Âsowanânihk: An Ancient Settlement That Rewrites North American History

They found a settlement in Saskatchewan that is eleven thousand years old and existed before contact with Europeans. It’s one of the oldest known Indigenous sites in North America. This is right up there with some of the world’s most well recognized ancient sites, such as the Great Pyramids of Egypt, Stonehenge in England, and Göbekli Tepe in Turkey. The settlement existed about six thousand years before the Great Pyramids of Egypt.Some believe that the first humans moved into the area after the glaciers melted about ten thousand years ago. It was assumed that indigenous peoples were made up of small nomadic tribes, but this site contradicts this claim. The site is near Prince Albert in Saskatchewan, and researchers believe it could prove Indigenous people lived in the region about one thousand years earlier than they thought.The site is called Âsowanânihk, which is a Cree word meaning a place to cross. And the site looks like a permanent settlement. There are huge and deep fire pits that suggest it was used for cooking for generations. There are wooden and earth structures that they believe were used to funnel an enormous extinct bison from the ice age weighing two thousand kilograms.Once the bison entered the enclosure, escape became difficult and hunters could kill them. They found a massive collection of these animal’s bones in one location. They found evidence of tool making. They found distinct alternating layers of charcoal in the soil suggesting that they were practicing intentional forest and fire management to manipulate vegetation and clear land.“This discovery challenges the outdated idea that early Indigenous peoples were solely nomadic.” The evidence of long term settlement and land stewardship suggests a deep rooted presence. Oral histories have long described the area as an important cultural and trade hub, and this discovery offers physical evidence supporting those accounts. This discovery is a powerful reminder that indigenous peoples were here, building, thriving, and shaping the land long before history books acknowledged them.Sadly, the site is threatened by logging and industrial activities, with Elder Willie Ermine and the Âsowanânihk Council expressing concerns about potential destruction and advocating for immediate protective measures. If you want to learn more about the indigenous way of life, join our free Substack community. The link is in the bio. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit quietcanines.substack.com/subscribe