Human evolution & hominins

Topics represented

Human evolution & hominins (22) · ADN antiguo (4) · Diversidad de homininos (4) · Homininos tempranos (4) · Arqueología lítica (3) · Australopitecos (3) · Dispersión (3) · Homo sapiens (3) · Homo temprano (3) · Locomoción en mosaico (3) · Neandertales (3) · Arqueología (2)

Records and sources

Ordered by start date. Long lives and processes may begin before the period you want to study.

1. c. 8000000 BCE–c. 6000000 BCE

   Genetic estimates of the hominin–chimpanzee-lineage divergence

   Genetic comparison of living primates, alongside the fossil record, places the separation between the hominin lineage and the chimpanzee-bonobo lineage roughly six to eight million years ago. It is a modelled interval, not a fossil date or the identification of one particular ancestral species; mutation rates, calibrations, and ancient gene flow make estimates differ.

2. c. 7000000 BCE–c. 6000000 BCE

   *Sahelanthropus tchadensis* fossils in Chad

   Fossils of *Sahelanthropus tchadensis* from Toros-Menalla, Chad, date to roughly seven to six million years ago. Cranial traits have been interpreted as compatible with a more upright posture, but locomotion and its exact position within the hominin lineage remain debated, especially because postcranial evidence is sparse and attribution is contested. The find broadens the known geography of early hominins beyond eastern and southern Africa.

3. c. 6100000 BCE–c. 5700000 BCE

   *Orrorin tugenensis* femora in the Tugen Hills

   Remains attributed to *Orrorin tugenensis* in Kenya date to around six million years ago; the morphology of a femur has been interpreted as compatible with weight-bearing on two legs. That inference does not imply a gait identical to that of living humans or rule out arboreal climbing: the remains retain a mosaic of traits and the sample is limited. This entry records anatomical evidence, not observed behaviour.

4. c. 4400000 BCE

   *Ardipithecus ramidus* and the partial “Ardi” skeleton

   Fossils of *Ardipithecus ramidus* from Ethiopia, including the partial “Ardi” skeleton, are about 4.4 million years old. Pelvis, foot, and other parts suggest a combination of bipedal activity and climbing; the divergent big toe and reconstruction of crushed bones limit more precise conclusions about locomotion. The faunal context points to a wooded environment, so it does not support a single explanation of bipedalism tied to open savannas.

5. c. 4200000 BCE–c. 3800000 BCE

   *Australopithecus anamensis* and knee evidence for bipedal walking

   Fossils of *Australopithecus anamensis* from eastern Africa span roughly 4.2–3.8 million years ago. A tibia about 4.1 million years old has a broad area below the knee, a trait compatible with the loads of supporting the body on one leg while walking. It is anatomical evidence for habitual bipedalism, not for uniform anatomy or ecology, nor for a demonstrated linear ancestral relationship with later species.

6. c. 3850000 BCE–c. 2950000 BCE

   Known early range of *Australopithecus afarensis*

   *Australopithecus afarensis* is documented in Ethiopia, Kenya, and Tanzania roughly 3.85–2.95 million years ago, so it overlaps with other hominin forms and varied environments. Its fossils include traits compatible with both terrestrial bipedal walking and climbing. Its relative abundance of remains does not make the species a single “link” or demonstrate that it was the direct ancestor of all later hominins.

7. c. 3660000 BCE

   Laetoli footprints as trace fossils of bipedal walking

   Footprints preserved in volcanic ash at Laetoli, Tanzania, are about 3.66 million years old and show heel strike, toe-off, and an aligned big toe. They are trace fossils: they record an activity and a substrate, not a skeleton. They are commonly attributed to *Australopithecus afarensis* because that species occurs in the same stratum and region, but that attribution is probable, not a demonstrable individual identification.

8. c. 3300000 BCE–c. 2100000 BCE

   Known fossil range of *Australopithecus africanus*

   *Australopithecus africanus* is documented in southern Africa roughly 3.3 to 2.1 million years ago. Its remains show bipedalism alongside retained traits for climbing. The species overlapped in time with other African hominins; its exact place in the evolutionary tree and ancestral relationships are not settled by its name or chronology alone.

9. c. 3300000 BCE

   Stone artefacts from Lomekwi 3

   The Lomekwi 3 site in western Lake Turkana, Kenya, published stone artefacts in a context about 3.3 million years old. The assemblage extends the known archaeological record of intentional stone modification before the genus *Homo*, but does not securely identify its maker or demonstrate a technical or cognitive repertoire identical to later industries. Spatial association with hominin fossils is not the same as species attribution.

10. c. 2600000 BCE

    Earliest known Oldowan stone-tool assemblages

    The earliest known Oldowan assemblages date to at least 2.6 million years ago and include hammerstones, cores, and sharp-edged flakes. They are evidence for making and using stone, not for one particular species: several hominin forms coexisted where some of these assemblages occur. They therefore should not be turned into automatic proof that *Homo habilis* was their sole maker.

11. c. 2400000 BCE–c. 1400000 BCE

    Fossil range of *Homo habilis* and coexistence with other hominins

    *Homo habilis* is documented roughly 2.4 to 1.4 million years ago. Relatively late *H. habilis* and early *H. erectus* fossils from the same region of Kenya challenge a simple succession from one species to the other. Its historical name also does not demonstrate that it was the first or sole maker of stone tools.

12. c. 2300000 BCE–c. 1200000 BCE

    Range of *Paranthropus boisei* in eastern Africa

    *Paranthropus boisei* lived in eastern Africa roughly 2.3 to 1.2 million years ago, alongside several species of *Homo*. Its large teeth and jaw indicate a capacity to process hard or tough foods, but dental microwear also points to a more varied diet than the “nutcracker” caricature. It is recorded as a coexisting branch, not as a failed stage on the way to *Homo sapiens*.

13. c. 1900000 BCE–c. 143000 BCE

    *Homo erectus* range and dispersal across Africa and Eurasia

    *Homo erectus* spans roughly 1.9 million to 143,000 years ago and populations distributed across Africa and Eurasia. Taxonomic groupings vary—some researchers separate African *H. ergaster* from *H. erectus* sensu stricto—so the name covers both real variation and a classification debate. Its long duration includes coexistence with other hominins, not one uniform human expansion.

14. c. 1770000 BCE

    *Homo* fossils at Dmanisi, Georgia

    The Dmanisi crania in present-day Georgia are about 1.77 million years old and are among the earliest fossil evidence of *Homo* outside Africa. Their classification is debated—often included in *Homo erectus*—and variation among the crania has fuelled debates about how many species they represent. This entry documents an early presence outside Africa, not one route or a homogeneous population.

15. c. 1760000 BCE

    Earliest known Acheulean toolkits

    By about 1.76 million years ago, Acheulean assemblages with large cutting tools, including handaxes, appear. The label describes a technological tradition recognized in the archaeological record; it is not equivalent to a species, a single intelligence, or an innovation that immediately replaced all other practices. Oldowan and Acheulean traditions persisted over broad intervals and in different regions.

16. c. 430000 BCE

    Ancient DNA from Sima de los Huesos fossils related to Neanderthals

    Ancient DNA recovered from roughly 430,000-year-old fossils at Sima de los Huesos, Spain, provided early genetic evidence of a population related to Neanderthals. The assignment illustrates that morphology, mitochondrial lineages, and population relationships do not always align simply. It is a genetic inference limited by preservation and sampling, not a definitive label for every European fossil of that age.

17. c. 315000 BCE

    *Homo sapiens* fossils from Jebel Irhoud, Morocco

    The Jebel Irhoud fossils in Morocco date to around 315,000 years ago and broaden the known African depth and geography of early *Homo sapiens*. They do not by themselves support a single “point origin” for the species: African Pleistocene populations were structured, and dates and traits from different sites should be interpreted as a mosaic.

18. c. 195000 BCE–c. 52000 BCE

    Denisovan fossils and DNA at Denisova Cave

    Dating models for Denisova Cave place Denisovan presence there from perhaps 195,000 years ago to about 52,000–76,000 years ago. The group was initially recognized chiefly through genomes from scarce remains; that genetic strength contrasts with limited fossil morphology. The interval is probabilistic and site-specific, not a complete outline of Denisovan distribution across Asia.

19. c. 100000 BCE–c. 73000 BCE

    Engraved ochre from Blombos Cave

    Engraved ochre pieces from Blombos Cave, South Africa, date roughly between 100,000 and 73,000 years ago. Their deliberate incisions are material evidence of marking practices and pigment treatment, but do not securely reconstruct one symbolic meaning, a language, or a globally uniform human population. This entry avoids presenting one artefact as the “birth” of culture.

20. c. 90000 BCE

    Denisova 11: first-generation Neanderthal–Denisovan parentage

    Genomic analysis of a Denisova 11 bone fragment showed that it belonged to an individual with a Neanderthal mother and a Denisovan father. The result establishes first-generation parentage for that individual, not a general frequency of unions or universal admixture proportions between populations. It also supports repeated contacts and movements of groups rather than wholly isolated replacements.

21. c. 65000 BCE–c. 50000 BCE

    Early human occupation of Sahul

    Archaeological evidence at Madjedbebe in northern Australia supports human presence in Sahul around 65,000 years ago, though chronologies and routes remain under review. Reaching Sahul required sea crossings and adaptation to landscapes occupied by human communities; it should not be narrated as an automatic expansion of one population or as the beginning of the history of today’s Aboriginal peoples.

22. c. 46000 BCE–c. 42000 BCE

    Early *Homo sapiens* genomes from Bacho Kiro

    Human remains from Bacho Kiro, Bulgaria, about 46,000–42,000 years old provide genomes from some of the earliest known *Homo sapiens* populations in Europe. Some show recent Neanderthal ancestry, but data from a few individuals do not justify turning that history into a fixed proportion for all Europe or into one migration. They record one population and moment of contact, not the complete replacement of every other group.