Many tribes left their mark on Indiana
Terre Haute News, Terre Haute, Indiana- TribStar.com
By Tamie Dehler
Special to the Tribune-Star
TERRE HAUTE — Last week’s column discussed Indiana’s most influential Indian tribes, the Miami, Wea, and Piankashaw, as described in The Indian Tribes of North America, by John R. Swanton. Yet, there were other tribes that also left their mark in and on the state.
The Chippewa or Ojibwa was a tribe of the east coast and the Great Lakes area. Like the Miamis, they were part of the Algonquin linguistic group. In treaties made in 1795, 1817, and 1821, they relinquished their lands in Indiana to the whites. Their tribal name means “to roast until puckered,” and referred to the puckered seam in their moccasins.
The Delaware Indians were also of Algonquin stock. . . . [Read rest of article through link]
By Tamie Dehler
Special to the Tribune-Star
TERRE HAUTE — Last week’s column discussed Indiana’s most influential Indian tribes, the Miami, Wea, and Piankashaw, as described in The Indian Tribes of North America, by John R. Swanton. Yet, there were other tribes that also left their mark in and on the state.
The Chippewa or Ojibwa was a tribe of the east coast and the Great Lakes area. Like the Miamis, they were part of the Algonquin linguistic group. In treaties made in 1795, 1817, and 1821, they relinquished their lands in Indiana to the whites. Their tribal name means “to roast until puckered,” and referred to the puckered seam in their moccasins.
The Delaware Indians were also of Algonquin stock. . . . [Read rest of article through link]
07 November 2007
Author Bliss Broyard explores the color line
"Her father's hidden past: A color line obscured Bliss Broyard's heritage"
The Boston Globe , by By David Mehegan, Globe Staff, November 6, 2007
Excerpt (click on link for full article):
Now Bliss Broyard, 41, after years of research and personal exploration, has told the story from the family perspective in "One Drop: My Father's Hidden Life - A Story of Race and Family Secrets." While the book is "about" Anatole Broyard, his family's history, and the cultural and racial history of south Louisiana, its main subject is the emotional landscape around the color line, which Bliss Broyard never expected to explore.
The Boston Globe , by By David Mehegan, Globe Staff, November 6, 2007
Excerpt (click on link for full article):
Now Bliss Broyard, 41, after years of research and personal exploration, has told the story from the family perspective in "One Drop: My Father's Hidden Life - A Story of Race and Family Secrets." While the book is "about" Anatole Broyard, his family's history, and the cultural and racial history of south Louisiana, its main subject is the emotional landscape around the color line, which Bliss Broyard never expected to explore.
29 October 2007
Racial mixtures of the Upper South
"Our Legacy:Racial mixtures of the Upper South," Columnists - HometownAnnapolis.com, By Janice Hayes-Williams, For The Capital. Published October 25, 2007. Follow link for full article.
Excerpt:
The ethnicity of many blacks in the United States and in particular Maryland can be tied to the Indian population that was removed from this area hundreds of years ago. Relations between blacks and Indians can be traced back to the 1600's with the emergence of slavery.
Excerpt:
The relationship between the colonists and the Native Americans began somewhat agreeable but diminished in less than 200 years. Because of the intermarriages of Native Americans with whites and blacks, 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th century racial categories evolved.
Excerpt:
In Maryland counties such as St. Mary's, Charles, Prince George's, and Calvert there were large numbers of individuals that were not of two races but three. The Catholics kept very good records and called these people Indians, partly because of were they lived. Anthropologists called them "Wesort's;" census enumerators called them mulattoes and today sociologists call them "Tri-Racial Isolates." During the 18th and 19th centuries these individuals in Maryland were also called "Free People of Color," "Free Negro" or mulatto.
Throughout the South there are numerous tri-racial isolate groups formerly enumerated as mulattoes; they are: "Brass Ankles" of South Carolina, "Guineas" of West Virginia, "Haliwas" and "Lumbees" of North Carolina, "Melungeons" of Tennessee and Kentucky, "Red Bones" of South Carolina and Louisiana and "Turks" also of South Carolina.
A few summers ago on a trip to Point Lookout here in Maryland, I had the opportunity to see one of the original muster rolls of soldiers who came from Blackistone Island in St Mary's County, now called Clements's Island. Most interesting was the fact that the men who came from Blackistone Island to fight during the Civil War listed their race not as White, Negro or mulatto, but "Griffe." Because many of these men had the last name Blackistone, I called Mr. Blackstone here in Annapolis and asked him "What in the world is a Griffe?"
He explained without hesitation that these were the people that inhabited Blackistone Island for 200 years and were of three races - European, African and Indian, a tri-racial isolate. Mr. Blackstone is a descendant of these people.
Excerpt:
The ethnicity of many blacks in the United States and in particular Maryland can be tied to the Indian population that was removed from this area hundreds of years ago. Relations between blacks and Indians can be traced back to the 1600's with the emergence of slavery.
Excerpt:
The relationship between the colonists and the Native Americans began somewhat agreeable but diminished in less than 200 years. Because of the intermarriages of Native Americans with whites and blacks, 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th century racial categories evolved.
Excerpt:
In Maryland counties such as St. Mary's, Charles, Prince George's, and Calvert there were large numbers of individuals that were not of two races but three. The Catholics kept very good records and called these people Indians, partly because of were they lived. Anthropologists called them "Wesort's;" census enumerators called them mulattoes and today sociologists call them "Tri-Racial Isolates." During the 18th and 19th centuries these individuals in Maryland were also called "Free People of Color," "Free Negro" or mulatto.
Throughout the South there are numerous tri-racial isolate groups formerly enumerated as mulattoes; they are: "Brass Ankles" of South Carolina, "Guineas" of West Virginia, "Haliwas" and "Lumbees" of North Carolina, "Melungeons" of Tennessee and Kentucky, "Red Bones" of South Carolina and Louisiana and "Turks" also of South Carolina.
A few summers ago on a trip to Point Lookout here in Maryland, I had the opportunity to see one of the original muster rolls of soldiers who came from Blackistone Island in St Mary's County, now called Clements's Island. Most interesting was the fact that the men who came from Blackistone Island to fight during the Civil War listed their race not as White, Negro or mulatto, but "Griffe." Because many of these men had the last name Blackistone, I called Mr. Blackstone here in Annapolis and asked him "What in the world is a Griffe?"
He explained without hesitation that these were the people that inhabited Blackistone Island for 200 years and were of three races - European, African and Indian, a tri-racial isolate. Mr. Blackstone is a descendant of these people.
18 October 2007
Can DNA Determine Indian Ancestry?
Manataka American Indian Council
by By Kim TallBear, Phd., Associate, Red Nation Consulting
Kim TallBear is an associate with Red Nation Consulting and a member of the Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate in South Dakota. She specializes in tribal program development and strategic planning and has worked with many U.S. tribes, tribal organizations, and federal agencies. She is a Ph.D. student in the History of Consciousness Program at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Her research focuses on racial formation among American Indians, specifically how DNA and blood influence identity and community belonging. She is a 2003 recipient of the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship.
~~~~~~~~
Excerpts (first and last paragraphs):
There is talk in Indian country about how DNA can decide tribal enrollment and prove American Indian ancestry. Some of this is coming from DNA testing companies anxious to sell costly services to tribes. . . .
Self-determined tribes struggling to control identities and resources must make decisions about the risks and benefits of DNA testing. Some tribal decision-makers display healthy skepticism as they talk about the complicated nature of identity, family, and community. Biological connection is not the sole important factor in determining who belongs. Cultural knowledge and connection to a land base are also valued. Many Indian people are also concerned about loss of privacy and control if outsiders hold biological samples. Other tribal decision-makers have expressed interest in DNA testing and still others need more information.
Unfortunately, there is no single source for information on DNA technologies and tribes. Nonprofit organizations and academic resources used in conjunction are a good start. The Council for Responsible Genetics (CRG) located in Cambridge, Mass. can provide general information about genetics (www.gene-watch.org). The Genetics and Identity Project at the University of Minnesota Center for Bioethics has on-line information on genetics and American Indian Identity available at Gentics and Identity. IPCB’s paper on DNA and Native American identity and other documents on genetics are available at Identity. IPCB is well-networked on genetics issues affecting indigenous peoples and can help tribes find technical assistance.
by By Kim TallBear, Phd., Associate, Red Nation Consulting
Kim TallBear is an associate with Red Nation Consulting and a member of the Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate in South Dakota. She specializes in tribal program development and strategic planning and has worked with many U.S. tribes, tribal organizations, and federal agencies. She is a Ph.D. student in the History of Consciousness Program at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Her research focuses on racial formation among American Indians, specifically how DNA and blood influence identity and community belonging. She is a 2003 recipient of the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship.
~~~~~~~~
Excerpts (first and last paragraphs):
There is talk in Indian country about how DNA can decide tribal enrollment and prove American Indian ancestry. Some of this is coming from DNA testing companies anxious to sell costly services to tribes. . . .
Self-determined tribes struggling to control identities and resources must make decisions about the risks and benefits of DNA testing. Some tribal decision-makers display healthy skepticism as they talk about the complicated nature of identity, family, and community. Biological connection is not the sole important factor in determining who belongs. Cultural knowledge and connection to a land base are also valued. Many Indian people are also concerned about loss of privacy and control if outsiders hold biological samples. Other tribal decision-makers have expressed interest in DNA testing and still others need more information.
Unfortunately, there is no single source for information on DNA technologies and tribes. Nonprofit organizations and academic resources used in conjunction are a good start. The Council for Responsible Genetics (CRG) located in Cambridge, Mass. can provide general information about genetics (www.gene-watch.org). The Genetics and Identity Project at the University of Minnesota Center for Bioethics has on-line information on genetics and American Indian Identity available at Gentics and Identity. IPCB’s paper on DNA and Native American identity and other documents on genetics are available at Identity. IPCB is well-networked on genetics issues affecting indigenous peoples and can help tribes find technical assistance.
22 September 2007
History rewritten on Cherokee demise - LiveScience - MSNBC.com
History rewritten on Cherokee demise - LiveScience - MSNBC.com: External pressures, not lack of natural resources, led to tribe's collapse
By Heather Whipps
A slow, lethal combination of external pressures including warfare, rather than a lack of natural resources, led to the demise of the Cherokee Indians, two new studies suggest.
The date of the Cherokee society's collapse is often cited as 1785, when several tribes signed the Treaty of Hopewell and came under the jurisdiction of the new United States of America. Resource scarcity was the major factor in the dissolution, many historians have thought, based on an eyewitness narrative of sparse settlement patterns.
But the Cherokee of the Southeastern United States actually had plenty of land, crops and animals to go around, the new land-usage research indicates. The collapse was more likely instigated by a series of events that occurred over a period of a few decades, said University of Georgia anthropologist Ted Gragson.
[Follow link for remainder of story]
By Heather Whipps
A slow, lethal combination of external pressures including warfare, rather than a lack of natural resources, led to the demise of the Cherokee Indians, two new studies suggest.
The date of the Cherokee society's collapse is often cited as 1785, when several tribes signed the Treaty of Hopewell and came under the jurisdiction of the new United States of America. Resource scarcity was the major factor in the dissolution, many historians have thought, based on an eyewitness narrative of sparse settlement patterns.
But the Cherokee of the Southeastern United States actually had plenty of land, crops and animals to go around, the new land-usage research indicates. The collapse was more likely instigated by a series of events that occurred over a period of a few decades, said University of Georgia anthropologist Ted Gragson.
[Follow link for remainder of story]
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