# Polynesians traveled West from South America? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 26, 2026, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polynesians-traveled-west-from-south-america/1031192 "2026-06-26T03:02:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2026, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polynesians-traveled-west-from-south-america/1031192/1 "2026-06-26T03:02:48Z")
I just read this. > Sweet potato was taken from its American homeland by Polynesians who introduced it into many Pacifc islands and New Zealand about 1000 years ago. The only thing I previously read about Polynesians traveling from South America to the Islands was rejection of the Kon-Tiki hypothesis. What else is known? ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2026, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polynesians-traveled-west-from-south-america/1031192/2 "2026-06-26T03:13:52Z")
Where did you read it? A cite-less quote is neither persuasive nor informative. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2026, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polynesians-traveled-west-from-south-america/1031192/3 "2026-06-26T03:19:11Z")
I found a number of references to the _hypothesis_ on Wikipedia, including this, on the “[Sweet potato cultivation in Polynesia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweet_potato_cultivation_in_Polynesia)” page: > [@](#): > > It is unknown how sweet potato began to be cultivated in the Pacific. Some scholars suggest that the presence of sweet potato in Polynesia is evidence of [Polynesian contact with South America](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pre-Columbian_trans-oceanic_contact_theories#Polynesian,_Melanesian,_and_Austronesian_contact "Pre-Columbian trans-oceanic contact theories"). However, some genetic studies of traditional cultivars suggest that sweet potato was first dispersed to Polynesia before human settlement. There is also an entire article on Wikipedia about “[Pre-Columbian transoceanic contact theories](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pre-Columbian_transoceanic_contact_theories),” with a section on possible Polynesian contact. Lots of hypotheses and theories, including using the presence of the sweet potato as evidence, but no definitive evidence, IMO. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2026, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polynesians-traveled-west-from-south-america/1031192/4 "2026-06-26T03:56:14Z")
> [@Melbourne](#): > > The only thing I previously read about Polynesians traveling from South America to the Islands was rejection of the Kon-Tiki hypothesis. IIRC, his hypothesis was mainly that they _could_ have sailed from South America, which he did prove. > **[Kon-Tiki expedition](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kon-Tiki_expedition)** > > The Kon-Tiki expedition was a 1947 journey by raft across the Pacific Ocean from South America to the Polynesian islands, led by Norwegian explorer and ethnographer Thor Heyerdahl. The raft was named Kon-Tiki after the Inca god Viracocha, for whom "Kon-Tiki" was said to be an old name. Heyerdahl's book on the expedition was entitled The Kon-Tiki Expedition: By Raft Across the South Seas. A 1950 documentary film won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. A 2012 dramatized feature film wa... > His aim in mounting the _Kon-Tiki_ expedition was to show, by using only the materials and technologies available to those people at the time, that there were no technical reasons to prevent them from having done so. However, we now know the Polynesians came from the East. At least mostly- > **[Pre-Columbian transoceanic contact theories](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pre-Columbian_transoceanic_contact_theories)** > > Pre-Columbian transoceanic contact theories, many of which are speculative, propose that visits to the Americas, interactions with the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, or both, were made by people from elsewhere after the initial peopling of the Americas by migrants from Siberia across Beringia at least 15,000 years ago, but before Christopher Columbus's first voyage to the Caribbean in 1492. > Maritime explorations by Norse peoples from Scandinavia during the late 10th century led to the b... > Recent genetic studies have also suggested that some eastern [Polynesian](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polynesia "Polynesia") populations have [admixture](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genetic_admixture "Genetic admixture") from coastal western South American peoples, with an estimated date of contact around 1200 CE.[[5]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pre-Columbian_transoceanic_contact_theories#cite_note-:0-5) That doesnt mean the Polynesians couldnt have sailed on to South America or Easter island and nabbed some plants. However, certainly there is no evidence of repeated trading missions or anything like that. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2026, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polynesians-traveled-west-from-south-america/1031192/5 "2026-06-26T14:09:41Z")
Polynesians had the technology and skills necessary to travel to and from the Americas 1,000 years ago. I doubt native Americans had the maritime tech to even go one way. [https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2013/01/22/169980441/how-the-sweet-potato-crossed-the-pacific-before-columbus](https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2013/01/22/169980441/how-the-sweet-potato-crossed-the-pacific-before-columbus) ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2026, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polynesians-traveled-west-from-south-america/1031192/6 "2026-06-26T14:46:31Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > Polynesians had the technology and skills necessary to travel to and from the Americas 1,000 years ago. I doubt native Americans had the maritime tech to even go one way. Also, it’s a lot easier to go from Polynesia to the Americas than the reverse, from a navigation standpoint. Pick any point anywhere in the Pacific, and go anywhere generally vaguely eastward, and you’ll hit land eventually. The other direction, though, your targets are small islands. The Polynesians themselves knew how to find those islands (there are subtle clues in the waves that an island is nearby but below the horizon, and you can look for shore birds), but others might not. > [@DrDeth](#): > > > [@](#): > > > > Recent genetic studies have also suggested that some eastern [Polynesian](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polynesia "Polynesia") populations have [admixture](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genetic_admixture "Genetic admixture") from coastal western South American peoples, with an estimated date of contact around 1200 CE.[[5]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pre-Columbian_transoceanic_contact_theories#cite_note-:0-5) It’s interesting that the genetic admixture is from South America to Polynesia. Is there any in the other direction? It’s easier for the adventuring population to spread their genes: A seafarer (who was probably a man) travels to some far-away land, and gets a local woman pregnant before leaving. To get gene flow the other way, though, you have to either have seafaring women (who get pregnant in the distant land before coming back), or you have to transport back live people, which is logistically more difficult. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2026, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polynesians-traveled-west-from-south-america/1031192/7 "2026-06-26T16:13:27Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > It’s interesting that the genetic admixture is from South America to Polynesia. Is there any in the other direction? It’s easier for the adventuring population to spread their genes: A seafarer (who was probably a man) travels to some far-away land, and gets a local woman pregnant before leaving. To get gene flow the other way, though, you have to either have seafaring women (who get pregnant in the distant land before coming back), or you have to transport back live people, which is logistically more difficult. Maybe it’s because of the disparity in population sizes? A dozen pregnancies will have a much bigger impact on a small Polynesian island than ten times as many will have on the Andean civilization. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2026, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polynesians-traveled-west-from-south-america/1031192/8 "2026-06-26T18:45:08Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > . I doubt native Americans had the maritime tech to even go one way. KonTiki Proved the South Americans _could_ sail there. And some evidence does indicate they did get as far as Easter island. Mind you, the DNA evidence has shown that the native Polynesian people came from the East. Mostly, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![ThisOneGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c0e974/32.png) [@ThisOneGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThisOneGuy)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2026, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polynesians-traveled-west-from-south-america/1031192/9 "2026-06-26T19:04:06Z")
There is [DNA evidence](https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.0703993104) for precolumbian chicken introduction from Polynesia as well as the sweet potato going the other way. The ploynesians certainly had the seamanship needed for the voyage. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2026, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polynesians-traveled-west-from-south-america/1031192/10 "2026-06-26T20:24:27Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > KonTiki Proved the South Americans _could_ sail there. And some evidence does indicate they did get as far as Easter island. My money is on Polynesians returning from a visit to the continent leaving evidence on Easter Island. As for _Kon Tiki_, all that proves is modern people with knowledge of currents, tides, celestial navigation, and (most importantly) that there is actually someplace to sail to have the ability to use local materials to create a sea worth craft. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2026, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polynesians-traveled-west-from-south-america/1031192/11 "2026-06-26T22:11:18Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > > [@DrDeth](#): > > > > KonTiki Proved the South Americans _could_ sail there. And some evidence does indicate they did get as far as Easter island. > > My money is on Polynesians returning from a visit to the continent leaving evidence on Easter Island. Agree with this. The South Americans probably had the sailing technology and navigational knowledge to travel close to shore, while the Polynesians were prepared for multi-month voyages on the open ocean. The fact that the islands off the west coast of South America (such as the Galápagos) are not known to have been visited by humans until the Spanish suggests this. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2026, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polynesians-traveled-west-from-south-america/1031192/12 "2026-06-27T06:16:31Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > It’s easier for the adventuring population to spread their genes: A seafarer (who was probably a man) travels to some far-away land, and gets a local woman pregnant before leaving. Spreading their seamen. But yeah, that seems like common sense. ---
**Author:** ![md-2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9d8465/32.png) [@md-2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md-2000)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2026, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polynesians-traveled-west-from-south-america/1031192/13 "2026-06-27T16:22:11Z")
> [@snowthx](#): > > The fact that the islands off the west coast of South America (such as the Galápagos) are not known to have been visited by humans until the Spanish suggests this. Precisely. The coast of South America is not repleat with remote islands needing long voyages, and no history of wide-ranging seafaring, whereas Easter Island was colonized via the Pitcairn group that was later abandoned - two very long distance steps using Polynesian navigation techniques. Anothe consideration - much of the population of Easter Island was abducted to the (South American) mainland by slave traders. There would have been almost 200 years of opportunities to interbreed before any genetic testing happened. Oral history is probably not the most reliable source of data on people’s lineage or assurances of heritage - plenty of opportunities for parents to lie about paternity over the centuries, in addition to acknowledged mixing. Easter Island is small and some estimates put the maximum population at one time well over 10,000 by some guestimates (others say no more than 3,000 to 4,000). It would not be unusual I assume in Polynesian culture for some group to decide to sail further, perhaps even to South America, before deforestation made the larger ships impossible to build. Whereas Heyerdahl was using a log raft, not the ideal vessel for precise navigation. Most of the discussions I’ve read admit some voyages to South American and back may have been possible, but regular contact was highly unlikely and not documented. Meanwhile, current estimates give the Easter Islanders maybe 400 years at best between a decent foothold on the island (1200AD or so) and the severe deforestation around 1600AD - most likely from invasive rats eating the palm tree seeds. [https://www.americanscientist.org/article/rethinking-the-fall-of-easter-island](https://www.americanscientist.org/article/rethinking-the-fall-of-easter-island) Plus, not a lot of evidence the islanders had regular contact back to the rest of Polynesia, so any imports from South America likely would have gone no further. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2026, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polynesians-traveled-west-from-south-america/1031192/14 "2026-06-27T19:16:34Z")
> [@snowthx](#): > > The fact that the islands off the west coast of South America (such as the Galápagos) are not known to have been visited by humans until the Spanish suggests this. Except of course- Easter island. And the Chiloé Archipelago, and the Guaitecas Archipelago, and the Chonos Archipelago - and maybe the Galapagos. I think that leaves the Juan Fernández Islands as quite likely untouched (except for perhaps brief visits) until the post Columbus period. > [@md-2000](#): > > Precisely. The coast of South America is not repleat with remote islands needing long voyages, and no history of wide-ranging seafaring, You both missed the Chiloé Archipelago. > **[Chiloé Archipelago | History](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chilo%C3%A9_Archipelago#History)** > > The Chiloé Archipelago may have been populated as early as 12,000 to 11,800 BC, according to archaeological discoveries in Monte Verde, located less than 50 kilometres (31 miles) north of the main island. Chiloé's first ethnically identifiable inhabitants are believed to be the Chonos, a seafaring nomadic people. This has led to the assumption that Chonos were the people who left behind most of the abundant shell middens (chonchales) of the Chiloé Archipelago, yet this claim is unverified There a... > The Chiloé Archipelago may have been populated as early as 12,000 to 11,800 [BC](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Before_Christ "Before Christ"), according to archaeological discoveries in [Monte Verde](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monte_Verde "Monte Verde"),[[12]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chilo%C3%A9_Archipelago#cite_note-dillehay-12) located less than 50 kilometres (31 miles) north > of the main island. Chiloé’s first ethnically identifiable inhabitants are believed to be the [Chonos](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chono_people "Chono people"), a seafaring nomadic people.[[13]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chilo%C3%A9_Archipelago#cite_note-Daughters-13) This has led to the assumption that Chonos were the people who left behind most of the abundant [shell middens](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shell_midden "Shell midden") (chonchales) of the Chiloé Archipelago, yet this claim is unverified.[[14]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chilo%C3%A9_Archipelago#cite_note-TriRiv39-14) The Chono people came from South America, it appears. > **[Chono people](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chono_people)** > > The Chono, or Guaiteco were a nomadic Indigenous people or group of peoples of the archipelagos of Chiloé, Guaitecas and Chonos. > The Chono people lived as hunter-gatherers travelling by canoe. > Much of what is known from Spanish sources on Chonos is filtered by a Huilliche worldview, as Huilliches and Huilliche language was used to communicate with Chonos. > Together with other canoe-faring peoples of western Patagonia, the Chono people shared the physical features of being of low stature, being ... ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2026, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polynesians-traveled-west-from-south-america/1031192/15 "2026-06-27T19:30:42Z")
Umm, the Chiloé Archipelago is literally within sight of mainland South America, while Easter Island is ~2,200 miles west of it, which proves my point even more - the South Americans had sailing technology and knowhow to reach nearby islands, but for whatever reason did not develop things to a point where long, ocean-spanning voyages were possible or even desired, before the Spanish came along. Populating nearby islands is one thing, but sailing off to the horizon with no known landing spot is different. I’ll also note that the Falkland Islands off the east coast if SA is also not known to have been visited by humans pre-European contact. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2026, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polynesians-traveled-west-from-south-america/1031192/16 "2026-06-27T19:42:56Z")
> [@snowthx](#): > > Umm, the Chiloe archipelago is literally within sight of mainland South America, while Easter Island is ~2,200 miles west of it, which proves my point even more - the South Americans had sailing technology and knowhow to reach nearby islands, but for whatever reason did not develop things to a point where long, ocean-spanning voyages were possible or even desired, before the Spanish came along. True, but > [@snowthx](#): > > . The fact that the islands off the west coast of South America (such as the Galápagos) are not known to have been visited by humans until the Spanish suggests this. You didnt specify. And the Falklands are a maybe- > **[Falkland Islands | History](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falkland_Islands#History)** > > Although Fuegians from Patagonia may have visited the Falkland Islands in prehistoric times, the islands were uninhabited when Europeans first explored them. European claims of discovery date back to the 16th century, but no consensus exists on whether early explorers sighted the Falklands or other islands in the South Atlantic.\[C\] The first undisputed landing on the islands is attributed to English captain John Strong, who, en route to Peru and Chile's littoral in 1690, explo The Falklands remai... > Although [Fuegians](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuegians) from [Patagonia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patagonia "Patagonia") may have visited the Falkland Islands in prehistoric times,[[20]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falkland_Islands#cite_note-22)[[21]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falkland_Islands#cite_note-23) the islands were uninhabited when Europeans first explored them But also note- the Falklands, the Juan Fernández Islands and the Galapagos are quite inhospitable. And they- also with Easter- are all maybes for South American contact (except the Juan Fernández Islands ). It is not like South America had Hawaii off the coast. If you look at the Polynesians , they had a pretty lucky string of islands to find and populate. ---
**Author:** ![md-2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9d8465/32.png) [@md-2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md-2000)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2026, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polynesians-traveled-west-from-south-america/1031192/17 "2026-06-28T15:11:12Z")
The point is - there were not the stepping stone islands that encouraged greater sea-going cultures along the west coast of the Americas - the only exception I can think of is the massive canoes of the Pacific Northwest natives, which were more a result of the challenges of land travel along that coast than long distance travel out of sight of land. Whereas, the spread-out but not too far apart islands of the Carribean obviously encouraged sea travel. Easter Island is obviously a result of Polynesian expansion, then isolated when the Pitcairn group was abandoned. My guess would be, if they had sent out further exploration west, they would have found vast but already occupied lands, which would likely mean no attempt to colonize further. Whether they did so, and left behind genetic souvenirs, is obviously unprovable so far. If explorers had made it there and back, presumably stories of big inhabited land to the west would be part of their folklore. ---
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2026, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polynesians-traveled-west-from-south-america/1031192/18 "2026-06-28T22:45:54Z")
> [@md-2000](#): > > If explorers had made it there and back, presumably stories of big inhabited land to the west would be part of their folklore. But if they made it there and NOT back, they could have left the genetic legacy without the folklore stories. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2026, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polynesians-traveled-west-from-south-america/1031192/19 "2026-06-28T22:50:28Z")
> [@md-2000](#): > > If explorers had made it there and back, presumably stories of big inhabited land to the west would be part of their folklore. It took Europeans decades to establish the America’s were a “big inhabited land”. There would be little reason for a rare Polynesian visitor to South America to think their landfall wasn’t on just another island . ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2026, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polynesians-traveled-west-from-south-america/1031192/20 "2026-06-29T00:10:23Z")
> [@md-2000](#): > > Easter Island is obviously a result of Polynesian expansion, then isolated when the Pitcairn group was abandoned. My guess would be, if they had sent out further exploration west, they would have found vast but already occupied lands, which would likely mean no attempt to colonize further. Whether they did so, and left behind genetic souvenirs, is obviously unprovable so far. If explorers had made it there and back, presumably stories of big inhabited land to the west would be part of their folklore. Do you mean east? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polynesians-traveled-west-from-south-america/1031192.md?page=2)