Who are the Lamanites?

The LGT assumes that a small number of Lehites were introduced into a larger "sea" of native peoples, most of whom were of presumably of Asiatic origin. Critics mistake the use of the term "Lamanite" as requiring descent from Lehi through his son, Laman. But, from very early in the Book of Mormon record, it is clear that the term "Lamanite" does not refer to descent, but to political and religious affiliation:

So, any person who wasn't a Nephite was, by exclusion, a Lamanite. Lamanites were not confined in any geographic sense at all. The LGT holds that the story of the Book of Mormon and the peoples with which it is concerned were confined to a narrow region, since this is all the area with which the authors of the Book of Mormon were directly concerned. Yet the Book of Mormon has several references that suggest a knowledge of and interaction with a much greater geographical area.

The story of Hagoth ( Alma 63:4-9) speaks not only of the shipbuilder and his movements northward (out of the general area referred to in the Book of Mormon) but also others that migrated to the north. Helaman also makes reference to people migrating to the north. (Hel. 3:3-5) The migration was out of the general area of the Book of Mormon story and is referred to as "an exceedingly great distance." This gives opportunity for Lamanites and Nephites to be found in all parts of the western hemisphere. There is no reason not to believe that similar migrations could have occurred to the south. Migrations to both the north and to the south were possibly more common than is recorded in the text.

Many readers assume that revelations in the Doctrine and Covenants in which Joseph Smith speaks in "God's voice" are direct "quotations" from God. Joseph didn't claim to be hearing a voice, and he didn't claim to be quoting God or "taking dictation." Rather, impressions would come to him, which he would put into words. Joseph clearly did not consider them "direct quotations" from God, since he was quite happy to revise them, edit them later, etc. This would be strange if Joseph saw them as "direct quotes"; not so strange when we understand how he saw the matter.

By the time the Doctrine and Covenants was written, Lehi's descendants had ample time to migrate and intermarry with the large number of "natives" postulated by the LGT. Such descendants are "Lamanites" in at least three senses:

1. all shared descent from Lehi, to some degree.
2. none embraced Nephite kingship or their doctrine of Christ, making them "Lamanites" politically.
3. all were eligible for the covenant blessings promised to Lehi's descendants, if they would repent.

There is no conflict between statements in the Doctrine and Covenants concerning North American Indians as Lamanites and the Limited Geography Theory.

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