Aboriginals of New Guinea and Small Islands

The study of human migration examines far more than the steps and routes early peoples have taken in various journeys around the world from their lands of origin. This larger discipline of the Human Migration Programor project traces migration through such factors as blood types followed through male ancestors and alternatively, through female ancestors; along with specific markers manifested in religious beliefs, practices and hierarchies; social customs, kinship patterns, oral histories, foundation myths, children's stories, the type and nature of societal taboos, art forms and designs/colors, fighting styles and etiquette, languages and linguistics, trading behaviors, shipbuilding techniques, tools, clothing and headgear, group governmental structures and levels, land holdings, musical instruments and vocal techniques, cooking and recipes, food crops, the use or non-use of hallucinogens, transportation methods, hunting patterns and techniques, agricultural methods, and several more.

In addition to the long list of factors presented above, combined with unique factors used by various other disciplines of social and anthropological study, there are also the chronicled historiesof groups of (Aboriginal) people living together. These histories may take the form of rock paintings, cave paintings, wall murals on inner walls of the pyramids of Egypt, picture stories woven into fabrics and basketry with fibers, quills and beads; knots tied into length of fibers, tattoo and scarification patterns, written words, maps, diagrams, and drawings of constellations.

Atop all this are popular beliefs of non-Aboriginal peoples about global Indigenous Peoples, whether these notions are correct or incorrect. Popular notions are often mutated a bit with each iteration on the Internet, to a final result of being completely erroneous. Others are not completely not up-to-date with current facts. This all makes for a complex issue in terms of accurately tracking peopels and migration patterns.

All of the dozens of above combined factors hold the capacity to lead human beings into making connections between peoples that are not factual. One of the major sources of error in research is connecting and relating things that are not related.

CAVEAT

It is a possibility that human beings appeared in different parts of the world independently, without migration. However, if this should prove true, then it would be an upset to some major religions and their creation beliefs. My own view is that the Bible speaks in the Book of Genesis of Adam's sons marrying another people, in the land of Nod -- if Adam's family were the only humans, then who were the people of Nod? There are also questions about whether a certain people of Basque in Spain and another in one area of New Zealand are related to the rest of mankind. There could be different humanoid species existing on Earth at the same time, if we do not want to consider the supernatural possibilities of spirit beings or even extraterrestrials. Whatever the truth reveals itself to be, it will be fascinating.

Despite evidence from different sources that state otherwise, the following seems the most widely held theory of Human Migration. It differs somewhat from theories and routes put forth by Australia's Monash University, including Joseph Birdsell's workand from some Indigenous oral traditions and likely from some material taught previously in schools.

One hopes that as new correct information is uncovered by the Human Migration Program, that this data will be quickly added.

The Path of Human Migration from Africa to Oceana

The Human Migration Program shows that human beings originated in Africa and moved steadily from West to East and to the North. Per data in this project, Africans migrated from Africa between 90,000 - 40,000 years ago according to this scheme:

• From approximately Egypt or Central Africa or both simultaneously or at different times, up through Arab countries through India, then along a southeastern route to Southeast Asia, then
• To the west edge of Oceana, where they
• Split into two related groups, one going North (N) and one South (S), then
• N proceeded north across the top of Australia and up a landbridge to Papua New Guinea, Irian Java, and by boat to the Philippines, while at the same time
• S proceeded south across Australia, and later
• A mix of people descended from Nmixed with others in Papua New Guinea, Irian Java and perhaps even the Philippines and proceeded to French Polynesia and New Zealand. These people were already related to the Aboriginals in Australia. Added to this, additional Southeast Asians migrated to Samoa, then to Tahiti and then to New Zealand, adding additional diversity.

These findings based on DNA evidence dispute the histories reporting that the man Kupe arrived in what is now New Zealand before anyione else, from Hawaki in 950 AD, followed much later by many Polynesians in 1350 AD to New Zealand and parts of New Guinea. If the DNA evidence is correct, then the stories of Kupe and the Polynesians are myths.

Before the Human Migration Program, evidence came to light that only the New Zealander Aboriginal women (descended from Africa and Southeast Asia) possessed DNA found in the other islands, and also that Melanesian men possessed DNA found in the same islands. Some NZ peoples and Islanders east/northeast of NZ were therefore already a mix of these women and the Melanesian men; that is, a mixutre of African, Southeast Asian, and Melanesian.

There is also speculation and some evidence [Smithsonian Insitution] that peoples from Oceana and migrated further on by boat, raft, canoe, or other sailing vessel to all along the coastline of California and went east and south, explaining some of the differences found between Native Americans and Native Central/South Americans in the 21sr century.

RESEARCH PARTNERS

Corporate and agency partners in the Human Migration Program are

• National Geographic,
• The Smithsonian Institution, and
• IBM.

The Smithsonian Institution is accepting information provided by any Indigenous Peoples themselves that would like to share it, from around the entire world. The Smithsonian's aim is to build as full and correct a migration model as possible, including the information and oral histories of all Indigenous Peoples willing to supply then.

A Haplogroup is a specific related group of haplotypes, which are related genes (with some possible minor variation), all located at the same spot on a specific chromosome in descendants from a common ancestor. Peoples that share a Haplogroup are related genetically.

Both M and B Haplogroups represent the first peoples to migrate out of Africa, according to the Human Migration Program. Both groups are traced through the female line (mitrochondrial DNA or mDNA)

Haplogroup M (mitochondrial DNA) is found in substantial numbers of Aboriginals [especially Australia, Papua New Guinea, Irian Java, the Philippines, New Zealand,a nd french Polynesia] and Native American Nations/Canadian First Nations. M is also found in Central Asia, where it is possessed by 10-15% of people, this population being related to Aboriginals and Native American Nations/Canadian First Nations. This creates a relationship between Central Asia and Aboriginals.

Haplogroup B (mitochondrial DNA) is also found in Aboriginals as well as in Indigenous Peoples from Canada all the way down to the tip of South America. Haplogroup B is found in all "American Indians" throughout the Western Hemisphere, but most strongly among those in North America. Haplogroup B is found in 17% of Southeast Asians and 20% of Chinese, and to a somewhat lesser extent, in the Japanese and even among Siberians (also related to Native Americans and First Nations).

In addition to Australia and New Zealand, Oceana is a continent that contains at least 37 other countries. This continent encompasses many of the islands in and around Australia and in the South Pacific. Although the name Oceana is no longer widely used as a continent's name, it is sometimes still seen.

Additional countries in Oceana:

American Samoa

Ashmore and Cartier Islands

Baker and Howland Islands

Christmas Island

Cocos Islands

Cook Islands

Coral Sea Islands

Federated States of Micronesia

Fiji and Tonga

French Polynesia

Guam

Heard and McDonald Islands

Jarvis Island

Johnston Atoll

Kingman Reef

Kiribati

Marshall Islands

Midway Islands

Nauru

New Caledonia

Given the interrelatedness of the Indigenous Peoples of Oceana and portions of Indonesia, the various groups likley developed languages, customs, beliefs, and practices that may be similar in soem aspects. They are just as likely to contain elements influenced by other nations with whom they intermarried. These nations would include those of Southeast Asia, Melanesia, and others.