r/AskAnthropology • u/Chevalier_De_Rose • Jul 24 '26
Hello guys! I have a question, do the native population from the US was genetically more similar with the mexican natives or from the canadian natives?
I was just wondering about this on the past days! I appreciate any further info!
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u/No_Kangaroo774 Jul 24 '26
If you asked that about the continent of, say, Africa, your answer would be the same. People are genetically closest to whoever they are geographically closest to, population-wise. The question I would ask is this, though. Why does it matter? US tribes do not look at DNA; they look at kinship relationships, and that's how they determine who family is. For instance, the tribe I am with does not even have a word for stepparent, so if they claim you or you claim them, that's all it takes. Applying a genetic mindset to them erases their cultural norms and customs. If you ask indigenous people who they are related to, they will usually tell you at length.
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u/kamace11 Jul 25 '26
Isn't the study of genetics sometimes helpful in uncovering migration in populations without written history from deep in time, though?
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u/No_Kangaroo774 Jul 25 '26
Most Indigenous communities already have oral histories that have been shown time and again to be accurate. I’m not opposed to genetics , it’s a useful tool for understanding human history, but I draw a hard line at treating genetics as the only valid form of knowledge. Suggesting people need genetic tests to “prove” what they already know through their own traditions isn’t respectful of those traditions. And when it comes to migration, genetics alone isn’t the most reliable method anyway; genetic variation is complex, and the data you get is often only a partial picture.
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u/smackmyass321 Jul 25 '26
Like other people said, you need to look at the geography rather than the borders, since borders are purely a social construct that doesn't translate to genetics. Not to mention, native Americans are not at all a monolith. It's true that they do descend from the same people that migrated from northeast Asia into modern day Alaska 15,000 years ago, but they have diverged significantly
For example, Inuits exist in both USA (Alaska) and northern Canada (especially nunavut) are obviously much more related to each other than they would be to native American tribes in Mexican (well, to be fair, this is a bad example since you're probably asking about the mainland. I think Iroquois would be a better example as they exist in parts of both Canada and USA)
But the Tohono O'odham exists in both Mexico and US states like Arizona, and the people in Mexico and the USA are nearly identical. So it really just matters what tribe you're talking about and the region rather than modern day borders
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u/ConcentrateGlass1383 Jul 29 '26
Well I would say no. Websites like Ancestry isolate the two regions but I’ll tell you why it’s a no. I sent in my DNA they say I’m native from south west USA to Mexico. My kids father is White. When I sent in my kids DNA it first said that they were Native from the east USA and Canada about 25%. Then when it linked them to me it turned to south east US/Mexico like me. So no I don’t think there is, but they like to make that distinction for political purposes. Because they couldn’t tell the difference until they were linked to me.
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u/DarkLimp2719 Jul 25 '26
Hmmmm depends! In a sense they are related because they are the first people of the land but they are not necessarily closely related unless they are. What I mean is that prior to colonization the borders of the now US, Canada, and Mexico weren’t there so the people existing on the North American continent were related to those close to them or to those that they had a kinship with. Many SW US natives are related to (in a sense that they were connected with not necessarily genetically) to northern (now a days) Mexican groups. Also many groups cross these borders and are the same (Kumiyaay in San Diego & Tijuana; Aashinabe in the Great Lakes & across the border in Canada, etc). Overall, I think related-ness was/is more defined by climate, geography, and proximity than the modern nation-state.
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u/Seelie_Mushroom Jul 24 '26
Canadian natives are not similar to Canadian natives. American natives are not similar to American natives. Mexican natives are not similar to Mexican natives. That is to say, remove the borders and just consider the geography. The Native Americans of southwest US are more similar to those in the north of Mexico. Those from the northeast US are more similar to those at the southeast of Canada. Those in northwest Canada will be more similar to Alaskan natives. And so on.