Tenerife is probably the most well-known of the Canaries, but before its Spanish conquest, it was founded by Berbers from North Africa. But the islands themselves have a long and interesting human history that predates European settlers (and their Sun-seeking descendants) by centuries, according to a new DNA study. Long before the Spanish conquest, the slave trade, and the rise of sugar plantations, the first people settled on the island. Not only that, but four new lineages specific to the Canary Islands were discovered, some only seen before in Central North Africa, which has ramifications for the debate about how the first settlers arrived. Both of these together adds weight to the argument the Berbers sailed to the Canaries themselves, explorers in their own right.

Source: The North Africa Journal March 22, 2019 20:03 UTC