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When were the Marshall Islands first settled by Micronesian peoples?
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The Marshall Islands were initially settled by Micronesian peoples around the beginning of the Common Era (or the Christian era). Archaeological evidence, specifically radiocarbon dating of charcoal samples from earth ovens excavated in Laura village on Majuro, has yielded dates of approximately 30 BCE and 50 CE. These early inhabitants were skilled navigators who utilized canoes to travel among the atolls. It is also suggested that these early settlers may have been influenced by the Lapita culture of early Polynesian peoples.12