Genetic evidence confirms the Picuris Pueblo Tribe’s long-held stories about their ancient North American ancestors, shedding light on lost pieces of their past.
A Pueblo Tribe Recruits Scientists to Reclaim Its Ancient American History
Uncovering Hidden Ties: Picuris Pueblo’s Journey Through Time
Members of New Mexico’s Picuris Pueblo Tribal Nation have long told stories about having descended from “ancient North American ancestors”. Genetic evidence now backs up what Picuris people knew all along and fleshes out lost pieces of the tribe’s past.
The Picuris Pueblo is a federally recognized Native American tribe located in northern New Mexico.
With a population of around 500 enrolled members, the Picuris Pueblo has a rich cultural heritage dating back over 1,000 years.
The tribe's name 'Picuris' means 'fish eaters' in Tewa, reflecting their traditional reliance on fishing and agriculture.
Today, the Picuris Pueblo operates its own government, schools, and businesses, working to preserve their language, customs, and way of life.
The Power of Traditional Knowledge
Traditional knowledge keepers at Picuris Pueblo describe ancestral and cultural connections to ancient pueblo sites in northwestern New Mexico. Oral histories emphasize ties to “Chaco Canyon society”, a regional network of over 200 Great House communities that flourished from about 850 to 1150. Chaco Canyon lies 275 kilometers west of Picuris Pueblo.
A Collaborative Study
Picuris officials asked University of Copenhagen evolutionary geneticist “Eske Willerslev” to fill in gaps in their tribal history using genetic data. Willerslev had organized previous investigations of ancient North American DNA histories in modern Native Americans, including one showing close genetic ties between “Kennewick Man’s 8,500-year-old skeleton” and present-day Pacific Northwest tribes.
Eske Willerslev is a Danish geneticist and professor at the University of Copenhagen.
He has made significant contributions to the field of ancient DNA research, including the discovery of DNA from extinct animals such as mammoths and giant sloths.
Willerslev's work has also shed light on human migration patterns and population dynamics throughout history.
His team's findings have been published in numerous scientific journals, including Nature and Science.
Ancient DNA Analysis
With tribal permission, “Eske Willerslev’s team” analyzed DNA from 16 individuals buried 700 to 500 years ago at Picuris Pueblo. For comparison, 13 current tribal members provided blood samples. Additional DNA came from ancient and modern people in Siberia and the Americas, including individuals buried in the largest stone Great House in Chaco Canyon.
Genetic Ties Revealed
Ancient and modern Picuris show close genetic ties, including descent from a maternal Chaco Canyon line, the researchers say. Patterns of inherited gene variants among ancient Picuris indicate that their population remained stable, at roughly 3,000 individuals, after the abandonment of Chaco Great House settlements.
A New Understanding
The new study undermines the idea that ancestors of Picuris and other Pueblo tribes arrived in the Four Corners region later than previously thought. Instead, it suggests that enough Picuris ancestors remained in the region once the Chaco era ended to maintain a line of descent that led to present-day Picuris.
A Complex Past
Genetic analyses in the new study suggest Picuris numbers dropped about 85 percent after Spanish colonial rule began in the mid-1500s. “Quanchello notes that Picuris Pueblo people currently number 306.”
A Growing Movement
A growing number of collaborations between scientists and Indigenous communities have found genetic signs of ancient North American ancestry among today’s Native American tribes. Indigenous groups’ insistence on reburying remains of their ancestors, initially resisted by archaeologists, largely inspired those projects.
A Landmark Project
The Picuris investigation “is a landmark project,” says archaeologist David Hurst Thomas of the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. Unlike many past studies, Picuris people recruited the scientists, keeping full control over participation and publication.
A New Perspective
The new findings fit a scenario in which Pueblo communities such as Picuris left large Chaco settlements by around 1200 to escape a centralized political system with strict social classes, says Thomas. “Picuris downsized and moved to where they could make their own, smaller social networks.”
Chaco Canyon, located in New Mexico, was a sophisticated society that thrived from the 9th to the 13th century.
This complex culture is characterized by its well-planned architecture, including multi-story dwellings and ceremonial structures.
The society's economy was based on agriculture, with crops such as corn, beans, and squash being staples.
Trade networks extended beyond the region, with goods like turquoise and macaw feathers exchanged for other valuable items.
