Naia Reborn: See the Surprising Face of a First American |
Naia Reborn: See the Surprising Face of a First American
NBC News
2015-01-05
Alan Boyle, Digital’s Science Editor
Timothy Archibald / National Geographic
Researchers and artists have reconstructed the face of a teenage girl who lived 12,000 years ago in Mexico, and it’s not the kind of face a person might typically associate with Native Americans.
The remains of the girl, nicknamed Naia (after the Greek term for a water nymph), were recovered from an underwater cave on Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula. Naia is regarded as one of the earliest known residents of the Americas — but her skull has a shape associated with African or South Pacific populations rather than the typical Siberian look.
Despite that different look, researchers say Naia is genetically related to Native Americans who came to America later, from Siberia via the Beringia land bridge…
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Tags: Alan Boyle, National Geographic, NBC News