Stela 5, Izapa, was found in about 1939 at the ruined city called Izapa in southern Mexico. Perhaps a better theory is that they used a route around the Antarctic, just as the Amerindian used a route around the Arctic. There are very few written records to tell u… The evolution of infectious disease Ciba Found Symp. They arose suddenly and with no apparent prior gradual development. It is difficult to precisely locate the Olmec civilization in time. Did they arrive from the lands of North Africa? Dominating this chamber are 46 chromosomes. Their civilization declined around 400 B.C. Oklahoma, the Olmecs are descendants of ancient Chinese. It’s generally known that the blues came from old African forms of music combined with the styles of country dance and revivalist hymns. And there is no doubt, that the Amerindians wholehearted acceptance and subsequent practice of human sacrifice, was the major contributor to their demise. In fact, there is a number of issues related to the Olmec civilization and one of these issues, is the Olmec true origin. It was the Aztec name for the people who once lived in this area, and extracted latex from rubber trees. There is also the similarity between Xia Human sacrifice in China, and Olmec human sacrifice in the Americas, as well as their fondness for jade work. The existence of the Olmec culture in Old Mexico has always posed a problem. They vanished without any hint to where they went and why. It means that black Africans sailed across the Atlantic Ocean long before Columbus. Who were the Africans who sailed to America before Columbus and introduced a calendar, writing, pyramid and tomb construction, mummification, as well as certain political systems and religious traditions to the native Americans? When evidence of the Olmec was first discovered (in 1863), scientists at first didn't know what to make of them. Olmec type sculptures have also been found in parts of the U.S., (the Washitaw Nation of Louisiana; www.hotep.org ), where another prehistoric Black nation (who still has members and land today) existed. In this regard, did the Olmecs do human sacrifice? The Olmec. White cops more likely to arrest, use force against people of color, study of Chicago police finds. New evidences of early human habitation are constantly being found, a few sites have produced dates of human habitation as early as 50,000 years ago and more. The Olmec civilization is believed to have been centred around the southern Gulf Coast of Mexico area (today the states of Veracruz and Tabasco) - further south east than the heart of the Aztec empire. Many of the stones are difficult to place in their original context as they were not necessarily found in the positions the Olmecs had originally put them. "Genetic evidence for two founding populations of the Americas". Why Did Ancient Egyptians Use Pillows Made Of Stone? Where did the Aztec come from? Scientists identified a type of chimpanzee in West Africa as the source of HIV infection in humans. Given the physical features of the Olmec head, Serrano was sure that it was the depiction of an African. Friar Diego de Landa (1524 – 1579), both the most important early destroyer and preserver of knowledge on the preconquest Maya of Yucatán wrote: “Some old men of Yucatan say that they heard from their ancestors that this country was peopled by a certain race who came from the EAST, who God delivered by opening for them twelve roads through the sea.”. According to ancient chronicles of that era, Afro-Olmecs Came from the Mende Regions of West Africa. The first one is … How Did These Beautiful Venetian Glass Beads Reach North America Long Before Columbus? Then again, could it be much simpler: keeping in mind that the Amerindian, like the other people of the Eurasian plains, were hunter-gathering nomads. According to Mexican anthropologists having difficulties to accept the Africans' presence and their importance in this part of the world, the so-called Olmec were not strangers from across the seas, but indigenous people, Mesoamericans, with face characteristics having a resemblance to Africans. Olmec clay toys, equipped with wheels, Anthropological Museum of the University of Veracruz, Jalapa, Mexico. 'The seven branches probably represent the seven major clans of the Olmec people. It’s unclear how they first evolved. This scenario would seem to explain the Aztec presence, the very high population density in Mesoamerica, and the lack of large scale building in North America - Mexico excluded. Their religion was Shamanism - the supposed ability to assume the powers of animals. As skilled engineers, the Olmec managed to transport huge blocks of basalt and other stone from quarries more than fifty miles away from their sculpted heads and other monuments. Ancient Secrets Of The Amazon Jungle – Dangerous Expeditions And Hidden Treasures – Part 1, Valhalla – The Hall Of The Fallen Where Viking Hero Warriors ‘Einherjar’ Dwell After Death, Rare 2,700-Year-Old Seal Of Biblical King Jeroboam II’s Servant Confirmed Authentic, 1,800-Year-Old Villa Of Famous Ancient Fisherman Phainos Unearthed In Turkey, Largest Figurine Workshop Yet Discovered In The Maya World, Kuthodaw Pagoda – ‘The World’s Largest Book’ Carved In 729 Marble Slabs, Gods’ Creation Of Five Different Human Races – Ages Of Man On The Earth And The End Of The World, The Curse Of Chief Chocorua Who Died On The Mountain That Bears His Name, Gordian Knot And How Alexander The Great Managed To Outmaneuver The Problem. The Olmecs engaged in mining, produced high levels of art, introduced hieroglyphic writing to Mesoamerica, the concept of Zero and positional numbers, and great public buildings. The Olmecs who probably inhabited modern day Mexico prospered between 1200-400 BCE. They thrived along Mexico’s Gulf coast, mainly in the present-day states of Veracruz and Tabasco, from about 1200 to 400 B.C., although there were pre-Olmec societies before that and post-Olmec (or Epi-Olmec) societies afterward. However, the Xia/Olmec practice of Human sacrifice, which even intruded unto another Olmec invention, The Rubber Ball Game, was not. A curiosity concerning population patterns in the Americas: By the time of the Europeans, the estimated population of the Americas was 100 million. They believe that the chimpanzee version of the immunodeficiency virus (called simian immunodeficiency virus or SIV) most likely was transmitted to humans and mutated into HIV when humans hunted these chimpanzees for meat and came into contact with their infected blood. For a more in-depth study of the Peopling of the Americas <>. should do. African American’s expressed their sufferings and hope through music that became known as the blues. When they arrived is not known, but a guess of 8,000-4000 B.C. and their major cities were reclaimed by the jungle. But, only 10 million in the vast expanse of Canada and the United States. … and lasted about 1,000 years, occupying a reasonably large amount of land. Scientists have long debated whether the Earth's water was here when the planet formed or whether it arrived later. The Olmec civilization flourished roughly between 1200 BC and 400 BC; an era commonly known as Central America’s Formative Period. If you're behind a web filter, please make sure that the domains *.kastatic.org and *.kasandbox.org are unblocked. Other evident signs of their presence are related to Puebla, Morelos, Guerrero, which means that they occupied the area from the Atlantic to the Pacific coast. The Olmec culture thrived along Mexico's Gulf coast from roughly 1200 to 400 B.C. At San Lorenzo, there have been found ten of them, four in La Venta, two in Tres Zapotes and one in La Cobata. From information gathered so-far at these sites has come the following chronology of mans presence in the Americas. Stirling and his archaeological expedition. They wrote in hieroglyphics, as did most of the cultures that followed them. Anzick iand members of several Native American tribes are preparing to rebury the baby’s remains where his parents had left him more than 12 millennia ago. Where Do Guinea Pigs Come From? The rich soil and the tropical climate of the region made it possible for the Olmecs to develop a highly structured society that was based on the production of maize , or corn. The Olmecs were the earliest known major Mesoamerican civilization. The generally accepted belief is that the culture arose from people in the area, although many believe they represent Mongoloid people, while others suggest the Olmec have originally come from Africa. Author A Cockburn. Europeans mistakenly assigned the name to ancient ruins that they found there, not realizing that those ruins pre-dated the Aztec and all other civilizations in the Americas. Ivan Van Sertima (1935-2009), a Guyanese-born associate professor of Africana Studies at Rutgers University in the United States and the foremost authority on the African presence in ancient America, proved that many Olmec cultural traits were of African origin: "A study of the Olmec civilization reveals elements that so closely parallel ritual traits and techniques in the Egypto-Nubian world of the same period that it is difficult to maintain [that] all these are due to mere coincidence.". The twelve roots of the tree extending into the water from the boat probably signifies the 'twelve roads through the sea.'. The Aztecs, who referred to themselves as the Mexica, extended throughout much of central Mexico. Could it be that there was originally a much larger population in the United States, and perhaps these people saw the cities and agricultural abundance of the south as candidates for looting and plundering.