Polynesian sacred icon statue of Polynesian on Raivavae Island, Polynesia Dmitry Malov/Alamy
A genetic study has shed light on the history of how the Polynesian islands in the central and south Pacific, which are separated by thousands of kilometers, were populated over the last thousand years.
Alexander Ioannidis, Stanford University in California, and his collaborators analysed DNA from 430 Polynesian-Americans to map their genetic ancestry.
Polynesia is a collection of approximately 1000 islands that cover one-third the globe. It includes New Zealand and Hawaii, Easter Island (Rapa Nui), Samoa, and Samoa. It includes New Zealand, Hawaii, Easter Island (Rapa Nui) and Samoa.
