Hello and welcome to a history of the United States.

Episode 61, Native Americans 1.

Mother.

Now, there are many possible places where I could begin the history of the Native American peoples,

but I think that the most comprehensive place to do so would be Africa in about 70,000 BC.

You will know by now that I'm all about thorough introductions, and this might seem excessive, even

for me, but trust me, there is a method to my madness.

My history of the United States is a long project, and season one was just the prologue. In many ways, this is the real beginning.

Before I talk about any of this, it's worth saying a word about the study of prehistory.

It is one of the most exciting academic fields out there, and it is constantly changing. But this makes writing

histories of it quite difficult, because new evidence makes old theories obsolete. So, while I'm

using very recent publications, it's almost certain that new studies will be published between the time I have

written this episode and the time that you actually listen to it. And that assumes you listen to it

immediately upon its release, never mind people listening to it as part of a future bank catalogue.

So, I'm not saying that I'm writing nonsense, but likewise,

don't take every statistic as gospel. Instead, consider this as an introduction to some of the

popular theories of the period in the early to mid-20s. Okay, now that we have that covered,

why do I want to begin a history of Native Americans in Africa in 70,000 BC?

Well, in 70,000 BC, something quite remarkable happened on the Horn of Africa.

A small tribe of Homo sapiens crossed over out of Africa into Arabia.

In this tribe was a woman whose name we don't know, but we have labelled her Eve. In every generation,

some families and some maternal lines die out. Over time, almost all maternal lines die out.

...