Brigham Young University BYU ScholarsArchive Theses and Dissertations 1952 Evidences of Culture Contacts Between Polynesia and the Americas in Precolumbian Times John L. Sorenson Sr. Brigham Young University - Provo Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd Part of the Anthropology Commons, and the Mormon Studies Commons BYU ScholarsArchive Citation Sorenson, John L. Sr., "Evidences of Culture Contacts Between Polynesia and the Americas in Precolumbian Times" (1952). Theses and Dissertations. 5131. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/5131 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by BYU ScholarsArchive. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of BYU ScholarsArchive. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. e13 ci j rc171 EVIDENCES OPOFCULTURE CONTACTS BETWEEN POLIIESIAPOLYNESIA AND tiletlleTIIETHE AMERICAS IN preccluivibianPREC olto4bian TIMES A thesthesisis presented tobo the department of archaeology brbrighamighambigham Yyoungoung universityunivervens 1 ty provo utah in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree master of arts n v rb hajbaj&aj by john leon sorenson july 1921952 ACmtodledgiventsackiiowledgments thanks are proffered to dr M wells jakenjakemjakemanan and dr sidney B sperry for helpful corencoxencommentsts and suggestions which aided research for this thesis to the authors wife kathryn richards sorenson goes gratitude for patient forbearance constant encouragement and secretarial help for help in providing books or other material aid recognition is given to mr ross T christensen mrs hattie knight of the brigham young university library staff mr glen horspool and mrmroamro cecil reinsch others unnariedunvariedunnamedunnaried have been of assistance by showing their extextremenenierentenemie interest in this fascinating subject thus pro- viding needed encouragement iii ONTENTSCONTENTSC chapter page I1 introductionINTR ODUC TlonION 1 the problem of diffusion 1 the development of thought on the problem 3 criteria for establishing culture contact 8 the scope and arrangement of the thesis 12 LANGUAGE AND II11 EMICATIONcommunicationCO 0 0 0 0 18 vocabulary 0 19 a 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 18 stylistics 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 & 9 0 0 ft 37 writing 37 the quipu 39 other communication systems 10401.0loio illIII111 FOOD acquisition AND USE 1242 agricultural tools i2ia 2 methods of cultivation 42 attitudes and beliefs on agriculture 45 flora 0 0 0 5.5 0 10 a 0 0 46 faunaFauna 0 0 0 0 0 2 fishing 0 0 533 fish poisoning 0 0 0 55 food preparation 566 cooking 577 8 vessels 0 58 storage 0 0 16 0 0 0 0 61 kava 0 0 61 IV CLOTHING AND ADORNMENTADORNIVENT 63 clothing 0 & 0 63 headdresses 6461 ornaments 66 accessories 67 body painting 68 mutilation 0 9 49 68 V exploitive activities aindANDAITD manufacturing 71 textiles 0 0 a 0 6 0 9 0 71 stone industry 747 metals 77 implements 9 0 it 6 0 78 iv chapter page VI HOUSING AND construction 79 domestic and civil 79 religious 80 military 86 VII RELIGIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES 89 general nature of polynesian religions 89 Ggods0 ds 0 0 0 Is ID 0 0 0 0 1 10 90 guardian spirit 0 0 0 0 0 94 idols 0 0 40 0 94 religious beliefs about nature 949 eschatology 0 0 0 98 cosmology 16 0 100 mortuary practices 10 101 ritual a a 0 ioslos10510 sacrifice 10510 cannibalism 107 fingersacrificefinger saarifsacrifsacrificeice 108 circumcision 108 rain sacrifice 108 turning the mat 109 childhood and puberty ceremonies 110 avoidance and taboo & 0 112 confession 0 0 113 divination and astrology 1lih114 firefineFlreireirewalkingfirewalkingwaikingwalking 0 0 0 10 0 1ilg1161 priesthood 0 0 0 0 116i VIII leisuretimeLEISURE TIME AND intellectual activities 118 ganesgames and sports 0 118 gamblingGanbling 0 9 10 121 decorative art 121 representative art 123 music 0 0 126 dance and dranadrama a 128 numbers 0 0 9 0 0 0 & 0 0 0 130 ordering of time 131 education 0 0 133 IXEC TRAVEL AND transportation W13 51 water craft 13513 litters 0 0 138 carrying pole 0 Is ad4d 139 roadways 139 v chapter page HUMAN 10 X BIOLOGYBICLOGY0 5 9 0 ihilipilg141 somatologySomafsomafcologycology 0 0 0 0 0 0 S 0 0 ihiiki141 genetics 0 0 0 0 0 10 1433433.43 XI conclusions 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 14514 bibliography 0 0 10 0 if 9 9 0 0 0 & f 0 0 0 14154 vi0 CHAPTER I1 introduction the problem of diffusion of the great unsettled prob- lems of archaeology and anthropology perhaps the most hotly debated has been the relative iniimiinqportanceimportance of migration didiffu-afuffu sion and independent invention in the origin of culture ele- ments the question has obvious importance both for a proper understanding of man and culture that ambitiously comprehen- sive goal of modern anthropology and for historical recon- structionstruction the latter a necessary preliminary of the former the concern of this thesis is with culture movement in the eastern pacific ocean area the pacific area as a whole has ionglongbeen the geographical center of tthee diffusion problem if we may so territernternitennterm it over the years advocates of the old world origin of the ancientanc lent high cultures of the hewmew world by migration or diffusion have advanced a large number of simila- rities common to asia or oceania on the one hand and the americas on the other as evidence in support of their views so far there has been no comprehensive recapitulation of the evidence As a result independent inventionistinventinventionisfclonistionistcriticism has limited itself to a correspondingly unconvincing level As a matter of fact it is not unwarranted to claim that the problem is still virtually unexplored on a systematic basis it is the purpose of this work to begin such a systematic approach 1 2 by setting forth a large body of the evidence for culture con- tacts across the pacific for critical evaluation by students of culture the magnitude of the cultural comparisons in- volved in such a project obviously requires that only certain portions of the general fleidfield be examined in this thesis restriction of the geographical area to the eastern pacific polynesia developed in part because of the writwriterserts personal acquaintance with that region as a result of resi- dence of two and onethirdone third years in the cook islands and new zealand as a missionary of the church of jesus christ of latterlatterdayday saints 19471947194919471919 1949igligi9 an additional1 consideration was that previous diffusionist comparative work had emph-entphadentpha asized melanesia to the westwesty seemingly leaving a broad cul- tural gap between that region and the americas if culture traits had actually moved into or out of the pacific in this area geographicallybograeograchicphic allyailyproximate polvnesiapolynesia should show evidence of it A third reason for choosing polynesia was that its relatively homogeneous people physicallyghysphysicallaically and culturally pos- sessessedsed a culture consconsiderablyiderlderiderablyably higher than might be expected in view of the geographic isolation of these islands kroeber and others have commented on the air about polynesian culture of its having been derived by a dwindling process from som- ething higher and this in direct contrast to most oceanic cul i tures which show little evidence of having seen better days IA L kroeber anthropology rev ed new yorkyork194819u1948 8 appp 7676061760061ogi0.6161 K P emory the native peoples of the pacificpacipaclficfle geographyge ography of the pacific ed by 0 W freeman new york igi1911951 pop 1 55565656.56 E tregear the maori race wanganuiWang anui 190491904.919041904. ppeappp i2715272715.27154550 3 this rather elaborate content of the culture plus the now abundant though not of course exhaustive source material linguistic traditional ethnological and archaeological held out the hope that a search for correspondences to ameri- can traits would at least have a satisfactory range of mat- erials to examine other reasons could be cited for this choice such as for example the problem of polynesian cul- ture history itself for americanist studies the significance of the prob- lem is obvious the failure of americananerameramen I1can archaeolarchaanchaarchaeologyeolagyogy to indffind any direct evidence of the development of high precolumbianprecolumbian culture from the early hunters cerro prieto notwithstanding has been a thorn in the scholarly side which is being made no more bearable by an increasing ambernmbernumber of elbow jabs to the academic ribs by such f heretics as ladwingladwinG As a result the time seems ripe for a new attack on the problem of diffusion and migration in relation to ancient american origioriginsns this study alone cannot of course solve the problem however the lines it takes may suggest other studies which taken to- gether may give us a clearer answer to the diffusion problem in the americanist field the development of thought on the problem As early as samuel Mitchemitchellmitche1212 there was supposition that at least some 2sasS L mitchell the original inhabitants of america consisted of the same races with the malays of australasiaaustralasialaustralasianAustraustnAustral alasiaasial and the tartars of the north t ArchaearchaeolarchaeologiaarchaeologicArchaeolologiaa americana trans- actions and collections of the american antiquarian society I1 1820 321ff321ffe 4 of the american indians were of oceanic derivation in gen- though was 1 a eral little serious study givenc1ca oceania as cul- turaloraluralturaltoralturaitupal or populational source