Product Description
How, where, when, and why did human beings take the first steps in their journey to populate North America? First published in 1987, The Great Journey tells the story of Brian Fagan's search for the first Americans - one of archaeology's great controversies. An enhanced edition of this dramatic narrative and real-life mystery follows the trail of evidence from the Old World to the New, beginning with an update on the debates and discoveries that have taken place since the late 1980s. Fagan presents the latest archacological findings on both sides of the Bering Strait, new genetic and linguistic research that amplifies earlier theories, and he assesses the importance of global warming to first settlement. The saga of how Asians came across the Bering Sea land bridge begins with the emergence of modern humans in tropical Africa some 150,000 years ago. Fagan describes the great Homo sapiens diaspora, which included the settlement of America, during the late Ice Age. He evaluates the various routes that brought Stone Age hunter-gatherers from Siberia into North America and beyond.

CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 5.0 based on 4 reviews)

Excellent Book on the Origin of the American Indians

Brian Fagan first published this book in 1987 and an undated version was published in 2004. You want the updated version as it summarizes new developments and changes in thought in an introductory chapter.

What has not changed is the eternal dispute about when man first arrived in the New World. The conservatives, among whom one could probably include Fagan, say less that 15,000 years ago. The dissenters say 20,000 to 50,000 years ago. In a book for the general reader Fagan undertakes a careful summary of the evidence. He looks at the spread of Homo sapiens from their place of origin in Africa to the rest of the world. He examines the archaelogical evidence for man in Siberia -- the jumping off place for the New World -- and in Beringia, the now vanished land that linked Siberia and Alaska during the last Ice Age. He evaluates migration scenarios for paleo-Indians from Beringia south to the Americas and the archaelogical evidence from a multitude of ancient sites. Along the way, he illustrates the relevance of things such shovel-shaped incisors and linguistic theories. A thoroughly fascinating presentation!

The author has no ideological axe to grind but the weight of the evidence he presents supports the conservative view of a Paleo-Indian arrival in the New World about 15,000 years ago and a rapid dispersal reaching as far south as Chile by 13,000 years ago. But the evidence is thin and dissenters will find theories more to their liking also evaluated by the author. My opinion hardly matters, but I stand among the conservatives, However, I have a nagging doubt. How did those people get to Chile so fast? Is the famous Monte Verde site there mis-dated? Does hope still exist for for those who believe paleo-Indians arrived in the Americas 20,000 years ago?

Unlike many archaeologists, the author doesn't get lost in fascination with pottery shards or chopper blades, but keeps his eye on the goal of presenting a comprehensible, reasonable, scientific, and interesting tale of how the Americas may have become populated.

Smallchief
July 02, 2006

Tracing the one-way track

Updating an older book on a broad and varied topic is a risky enterprise. If much work has been done in the ensuing years, a complete rewrite is usually in order. Too few results can fail to justify the reprise. Fagan's original effort on the peopling of the Western Hemisphere was an excellent survey. This edition is essentially that first account, with an explanatory chapter inserted at the beginning of the book. That technique has the advantage of warning the reader what to look for while going through the text. And while much new information has come into view, Fagan reminds us that the underlying questions about where "Native Americans" originated, and when, remain unanswered.

The human diaspora begins in Africa, some five million years ago according to Fagan - [recent finds emerged too late to appear here]. Unique among migratory species, Homo sapiens sapiens moved in but one direction. From our origins on the savannah, the author traces our path into north-eastern Asia. When conditions permitted, glacial ice having trapped enough water to reduce sea levels some 300 metres, these ancient Asians moved onto a lost continent now named "Berengia". This link between Asia and North America must retain evidence of human occupation, but retrieval from the sea bottom is difficult. Fagan describes the intense research into climatology, palynology and other fields to explain how the data has been accumulated over many years.

Hidden evidence provides opportunities for speculation and controversy and the studies of ancient Americans is rife with both. Fagan describes what research has revealed and reviews the suppositions drawn from the scattered and inconclusive evidence. Fagan examines the various theories of when humans entered the Americas and what dispersal paths they followed. He lists the dig sites with the opinions derived from the evidence, weighing the contending arguments with care and a considered detachment. Where dating is flawed or suspect, he resists ill-considered judgment, calling for further investigation. A few anomalous sites, such as Monte Verde in Chile and Meadowcroft in Pennsylvania receive extra attention. He's quick to praise diligent methods while readily disparaging hasty proclamations. The Pedra Furada site in Brazil, once extolled as "challenging ideas on the First Americas", is given a lengthy description, but is dismissed as poorly investigated and reported. As Fagan notes, tracing the movements of humanity in ancient times is a detective's work, with clues assessed only with extreme care.

Some points of contention the author passes over with summary evaluation. After his presentation of Paul Martin's thesis that the disappearance of large mammals was due to human predation, Fagan dismisses it. Climate shift, he states, changed the nature of plant life leaving these prey species bereft of fodder. Yet Tim Flannery, in two books published since the original edition of Great Journey, demonstrates that browsing and grazing species would have adapted to climate change. The timing of human occupation and megafauna extinction is too proximate to be ignored. The prime example of Maori hunting of moa species in New Zealand is symptomatic and well documented. Martin may have been wrong in details, but his basic thesis has withstood criticism.

These flaws don't negate the exceptional worth of Fagan's achievement in this study. It's a powerful and informative narrative of Western Hemispheric archaeology, its practitioners and their results. Starting with early views of the first European invaders, he explains how improved scholarship, better technology and disciplined approaches have clarified the picture of Native American life. Fagan provides photographs and maps for additional support of the text. This remains a valuable book, easily read and understood. It has not been replaced and will keep its well-earned reputation. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]
March 29, 2005

EXCELLENT - WELL DONE

I enjoyed this very readable book. I first read it in 1988 and after doing so, actually went out and bought the thing. The author has some very nice theories as to the peopling of North America and is quite well able to back them up. The book is easy reading and logical. While not all may agree with the author's explanations, they do give food for thought. Recommend you add this one to your collection.
September 30, 2004

Excellent readable book on the first "Americans"

I first came across this book in 1990. I have read this book 4 times since then. The book is very easy to read and comprehend.

The saga of how Asians came across the land bridge following the mega fauna is very interesting. Based on speech and dental patterns, the history of at least two waves of people moving into North America and southward is unfolded.

Fagan explains how the evidence of the nomadic cultures was discovered and how this evidence shows how these people survived. From this discovery of Clovis points to group kills of now extinct species, Fagan tells a fasinating story of how the native Americans arrived here.

The extinction of the mega fauna, the land bridge, and ice age's impact on the peopling of North America are interwined into a good reading book.

I wish all anthropolgy books could read so smoothly!
November 04, 1998

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Bones, Boats, and Bison: Archeology and the First Colonization of Western North America
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Lost World: Rewriting Prehistory---How New Science Is Tracing America's Ice Age Mariners
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After the Ice: A Global Human History 20,000-5000 BC
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