Haida, Tlingit and Polynesians in a text from 1894

Continuing with research on the link between Polynesians and natives from the Northwestern coast of North America, in this post I will share an article published in 1894 (The American Antiquarian, Vol XVI, No. 1, Jan. 1894, Origin of the Indians, p. 8, Cyrus Thomas), that mentions the similarities between both groups, Polynesians and Amerindians.

An 1894 Article

The article mentions other books as refrences (underlined by me in the text, and commented further down), which widens the bibliography on this subject.

"No one has failed to remark the strong resemblance in many respects of the arts customs etc. of the people of the west coast especially of the Haida Indians and cognate tribes with those of the South Pacific islanders particularly the Melanesians and Polynesians.
If we compare the arts customs and traditions of some of the west coast tribes with those of the South Sea Islanders we shall find such striking coincidences as to render the supposition that they are accidental highly improbable.
The comparison made by Ensign AP Niblack in his recent work 'The Coast Indians of Southern Alaska and Northern British Columbia', between the Maori of New Zealand and the Haida Indians of our northwest coast brings out a series of coincidences which to say the least is, remarkable. And what renders this comparison of special interest is the fact that it is not made to sustain a theory, as the author is not an advocate of the idea of relationship or even contact between these widely separated tribes. It is thus he brieflly summarizes them: "In point of physical resemblance both are of the Mongoloid type, and both live on groups of islands whose climates are remark ably similar... Their political organization of the tribe, their ownership of land, and their laws of blood revenge are similar. The men tattoo with designs intended to identity themselves with their subtribe or household and they ornament their canoes, paddles, house fronts, etc., in somewhat the same manner as on the northwest coast... Under the head of "Rain Cloaks", Dixon (1787) is quoted as saying that the cloaks of the Haida and Tlingit were the same as those worn by the New Zealanders... Also a statement [from the same authority] that a Haida fortified house on an island of the Queen Charlotte group was built exactly on the plan of the hipah of the savages of New Zealand... and that the adzes of the Tlingit and Haida made of jasper were the same as those used by the New Zealanders. The cloaks of shredded inner bark in the National Museum from New Zealand and the Queen Charlotte Islands are so much alike that it takes a close inspection to distinguish them. In plate XXXII Fig 167 a New Zealand paddle is reproduced with a few from the northwest coast. The resemblance is marked and interesting... But it is safe to say that while this is not accidental, yet the resemblances and similarities are as likely to have arisen from the like tendencies of the human mind under the same external conditions or environment to develop a long parallel line, as through contact of these tribes or through a common origin."

The bibliography quoted by Cyrus Thomas

This work quotes a book by Ensign Albert P. Niblack, of the U.S. Navy, his book published in 1890 "The Coast Indians of Southern Alaska and Northern British Columbia." Which in its Chapter XV (General Notes: Relations and affinities of the Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, and Kwakiutl —the Haida— Remarks on the Maori of New Zealand —the Kaigani- Ethnological work to be done.) starting on p.382, explores the similarities between Polynesians and NW Coast natives. The text quoted by Cyrus is found on p. 385. And the plate XXXII mentioned by Cyrus Thomas is shown below (adapted, only displaying the New Zealand and NW coast paddles).

Fig XXXII in A.P. Niblack, E (1890), p.292

Niblack also quotes Dixon; you can see the original text by Dixon in "Voyages" (1787), p.266: "Besides their ordinary dress, the natives at this place have a peculiar kind of cloaks made purposely to defend them from the inclemency of the weather. I had no opportunity of examining them minutely, but they appear to be made of reeds sewed very closely together, and I was told by one of our gentlemen who was with Captain Cook during his last Voyage, that they are exactly the same with those wore by the inhabitants of New Zealand."

The reference to the fortified houses built by the Haida, given by Dixon can be found on p. 206 "Captain Dixon no sooner saw the fortified hut just mentioned, then this suspicion was strengthened, as it was, he said, built exactly on the plan of the hippah of the savages at New Zealand."

Captain Cook, in February of 1777, visited a hippah, a fortified village with buildings made from reeds, on Motuara Island, New Zealand. It was unoccupied at that time. John Webber drew some sketches of the huts, and they were printed as engravings after Cook's death by B. T. Pouncy. Below is the engraving (Source).

To be continued. See my previous post on this subject.

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Patagonian Monsters - Cryptozoology, Myths & legends in Patagonia Copyright 2009-2026 by Austin Whittall © 

Alaska and Hawaii another trans-Pacific link

A reader posted a comment after reading about Inca Tupac Yupanqui's voyages in the Pacific, asking " I was wondering if you have noticed that by dropping a few letters from Haida Gwaii (Queen Charlotte Islands Canada) you get Hawaii. They also have similar artifacts and customs like we had here in Hawaii."

No, I was not aware of any similatrities between the Haida Gwaii and Hawaii. So I set out to learn more about them.

This custom Google map shows the spots and places mentioned in this post.

Searching for a link between Hawaii and the Nothwestern coast of North America I came across a blog post (Connections, by Peter T. Young, Nov. 19, 2023, in ) which discusses the peopling of Hawaii. It included the following text:

"Solomon Lehuanui Kalaniomaiheuila was the son of Peleioholani (uncle to the Kings Kamehameha IV and Kamehameha V) and Piikeakaluaonalani (mother.) For many, Peleioholani was considered an important Hawaiian antiquarian and the final word in Hawaiian genealogy, especially of the chiefs and royal families.
He wrote of the Hawaiian history. One of Peleioholani’s theories notes, “The ancestors of the Hawaiian race came not from the islands the South Pacific – for the immigrants from that direction were late arrivals there – but from the northern direction (welau lani,) that is, from the land of Kalonakikeke, now known as Alaska.”

The post also gave some additional information on the British Columbia natives, of Haida Gwaii "Peter Marsh makes several Canadian connections to Pacific Islands, noting, that archaeological and cultural evidence suggests that there is a strong connection between Coastal Canada and Polynesia. Haida Gwaii (Queen Charlotte Islands) is an archipelago off the coast of British Columbia, Canada."

It lists the similarities between both people, Polynesians and Haida Gwai'i:

• Tahitian and Haida stone pounders, stone bowls from Kauai and Bella Coola Valley
• The war clubs with an angry mouth on the handle of Maori and NW Britich Columbian Coastal natives.
• Tattoos: "Polynesian skit derived from Haida tattooing implements."
• Fish hooks, fish hook pendants, rock art, Tiki-like carvings, totem poles with figures whose toungues are sticking out, like the Maoris. Inlaid shell in figures
• Carvings with similar eyes and mouths in BC and the Marquesas Islands.
• Similar war canoes. Use of hot rocks to steam and shape canoes.
• Use of squash gourds to carry water instead of ceramic bottles.
• Nose rubbing to greet.
• Pit ovens heated with hot stones
• " The use of the glottal stop in speech is similar e.g.; Hawai‘i and Haida Gwai‘i."

I decided to find the sources of both the Alaskan and the Haida Gwai'i refrences.

The Alaskan link

A website called polynesianprehistory.com has the following text:

"The ancestors of the Hawaiian race came not from the islands the South Pacific – for the immigrants from that direction were late arrivals there. – but from the northern direction (welau lani), that is, from the land of Kalonakikeke, now known as Alaska.
The very first man and woman who came from Kalonakikeke to the continent of Ka-Houpo-o-Kane, they were Kalonakikeke (“Mr Alaska”) and his wife Hoomoe-a-pule (“Woman of my dreams”). They were said to both be high chiefs of Kanaka-Hikina (people of the east) and Kanaka-Komohana (people of the west) and were descended from the great great ancestor Huka-ohialaka.
They arrived at Ka Houpo-o-Kane before it was disrupted by a great flood that occurred during the reign of Kahiko-Luamea. This great flood carried away a floating log of wood named Konikonihia. On this log was a precious human cargo and it came to rest on the land of Kalonakikeke (Alaska).
‘Many generations later, Nuu, travelled from Alaska with his wife, Lilinoe, their three sons and their three wives in a canoe called Ka-Waa-Halau-Alii-O-Ka-Moku (the royal canoe of the continent), and it rested apon Mauna Kea (white mountain), on the island of Hawaii. They were the first Hawaiians.
From ‘The Ancient Hawaiian History of Hookumu Ka Lani & Hookumu Ka Honua’, by Solomon L.K. Peleioholani."

This is a direct reference to Solomon Peleiholani and his work. The book can be found online here. The text quoted above is found on page 35, and continues on page 36 with the floating log and deluge. The text was written using a typewriter, and is stamped by the Bishop Museum, uploaded on Jan. 14, 2004 and authored by Solomon Lehuanui Kalaniomaiheuila Peleioholani (1844-1916).

This text implies that the first Hawaiians (Menehune?) came from Alaska. The flood myth is universal, reflecting the submersion of the continental shelves during the period of deglaciation after the last Ice Age, when sea levels rose by over 120 m (400 ft.). Does it refer to the coastal plains by the NW coast of America? Sundaland or Sahul in SE Asia and Australia-New Guinea?

Tlingits, Haida, and Polynesians

The site polynesianprehistory.com has a second link between Polynesia and NW America. It says the following:

"The following Tlingit legend confirms that the female mitochondrial DNA found in Polynesian and Tlingit genes, came from across the Western Ocean (North Pacific). The possibility that the 7km/hr Kuroshio Current, a virtual ‘river of the Ocean', which flows from Taiwan to Alaska, played a part in this migration is extremely likely. There is an old story that says how some strange people came from the Western Ocean. Among them were two sisters. They landed on Dall Island in Southeastern Alaska. There the sisters met and married men whose people were coming down the rivers from interior North America. One sister-went with her family to Haida-gwaii or the Queen Charlotte Islands. Her children grew and multiplied into the Haida Nation. The other sister went with her family to Prince of Wales Island. She became the ancestress or Mother of the Tlingit Nation.
From ‘The Proud Chilkat', by Brendan and Lauri Larson."

The Tlingit people (also Tlinquit) are a Native American tribe that speaks a Na-Dené language. They live on the narrow southern strip of Alaska, known as the "Alaskan panhandle".

The Tlingit and Haida people have been living on the coast of NW America for at least 10,000 years. An article published in Science in 2017 clearly stated that " DNA of 10,300-year-old human remains from On Your Knees Cave in Alaska have found that he was closely related to three ancient skeletons found along the coast of British Columbia in Canada. These three ancient people were in turn closely related to the Tsimshian, Tlingit, Nisga'a, and Haida tribes living in the region today. The new finding reveals a direct line of descent to these tribes, and it shows—for the first time from ancient DNA—that at least two different groups of people were living in North America more than 10,000 years ago."

HLA-B*48

It does not mention Polynesian mtDNA in the Tlingits. However, I found a reference linking Tlingits and Polynesian genetics but it involves HLA: (Source). However, the original source of the quote is not given!

"One particular DNA haplotype - the human lymphocyte antigen (HLA)Bw48 is commonly found in Polynesian populations, but occurs only sporadically in Melanesia (Polynesian outliers). The only other known population with an appreciable frequency of HLA-Bw48 is that of the North American Indians or more specifically the Tlingit of Alaska.
"This DNA evidence is supported by cultural and archaeological evidence showing a definite link between Eastern Polynesia and the Tlingit, Kwakuitl and Haida of the islands off Alaska and Canada."

HLA-Bw48 is now known as HLA-B*48. Searching for the HLA B*48 allele (online, Allele Frequencies in World Populations) did not turn up any Tinglits!

HLA B*48 frequencies across the World. Source

It shows that this HLA variant is found in Amerindians, but it does not mention Tinglit people. It does not appear among Polynesians, though it is found in Asia (Armenia, India, Mongolia, Taiwan, and Russia). It does not provide anyd evidence to support the idea of admixture or a shared origin for Tinglit people and Polynesians, or any reference of common mtDNA, or unique HLA variant.

This is ongoing work, so I will follow it up in a future post.

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Patagonian Monsters - Cryptozoology, Myths & legends in Patagonia Copyright 2009-2026 by Austin Whittall ©