Proposed Book of Mormon geographical setting

Various locations have been proposed as the geographical setting of the Book of Mormon, or the set of locations where the events described in the Book of Mormon is said to have taken place. There is no universal consensus - even among Mormon scholars - regarding the placement of these locations in the known world, other than somewhere in the Americas.

A popular "traditional" view among many Latter Day Saint faithful covers much of North and South America. However, many Book of Mormon scholars, particularly in recent decades, believe the text itself favors a less expansive (“limited”) geographical setting for most of the Book of Mormon events. The two most notable proposed limited geography models are based in Mesoamerica, and in the Great Lakes area of North America.

The largest of the churches embracing the Book of Mormon—the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church)—has not endorsed an official position for the geographical setting the Book of Mormon, although some of its leaders have spoken of various possible locations over the years. There have also been multiple attempts to identify the several civilizations in the Book of Mormon, which are dated in the text as living from 2500 BC to 400 AD, but no consensus has ever been reached.

Mainstream scholars and archeologists do not accept the proposed locations as plausible. For example, in a 1998 letter to the Institute for Religious Research, the National Geographic Society stated that "Archaeologists and other scholars have long probed the hemisphere's past and the society does not know of anything found so far that has substantiated the Book of Mormon."

Background
According to Joseph Smith, an angel named Moroni told him "there was a book deposited, written upon gold plates, giving an account of the former inhabitants of this continent, and the source from whence they sprang." According to Latter Day Saint scripture, the narrative in the Book of Mormon came to an end in the ancient land Cumorah, where Moroni, in 421 AD deposited the golden plates prior to his death. The Cumorah in the Book of Mormon narrative is claimed by many believers to be the same land containing the modern "Hill Cumorah" near Joseph Smith's home in Palmyra, western New York, from whence the gold plates of the Book of Mormon were retrieved. Others view the modern "Hill Cumorah" to be distinct from the original, and simply to have been named after it; thus adding no information to the question of the location of the lands described in the Book of Mormon.

In the Book of Mormon narrative, three groups of people are stated to have migrated: Jaredites, Lehites (later divided into Lamanites and Nephites) and Mulekites. The Jaredites landed in what was later called the "Land Northward" during the time of the building of the "great tower." The Jaredites remained there until destroyed between 600 and 300 BC. Their land is described as being surrounded by four "seas" with a "Narrow Neck" linking to a "Land Southward" to which they never ventured except for hunting. The Lehites landed on the coast of a "Land Southward" around 589 BC. The Land Southward was nearly surrounded by seas. One sea which was stated to be near the dividing line of the latter definition of the "Land Southward" from the "Land Northward" was described as the "Sea that Divides the Land." The Mulekites landed in one "Land Northward." around 587 BC and later founded the city "Zarahemla," which was in the heart of the land, along the river "Sidon."

Many other geographic particulars are mentioned within the Book of Mormon, including: travel times (generally days or less); lands and some references to their relative locations (for example, Zarahemla is north of the land of Nephi ); bodies of water, including an east and a west sea; a narrow strip of wilderness which divides the land of Zarahemla from the southern land of Nephi; and others. Authors of different proposed geographical settings generally attempt to use (at least some of) these particulars when constructing their models.

Hemispheric models
The "Hemispheric" or "Two-Continent" model proposes that Book of Mormon lands stretch many thousands of miles over much of South and North America. Traditionally, the “narrow neck of land” that divides the “land north” from the “land south”, in this model, is said to be the Isthmus of Darien in Panama.

Statements made by Joseph Smith throughout his life promote a hemispheric view. Additionally, Smith (or in some cases, perhaps his close associates) publicly stated support for Book of Mormon lands in areas as far-flung as the Great Lakes region of North America, Mesoamerica, and Chile in South America. The idea that Lehi landed on the coast of temperate Chile, thousand of miles south of Panama's narrow neck, and that tropical Colombia's thousand mile long Magdalena River is the River Sidon, were presented by church scholars as mainstream, majority views in the LDS community through the 20th century. Until the late-twentieth century, most adherents of the Latter Day Saint movement who affirmed Book of Mormon historicity believed the people described in the Book of Mormon text were the exclusive ancestors of all indigenous peoples in the Americas.

One of the earliest advocates of a hemispheric setting was Orson Pratt, who as early as 1832 publicly promoted the idea that Lehi "crossed the water into South America". Pratt never attributed his geography (or one like it) to Joseph Smith. Pratt's geographic views were published in the 1879 edition of the Book of Mormon, but retracted from later editions.

Strongly influenced by John Lloyd Stephens' 1841 bestseller, Incidents of Travel in Central America, Parley Pratt set various Book of Mormon lands (including, apparently, the narrow neck) farther north and west of Panama. Prior to the influence of John Lloyd Stephens' popular book, some church members placed the southernmost Nephite land of Manti well within the boundaries of United States territory.

Criticism
Linguistics and genetics have proven the hemispheric model impossible - or at least, highly implausible. There are no widely accepted linguistic connections between any Native American languages and Near Eastern languages, and "the diversity of Native American languages could not have developed from a single origin in the time frame" that would be necessary to validate such a view of Book of Mormon historicity. Also, there is no DNA evidence linking any Native American group to ancestry from the ancient Near East as a belief in Book of Mormon peoples, as the exclusive ancestors of indigenous Americans would require. Instead, geneticists find that indigenous Americans' ancestry traces back to Asia.

Central America models
According to a subset of LDS scholars investigating the field, the application of the Book of Mormon limited geography model to a Mesoamerican setting produces a "highly plausible match." LDS scholars use "contextual knowledge" in order to establish a plausible setting for the cultural events of the Book of Mormon within the context of known Mesoamerican historical settings. The goal is to determine places and times at which Book of Mormon events occurred that correlate with similar events in the Mesoamerican historical record. Based on textual analysis and comparison of the Book of Mormon limited geography model to existing geographical regions, time-lines and cultures, many LDS scholars believe that the Book of Mormon geography is centered in Mesoamerica around the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, in the area of current day Guatemala and the southern Mexico States of Tabasco, Chiapas, Oaxaca, Veracruz, and the surrounding area.

Some LDS scholars believe that the Tehuantapec model provides enough of a match with existing geography, ancient cultures and ruins, to propose plausible locations for certain Book of Mormon places and events. Critics, on the other hand, insist that the Tehuantepec model is fundamentally flawed.

Heartland models
The "Heartland" Model or "Heartland Theory" of Book of Mormon geography states that the Book of Mormon events primarily occurred in the heartland of North America. In this model, the Hill Cumorah in New York is considered to be the hill where Joseph Smith found the Golden Plates, and is the same hill where the civilizations of the Nephites (Cumorah) and the Jaredites (Ramah) fought their last battles. Among its proposals are that Mound Builders, including the Hopewell and the Adena, were among those peoples described in accounts of events in Book of Mormon books such as Alma and Helaman. The ancient city of Zarahemla is believed to be near Montrose, Iowa. The Mississippi River is identified as the River Sidon, and the Springs of Northern Georgia just south of Chattanooga, Tennessee are identified as possibly being the Waters of Mormon. The Niagara Falls Peninsula has been described as the "narrow neck of land" mentioned in the Book of Ether. In addition, the Appalachian region of Tennessee is most likely to be the Land of Nephi.

While travelling through Illinois, Joseph Smith claimed to have had a vision of a righteous Lamanite, Zelph, who lived in the area - implicitly situating the American Midwest in the Book of Mormon geography. A few days later, Smith wrote that he and his travelling party were "wandering over the plains of the Nephites, recounting occasionally the history of the Book of Mormon, roving over the mounds of that once beloved people of the Lord, picking up their skulls & their bones, as a proof of its divine authenticity ... During our travels we visited several of the mounds which had been thrown up by the ancient inhabitants of this country-Nephites, Lamanites, etc."

Great Lakes theories
Proponents of the Great Lakes theory adhere to the teachings of LDS Church leaders, official church history, and church canon that identify the hill in Palmyra, New York as the Hill Cumorah of the Book of Mormon, the place of the final Nephite battle. Great Lakes theories differ in that they incorporate the land of Palmyra, New York as the place of the final Nephite battle and the place where the Jaredite Omer walked.

South America models
A document in the handwriting of early church leader Frederick G. Williams alleges that Lehi landed 30 degrees South of the equator, in what would be modern day Chile. Although many Latter-day Saints attribute its ideas to Joseph Smith (as Williams was Smith's scribe and counselor), others do not. There are several theories that try to confirm this. Many people who support this group of theories believe that part of South America was under water, and that the continent rose up during the major earthquakes mentioned in the Book of Mormon during Christ's crucifixion in the Old World.

Statements by Joseph Smith
LDS church members often consider Joseph Smith's statements on Book of Mormon lands to have been particularly authoritative, given his roles as founder of the church, as "prophet, seer, and revelator" in the church, and as the believed translator of the Book of Mormon itself. The following account from his mother is also given credence by many church members: "During our evening conversations, Joseph, would occasionally give us some of the most amusing recitals that could be imagined. He would describe the ancient inhabitants of this continent, their dress, mode of traveling, and the animals upon which they rode; their cities and buildings, with every particular; their mode of warfare; and also their religious worship. This he would do with as much ease, seemingly, as if he had spent his whole life among them."

General statements
Joseph Smith claimed an angel named Moroni told him the Book of Mormon gave "an account of the former inhabitants of this continent, and the source from whence they sprang." Several statements by Joseph Smith, indicate that events described in the Book of Mormon took place in lands occupied by the United States of America. In an 1833 letter to N.C. Saxton, he wrote: The Book of Mormon is a record of the forefathers of our western tribes of Indians ... . By it we learn that our western tribes of Indians are descendants from that Joseph that was sold into Egypt, and that the land [of] America is a promised land unto them...

The expression, "our western tribes of Indians" refers to Native American tribes who lived at the time in the western potion of the United States. LDS missionaries were sent to these peoples in the early days of the Church. Mormon scripture (dictated by Smith) refers to these peoples as "Lamanites". Several passages in LDS scripture (dictated by Smith) associate these native peoples with peoples of the Book of Mormon. LDS scripture (dictated by Smith) teaches that the land of their Book of Mormon ancestors (presumably the territories now occupied by the United States of America) was ordained to become a land "free unto all ...". The ancient land of their inheritance is, according to LDS scripture (given by Smith), associated with the land of "New Jerusalem.". New Jerusalem, "the city of Zion" is, according to LDS scripture (given by Smith), to be built in northern America.

In the Wentworth Letter Joseph Smith wrote the following (emphasis added) regarding his interview with the angel Moroni:"I was also informed concerning the aboriginal inhabitants of this country', and shown who they were, and from whence they came; a brief sketch of their origin, progress, civilization, laws, governments, of their righteousness and iniquity, and the blessings of God being finally withdrawn from them as a people was made known unto me: I was also told where there was deposited some plates on which were engraven an abridgment of the records of the ancient prophets that had existed on this continent ... The principal nation of the second race [the Nephites] fell in battle towards the close of the fourth century. The remnant are the Indians that now inhabit this country [the United States]."

An inclusion in History of the Church proclaims the ruins were likely Nephite or belonging to "the ancient inhabitants of America treated of in the Book of Mormon". The inclusion in History of the Church reads as follows: Messrs. Stephens and Catherwood have succeeded in collecting in the interior of America a large amount of relics of the Nephites, or the ancient inhabitants of America treated of in the Book of Mormon, which relics have recently been landed in New York.

Stephens brought to New York hundreds of artifacts from Mayan sites, including sculptures and architectural remnants. Shortly after arriving in New York, most of these relics were lost when the building that housed them was destroyed by fire.

Times and Seasons articles
Published articles in the Times & Seasons newspaper (of which Joseph Smith was the editor) indicate that Book of Mormon peoples, or their descendants, migrated from "the lake country of America" to Mexico and Central America. In 1841 Joseph Smith read Stephens' Incidents of Travel in Central America. Smith held Stephens' work in high regard and recommended it. However, Stephens' bestseller did not change Smith's position that Book of Mormon events took place in northern America, in lands primarily occupied by the United States.

In his "AMERICAN ANTIQUITIES" editorial of July 1842, the Times & Seasons newspaper corroborates wars described in the Book of Mormon with archaeological finds in northern America. It is not certain as to which articles in the Times & Seasons signed "-ED" were authored by Joseph Smith, approved by Joseph Smith, or otherwise handled by editorial assistants since Joseph Smith was frequently absent and only the nominal editor.

The Times & Seasons quotes Josiah Priest's American Antiquities statement that "Weapons of brass have been found in many parts of America, as in the Canadas, Florida, &c., with curiously sculptured stones, all of which go to prove that this country was once peopled with civilized, industrious nations ..."

The Times & Seasons associates earth, timber and metal works found in northern America (presumably artifacts of mound builder societies) with implements and constructions described in the Book of Mormon. As much as Joseph Smith approved of Stephens' work, the Times & Seasons only makes minor mention of it, and then only to conclude in the "American Antiquities" editorial, that the peoples of Central America are tied historically to the Book of Mormon. Regarding the peoples of Central America, the Times & Seasons concludes: Stephens and Catherwood's researches in Central America abundantly testify of this thing. The stupendous ruins, the elegant sculpture, and the magnificence of the ruins of Guatemala, and other cities, corroborate this statement, and show that a great and mighty people-men of great minds, clear intellect, bright genius, and comprehensive designs inhabited this continent. Their ruins speak of their greatness; the Book of Mormen [Mormon] unfolds their history.-ED.

The article does not actually say that Book of Mormon lands are to be found in Central America. This assertion came later in several unsigned newspaper articles, published in the Fall of 1842. Controversy exists over whether these statements should be attributable directly to Smith.

In the March 15, 1842 edition of the Times and Seasons, Joseph Smith informed readers that he would endorse his articles with his signature. W. Vincent Coon argues that the unsigned 1842 articles contradict each other. One of the articles in question mentions "Joseph Smith" in the third person. This same article alleges that Lehi "landed a little south of the Isthmus of Darien" which would place Lehi's landing on a western shore of South America. The 1842 Times and Seasons editorials, written by Joseph Smith, are readily identified as they end with his "ED".

Though he was still official editor of the Times and Seasons, some LDS scholars believe that John Taylor may have been serving as "the acting editor" for the Times and Seasons, as Smith was in hiding at the time.

Published in the same issue as the unsigned "ZARAHEMLA" article (October 1842), is a signed epistle to the church from Smith. In the letter, the Book of Mormon land Cumorah is referenced among other locations of significance near the Finger Lakes. The letter was later canonized as the 128th section of the Doctrine and Covenants in the LDS Church.

Statements by Joseph Smith's associates
The first history of the Church was written in 1834 and 1835 by Oliver Cowdery, a close associate of Smith's, as a series of articles published serially in the Church's official periodical, the Messenger and Advocate. In this history, Cowdery unambiguously identified the final battle between the Nephites and the Lamanites as having occurred at the "Hill Cumorah," the very same Hill Cumorah in New York, where Joseph Smith said he obtained golden plates and other artifacts which were used to translate the Book of Mormon. These plates and artifacts were shown to only a few witnesses and never to the general public. The plates were later claimed to have been returned to the angel, Moroni. Oliver Cowdery also identified the Jaredites' final battle as occurring in the same area as the Nephite/Lamanite final battle. (Smith edited the Messenger and Advocate, and approved the official church history.)

Lucy Mack Smith, Joseph Smith's mother, in her account of the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, says that the divine messenger called the hill where the plates were deposited the "hill of Cumorah" meaning "hill of" the Book of Mormon land "Cumorah". In another account, she said that young Joseph referred to the hill using this description.

In the 1850s the following unsigned statement was circulated among Latter-day Saints:

"The course that Lehi traveled from the city of Jerusalem to the place where he and his family took ship, they traveled nearly a south, southeast direction until they came to the nineteenth degree of North Latitude, then, nearly east to the Sea of Arabia then sailed in a southeast direction and landed on the continent of South America in Chili [Chile] thirty degrees south latitude."

The original is in the handwriting of early church leader Frederick G. Williams, who was a scribe of Smith's; therefore it is uncertain whether the ideas written in it can be attributed directly to Smith or not. The statement was partially rewritten by church authorities Richards and Little and published as a "Revelation to Joseph the Seer" - a statement which the original did not contain. The Chilean landing site, promoted in the Williams document, matches Orson Pratt's geography. Prominent Mormons would later call into question the statement's authority;  but before this would happen, church leaders publicly attributed features of Orson Pratt's geography to Joseph Smith. Early LDS church leader Orson Pratt also speculated that the Nephite landing site was on the coast of Chile near Valparaiso.

20th century
The Encyclopedia of Mormonism states: "Church leaders have generally declined to give any opinion on issues of Book of Mormon geography. When asked to review a map showing the supposed landing place of Lehi's company, President Joseph F. Smith declared that the 'Lord had not yet revealed it' (Cannon, p. 160 n.) In 1929, Anthony W. Ivins, counselor in the First Presidency, added, 'There has never been anything yet set forth that definitely settles that question [of Book of Mormon geography]. ... We are just waiting until we discover the truth' (CR, Apr. 1929, p. 16). While the Church does not currently take an official position with regard to location of geographical places, the authorities do not discourage private efforts to deal with the subject (Cannon)."

Previous to this disclaimer, George Q. Cannon had published the following: "It is also known that the landing place of Lehi and his family was near what is now known as the city of Valparaiso, in the republic of Chili [Chile]. The book itself does not give us this information, but there is not doubt of its correctness." President Cannon was promoting a prevailing view endorsed by the Church in 1887. (See for instance Apostle Orson Pratt's speculative geographic footnotes published in the 1879 edition of the Book of Mormon.)

In 1938, Joseph Fielding Smith and his assistants in the Historian's Office of the Church published, as part of a compilation, an article giving readers the impression that Joseph Smith taught that Lehi "had landed a little south of the Isthmus of Darien". The Isthmus of Darien (Panama) is thousands of miles north of Valparaiso, Chile. The popular LDS work quotes an unsigned Times and Seasons article that was published during a "short season" when the official editor of the newspaper (Joseph Smith) was publicly absent. The newspaper article, in fact, mentioned Joseph Smith in the third person and there is no proof that he authored the piece.

On the subject of a Mesoamerican Cumorah, Joseph Fielding Smith said: "This modernist theory of necessity, in order to be consistent, must place the waters of Ripliancum and the Hill Cumorah some place within the restricted territory of Central America, not withstanding the teachings of the Church to the contrary for upwards of 100 years ..." "It is known that the Hill Cumorah where the Nephites were destroyed is the hill where the Jaredites were also destroyed. This hill was known to the Jaredites as Ramah. It was approximately near to the waters of Ripliancum, which the Book of Ether says, 'by interpretation, is large or to exceed all.' ... It must be conceded that this description fits perfectly the land of Cumorah in New York ... for the hill is in the proximity of the Great Lakes, and also in the land of many rivers and fountains ..."

LDS church leader Bruce R. McConkie, who was also aware of the Mesoamerican Cumorah theory, stated that: "Both the Nephite and the Jaredite civilizations fought their final great wars of extinction at and near the Hill Cumorah (or Ramah as the Jaredites termed it) ... Joseph Smith, Oliver Cowdery, and many early brethren, who were familiar with the circumstances attending the coming forth of the Book of Mormon in this dispensation, have left us pointed testimony as to the identity and location of Cumorah or Ramah."

In a 1953 LDS General Conference, leader Mark E. Peterson stated: "I do not believe that there were two Hill Cumorahs, one in Central America, and the other one in New York, for the convenience of the Prophet Joseph Smith, so that the poor boy would not have to walk clear to Central America to get the gold plates."

In the October 1959 church general conference, apostle Spencer W. Kimball stated, referring to Native Americans: "Millions of you have blood relatively unmixed with Gentiles. Columbus called you 'Indians,' thinking he had reached the East Indies. ... The Lord calls you 'Lamanites,' a name which has a pleasant ring, for many of the grandest people ever to live upon the earth were so called. In a limited sense, the name signifies the descendants of Laman and Lemuel, sons of your first American parent, Lehi; but you undoubtedly possess also the blood of the other sons, Sam, Nephi, and Jacob. And you likely have some Jewish blood from Mulek, son of Zedekiah, king of Judah (Hel. 6:10). ... You came from Jerusalem in its days of tribulation. You are of royal blood, a loved people of the Lord. In your veins flows the blood of prophets and statesmen". Similarly, at a 1971 Lamanite Youth Conference, Kimball stated: "With pride I tell those who come to my office that a Lamanite is a descendant of one Lehi who left Jerusalem six hundred years before Christ and with his family crossed the mighty deep and landed in America. And Lehi and his family became the ancestors of all of the Indian and Mestizo tribes in North and South and Central America and in the islands of the sea".

Ted E. Brewerton, a general authority of the LDS Church, stated in 1995: "Many migratory groups came to the Americas, but none was as important as the three mentioned in the Book of Mormon. The blood of these people flows in the veins of the Blackfoot and the Blood Indians of Alberta, Canada; in the Navajo and the Apache of the American Southwest; the Inca of western South America; the Aztec of Mexico; the Maya of Guatemala; and in other native American groups in the Western Hemisphere and the Pacific islands".

21st century
Prior to 2006, the introduction to church-published editions of the Book of Mormon stated Lamanites form the "principal ancestors of the American Indians." Since the 2006 edition, the same passage now reads they are "among the ancestors of the American Indians."

Mainstream scientific views
Mainstream scientists believe native populations arrived via a land bridge in the Bering Strait during the last Ice Age approximately 14,000 years ago. No connection between pre-Columbian Native American and Egyptian or Hebrew languages or cultures has been established by non-Mormon archeologists or linguists to date, even in geographically limited regions.