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The Lamanites () are one of the four ancient peoples (along with the Jaredites, the Mulekites, and the
Nephites According to the Book of Mormon, the Nephites () are one of four groups (along with the Lamanites, Jaredites, and Mulekites) to have settled in the ancient Americas. The term is used throughout the Book of Mormon to describe the religious, po ...
) described as having settled in the ancient Americas in the
Book of Mormon The Book of Mormon is a religious text of the Latter Day Saint movement, which, according to Latter Day Saint theology, contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the American continent from 600 BC to AD 421 and during an interlude ...
, a sacred text of the
Latter Day Saint movement The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded by Jo ...
. The Lamanites also play a role in the prophecies and revelations of the Doctrine and Covenants, another sacred text in the Latter Day Saint movement. In the Book of Mormon’s narrative, the Lamanites began as wicked rivals to the more righteous Nephites, but when the Nephite civilization became decadent, it lost divine favor and was destroyed by the Lamanites. Latter Day Saints have historically associated Lamanites with present-day Native American cultures.


Book of Mormon narrative

According to the Book of Mormon, the family of
Lehi Lehi (; he, לח"י – לוחמי חרות ישראל ''Lohamei Herut Israel – Lehi'', "Fighters for the Freedom of Israel – Lehi"), often known pejoratively as the Stern Gang,"This group was known to its friends as LEHI and to its enemie ...
, described as a wealthy
Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
prophet In religion, a prophet or prophetess is an individual who is regarded as being in contact with a divine being and is said to speak on behalf of that being, serving as an intermediary with humanity by delivering messages or teachings from the ...
; the family of
Ishmael Ishmael ''Ismaḗl''; Classical/Qur'anic Arabic: إِسْمَٰعِيْل; Modern Standard Arabic: إِسْمَاعِيْل ''ʾIsmāʿīl''; la, Ismael was the first son of Abraham, the common patriarch of the Abrahamic religions; and is cons ...
; and Zoram traveled from the
Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...
to the
Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America, North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. ...
by boat in around 600 BC. Some time after the death of Lehi in the Americas, Nephi, a son of Lehi, was concerned that his brothers,
Laman and Lemuel In the Book of Mormon, Laman and Lemuel () are the two eldest sons of Lehi and the older brothers of Sam, Nephi, Jacob, and Joseph. According to the text, they lived around 600 BC. They were notable for their rebellion against Lehi and Nephi, b ...
, were plotting to kill him and so he, his family, and his followers left and went into the wilderness. The followers of Nephi called themselves "
Nephites According to the Book of Mormon, the Nephites () are one of four groups (along with the Lamanites, Jaredites, and Mulekites) to have settled in the ancient Americas. The term is used throughout the Book of Mormon to describe the religious, po ...
" and referred to others as "Lamanites," after Laman, Nephi's eldest brother. After the two groups separated from each other, the rebellious Lamanites were cursed and "cut off from the presence of the Lord." They received a "skin of blackness" so they would "not be enticing" to the Nephites.Hugh Nibley
''Lehi in the Desert''
(1950): 73–74.
The Book of Mormon describes the animosity that the Lamanites held:
Believing that they were driven out of the land of Jerusalem because of the iniquities of their fathers, and that they were wronged in the wilderness by their brethren, and they were also wronged while crossing the sea; and again, that they were wronged while in the land of their first inheritance, after they had crossed the sea. (Mosiah 10:12–13)
The Book of Mormon also recounts that the Lamanites felt that they were wronged specifically by Nephi and so swore vengeance against his descendants:
he Lamaniteswere wroth with him ephibecause he departed into the wilderness as the Lord had commanded him, and took the records which were engraven on the plates of brass, for they said that he robbed them. And thus they have taught their children that they should hate them, and that they should murder them, and that they should rob and plunder them, and do all they could to destroy them; therefore they have an eternal hatred towards the children of Nephi. (Mosiah 10:16–17)
After the two groups warred for centuries, the narrative states that
Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and relig ...
appeared to the more righteous Nephites and the Lamanites, who, by then, had converted in large numbers to righteousness before God. Soon after his visit, the Lamanites and Nephites merged into one nation and co-existed for two centuries in peace. The Book of Mormon further recounts, "There were no robbers, nor murderers, neither were there Lamanites, nor any manner of -ites; but they were in one, the children of Christ, and heirs to the kingdom of God." However, 84 years after the coming of Christ, "a small part of the people who had revolted from the church" started calling themselves Lamanites again. Those who remained were again identified as Nephites, but both groups were reported to have fallen into apostasy. The Book of Mormon recounts a series of large battles over two centuries, ending with the extermination of the Nephites by the Lamanites.


Doctrine and Covenants

The Doctrine and Covenants is composed of writings that adherents in the Latter Day Saint movement believe to be revelations from God. It is considered scripture in the sacred text of the Latter Day Saint movement and says that God called
Oliver Cowdery Oliver H. P. Cowdery (October 3, 1806 – March 3, 1850) was an American Mormon leader who, with Joseph Smith, was an important participant in the formative period of the Latter Day Saint movement between 1829 and 1836. He was the first baptized ...
(D&C 28:8) and later Peter Whitmer and Parley P. Pratt (D&C 32:1–2) to teach the gospel to the Lamanites. Cowdery is given the power to build up God's church among them (D&C 30:6). The men believed that God was referring to the Native Americans and began teaching among the
Lenape The Lenape (, , or Lenape , del, Lënapeyok) also called the Leni Lenape, Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. Their historical territory inclu ...
. The Doctrine and Covenants also contains a prophecy that the Lamanites will "blossom as a rose" (D&C 49:24) and that the city of Zion would be built on the borders by the Lamanites (D&C 28:9), which was later identified as
Missouri Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...
(D&C 54:8).


Proposed modern descendants

Historically, Mormons have identified the Lamanites as the primary ancestors of the North American Native Americans. Some publications of the largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement,
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...
(LDS Church) have accepted that position.Lane Johnson
"Who and Where Are the Lamanites?"
'' Ensign'', December 1975, p. 15.
Early Mormons expected large numbers of Native American converts to flock to Zion. After this did not happen, the concept began to expand to include all
indigenous peoples of the Americas The Indigenous peoples of the Americas are the inhabitants of the Americas before the arrival of the European settlers in the 15th century, and the ethnic groups who now identify themselves with those peoples. Many Indigenous peoples of the A ...
. After a disproportionate number of Polynesian people converted, the concept expanded to include them as well. The scriptural account of
Hagoth According to the Book of Mormon, Hagoth () was a Nephite ship builder who lived in or around 55 BCE. At least two of the ships he built were lost. The occupants of one ship were presumed drowned. Hagoth and his shipbuilding accomplishments are brief ...
was used to justify the connection. Today, many Latter Day Saint consider Polynesian peoples and the other
indigenous peoples of the Americas The Indigenous peoples of the Americas are the inhabitants of the Americas before the arrival of the European settlers in the 15th century, and the ethnic groups who now identify themselves with those peoples. Many Indigenous peoples of the A ...
to be Lamanites. A 1971 church magazine article claimed that Lamanites "consist of the Indians of all the Americas as well as the islanders of the Pacific." However, the church has stated, "Nothing in the Book of Mormon precludes migration into the Americas by peoples of Asiatic origin." The non-canonical introduction to the 1981 LDS Church edition of the Book of Mormon states that "the Lamanites are the principal ancestors of the American Indians." The wording was changed in the 2006 Doubleday edition and the subsequent editions published by the LDS Church, to state only that the Lamanites "are among the ancestors of the American Indians." The existence of a Lamanite nation has received no support in mainstream science or archaeology. Genetic studies indicate that the indigenous Americans are related to the present populations in
Mongolia Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 million ...
,
Siberia Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part ...
, and the vicinity, and Polynesians to those in
Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainland ...
. Some Mormon scholars now view Lamanites as either one small tribe among many in the ancient
Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America, North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. ...
, the remainder of which are not discussed in the Book of Mormon; a tribe that intermarried with indigenous Native Americans; or a tribe that descended with modern Asians from common nomadic ancestry but diverged before Lehi's departure from Jerusalem.


Impact on views on race

In the Book of Mormon, Lamanites are described as having received a "skin of blackness" to distinguish them from the Nephites. The "change" in skin color is often mentioned in conjunction with God's curse on the descendants of Laman for their wickedness and corruption: "And he had caused the cursing to come upon he Lamanites yea, even a sore cursing, because of their iniquity. For behold, they had hardened their hearts against him, and they had become like unto a flint; wherefore, as they were white, and exceedingly fair and delightsome, that they might not be enticing unto my people the Lord God did cause a skin of blackness to come upon them" (2 Nephi 5:21). On the other hand, the Book of Mormon teaches that skin color is not a bar to salvation and that God "denieth none that come unto him, black and white, bond and free, male and female; and he remembereth the heathen; and all are alike unto God, both Jew and Gentile." Elsewhere, the book condemns prejudice against people of dark skin: "O my brethren, I fear that unless ye shall repent of your sins that their skins will be whiter than yours, when ye shall be brought with them before the throne of God. Wherefore, a commandment I give unto you, which is the word of God, that ye revile no more against them because of the darkness of their skins; neither shall ye revile against them because of their filthiness." The non-canonical 1981 footnote text of the Book of Mormon closely linked the concept of "skin of blackness" with that of "scales of darkness falling from their eyes," which suggests that the LDS Church has now interpreted both cases as being examples of figurative language. Several Book of Mormon passages have been interpreted by some Latter Day Saints as indicating that Lamanites would revert to a lighter skin tone upon accepting the gospel. For example, at a 1960 LDS Church General Conference, apostle
Spencer W. Kimball Spencer Woolley Kimball (March 28, 1895 – November 5, 1985) was an American business, civic, and religious leader who was the twelfth president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). The grandson of early Latter-day ...
suggested that the skin of Latter-day Saint Native American was gradually turning lighter: That view was buoyed by passages such as 2 Nephi 30:6, which in early editions of the Book of Mormon, read: " eir scales of darkness shall begin to fall from their eyes; and many generations shall not pass away among them, save they shall be a white and a delightsome people." In 1840, with the third edition of the Book of Mormon, the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement,
Joseph Smith Joseph Smith Jr. (December 23, 1805June 27, 1844) was an American religious leader and founder of Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint movement. When he was 24, Smith published the Book of Mormon. By the time of his death, 14 years later, h ...
, whose adherents believe translated the writings of ancient prophets to become the Book of Mormon, changed the wording to "a pure and a delightsome people," consistent with contemporary interpretation of the term "white" as used in scripture.White
," Def. 6, Webster's American Dictionary of the English Language (1828): "In a scriptural sense, purified from sin; sanctified. Psalm 51."
However, all future LDS Church printings of the Book of Mormon until 1981 continued from the second edition, saying the Lamanites would become "a white and delightsome people." Eventually in the Book of Mormon narrative, the labels " Nephite" and "Lamanite" became terms of political convenience, and membership was both varied and fluid and not based on skin color. Within the first 200 years of the Nephites' 1,000 year chronology, the prophet
Jacob Jacob (; ; ar, يَعْقُوب, Yaʿqūb; gr, Ἰακώβ, Iakṓb), later given the name Israel, is regarded as a patriarch of the Israelites and is an important figure in Abrahamic religions, such as Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. ...
stated that any who were enemies of his people were called Lamanites and that any who were friends were called Nephites: "But I, Jacob, shall not hereafter distinguish them by these names, but I shall call them Lamanites that seek to destroy the people of Nephi, and those who are friendly to Nephi I shall call Nephites, or the people of Nephi, according to the reigns of the kings."


Book of Mormon chapter summaries

In December 2010, the LDS Church made changes to the non-canonical chapter summaries and to some of the footnotes in its online version of the Book of Mormon. In
Second Nephi The Second Book of Nephi (), usually referred to as Second Nephi or 2 Nephi, is the second book of the Book of Mormon. The original translation of the title did not include the word "second". First and Second were added to the titles of The Books ...
5, the original wording was the following: "Because of their unbelief, the Lamanites are cursed, receive a skin of blackness, and become a scourge unto the Nephites." The phrase "skin of blackness" and the passage was changed to "Because of their unbelief, the Lamanites are cut off from the presence of the Lord, are cursed, and become a scourge unto the Nephites."Fletcher Stack, Peggy
"Church removes racial references in Book of Mormon headings"
, '' Salt Lake Tribune'' 2010-12-16.
The second change appears in the summary of
Mormon Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into se ...
5. Formerly, it included the phrase that "the Lamanites shall be a dark, filthy, and loathsome people." The new version deleted the phrase "dark, loathsome, and filthy" and now reads "the Lamanites will be scattered, and the Spirit will cease to strive with them." The changes are seen by some critics to be another step in the evolution of the text of the Book of Mormon to delete racist language from it. Others, such as Marvin Perkins, see the changes as better conforming the chapter headers and footnotes to the meaning of the text in light of the LDS Church's 1978 Revelation on Priesthood.Marvin Perkins
"Changes To LDS Scripture Headings & Footnotes"
, blacklds.org, 2011-02-07.
In an interview, a former
Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-d ...
graduate student suggested that the changes were made for "clarity, a change in emphasis and to stick closer to the scriptural language".


See also

*
House of Joseph (LDS Church) The House of Joseph (sometimes referred to as the Tribe of Joseph) is a designation which members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) apply to the ancient "birthright" tribe of the house of Israel (Jacob) as it is descr ...
*
Gathering (LDS Church) Gathering has been an important part of life in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), from gathering as missionaries to gathering for worship services. In the early days of the church, members were asked to gather together ...
* Historical authenticity of the Book of Mormon *
Native American people and Mormonism Over the past two centuries, the relationship between Native American people and Mormonism has included friendly ties, displacement, battles, slavery, education placement programs, and official and unofficial discrimination. Native American people ...
*
Mormonism and Pacific Islanders Relations between the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and the natives of the Pacific Island groups of Polynesia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and surrounding island groups are quite complex. History The Pacific islands were ...
* Mound Builders#Alternative explanations * People of Ammon * Samuel the Lamanite * Zelph


References


Sources

* * * * *{{Cite journal , last=Walker , first=Ronald W. , title=Seeking the 'Remnant': The Native American During the Joseph Smith Period , journal= Journal of Mormon History , volume=19 , year=1993 , pages=1–33 , url=http://content.lib.utah.edu/u?/jmh,14491 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110613164840/http://content.lib.utah.edu/u/?%2Fjmh%2C14491 , url-status=dead , archive-date=2011-06-13


External links

* Gordon C. Thomasson
"Lamanites"
Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, byu.org * Sidney B. Sperry
"An Answer to Budvarson's Criticisms of the Book of Mormon"
Chapter XXIV (addressing the converted Lamanites' skin turning white), shields-research.org * Foundation for Apologetic Information and Research (FAIR)

fairlds.org * Michael R. Ash
"Who Are the Lamanites"
fairlds.org

'' Salt Lake City Messenger'', Oct. 1981, utlm.org
LDS General Authorities on Native Americans
from Mormonthink.com Book of Mormon peoples Book of Mormon words and phrases Mormonism and Native Americans Mormonism and race Historical definitions of race