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Was
Elvis a Melungeon?
Elvis
was born far from the hills of southwestern Virginia
in Tupelo, Miss. But researcher Brent Kennedy, a
college administrator in Wise, theorizes that the
King, as well as Abraham Lincoln and Ava Gardner,
might trace their ancestors to the mysterious
Melungeons. These dark-skinned, blue-eyed people
were first documented in Virginia’s Blue Ridge in
the late 1700s. Over the years, various myths about
their origin arose. Some believed they were either
survivors from the Lost Colony of Roanoke or
Portuguese shipwrecks. Others suggested they were
descendents of one of the lost tribes of Israel or
of early Carthaginian or Phoenician seamen.
Kennedy’s
controversial 1994 book, The
Melungeons: The Resurrection of a Proud People, is credited with reviving
interest in this “little race.” He offered a
theory, still debated today, that the mixed-race
group can trace its lineage to Spanish and
Portuguese explorers in the 16th century
and perhaps their Turkish sailors and slaves. The
Mediterranean and Middle Eastern settlers later
intermarried with Native Americans and freed slaves.
Prior to Kennedy, sociologists and anthropologists
had referred to Melungeons as “tri-racial
isolates,” with Scotch-Irish, Native American and
African-American origins.
Kennedy, who is a native of Wise, became interested in
Melungeons when he was diagnosed with a rare disease
that was most common among African Americans, people
of Mediterranean descent and New England’s
Portuguese immigrants. He had always been told his
heritage was Scotch-Irish, despite physical evidence--swarthy family complexions--to the contrary.
Not
only is Melungeon racial heritage clouded in
mystery, but even the term has obscure roots. In the
17th century, the French encountered
Mediterranean-skinned people with straight black
hair, fine European features and high cheekbones in
the North Carolina hills. They called themselves “Portyghee.”
Thus, some scholars argue that “Melungeon” is a
variation of the French “mélange” for
“mixture” or “mixed-blood.” Others believe
the term derives from the Portuguese “melungo”
or “shipmate” or has Turkish or Arabic roots
meaning “cursed soul.”
What
is universally agreed is that the dark-skinned
Melungeons were discriminated against by their
Anglo-Saxon neighbors. Because they were thought to
have intermarried with blacks, they were declared
“free persons of color.” Melungeons were denied
such rights, as the right to vote; own their own
land; educate or send their children to school;
defend themselves in court; or intermarry with
anyone other than a Melungeon. The term itself
became an insult. As the Scotch-Irish immigrants
moved down the Shenandoah Valley, they pushed the
Melungeons farther and farther into the remote hills
and valleys of the Appalachians.
As
interest in Melungeons revives, however, more and
more individuals are finding hidden clues in family
trees. Estimates of those with Melungeon heritage
range from 5,000 to 75,000. At the first gathering
of people of Melungeon descent in Wise in 1997,
organizers expected 50 or so participants. Instead,
500 attended. They came to explore family stories of
“Portuguese” blood; why an ancestor changed his
surname from “Duck” to “John Adams;” or a
family that referred to itself as “Black Dutch.”
Four
years later, at the now-annual gathering, Kevin
Jones, a University of Virginia College at Wise
biologist, reported on a two-year study of Melungeon
DNA. Studying about 120 mictochondrial DNA samples
of Melungeon people, five percent had Native
American ancestry on the female side and five
percent had African and African-American ancestry on
the female side. The remaining 90 percent was
“Eurasian,” which can be traced to northern
Europe, the Middle East, India and the
Mediterranean. He concluded that Melungeons have
European, African and Native American ancestry, as
early scholars believed, but also genetic
commonalities with groups in Turkey and northern
India.
But, he cautioned, being a Melungeon is not defined by
genetics alone. A person might also believe they are
Melungeon because of oral tradition, genealogy or
family history. “Melungeons are a self-defining
population,” he explained.
Whether
Melungeons are a race or a culture may never be
resolved. But in Cesme, Turkey, sister city to Wise,
they are definitely remembered. Located on the
Aegean where ancient sailors roamed, the city has
renamed a nearby peak, “Melungeon Mountain.”
We think Elvis, Abe and Ava would be proud.
UP NEXT:
Mr. Peanut Comes
Home: Virginia Brands
--
January 17, 2005
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