Today, modern humans have permanent settlements across all continents except for Antarctica; however, this was not always the case. Our species has spread far and wide over time. Homo sapiens emerged in Africa at minimum 300,000 years ago , some ultimately set forth, journeying and traversing the globe.
When did the first modern humans arrive at each of the seven continents?
Out of Africa
The currently accepted notions regarding human evolution are the "Out of Africa" theories, suggesting that H. sapiens developed in Africa and then moved to the other continents, often replacing or interbreeding with other species in those regions. Homo species—known as hominins—as they evolved.
Certain scientists previously explored the "multiregional" theory, often referred to as the "candelabra" hypothesis, suggesting that H. sapiens Additionally, this evolution also took place in various regions such as Europe and Asia. However, the multiregional hypothesis has been dismissed according to paleoanthropologists. Michael Petraglia , who leads the Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution at Griffith University located in Brisbane.
He informed Live Science that there is no backing for the multiregional or candelabra theory of human evolution. All evidence suggests the emergence and migration. Homo sapiens out of Africa."
According to recent studies, H. sapiens developed from previous hominins in Africa roughly 300,000 years ago, and our species initially spread out from there approximately 200,000 years ago , or approximately 100,000 years following its evolution, according to Petraglia. .
Related: At what point did Homo sapiens first emerge?
Into Asia
Our ancestors initially expanded from Africa into the eastern Mediterranean area, likely passing through the Sinai region encompassing parts of Egypt, Jordan, and Israel. Despite being arid today, researchers believe that this territory was more lush and verdant during the time when anatomically modern humans first journeyed there.
Another hypothesis suggested early modern humans migrated from Africa via a land bridge at the southern end of the Red Sea, across the Bab el Mandeb (Arabic for "Gate of Grief") and into the Arabian Peninsula, which is also thought to have been greener hundreds of thousands of years ago. A study published in 2006 However, they confirmed that no such land bridge existed. The researchers pointed out that the Bab el Mandeb has consistently been just a few miles wide, making it feasible that people could have drifted or rowed across.
From the eastern Mediterranean, H. sapiens rapidly expanded eastward into Asia. According to Petraglia’s emailed correspondence with Live Science, several migrations of early humans might have settled along the adjacent Asian coastlines. by over 100,000 years ago, Then proceeded to explore its inner areas. 54,000 years ago and 44,000 years ago , some H. sapiens bred with Denisovans , another early human species, and so gene variants from Denisovans now appear in the genomes of many Asians.
Into Europe
The earliest evidence of H. sapiens in Europe is from Apidima Cave in southern Greece and dates to about 210,000 years ago, Martin Richards , an evolutionary geneticist at the University of Huddersfield in the UK, stated to Live Science. However, if this dating proves correct, it could originate from a quite an initial surge of moving population H. sapiens that became extinct or withdrew during glaciation , he mentioned in an email.
Scientists typically agree that our species arrived in Europe permanently between Between 50,000 and 60,000 years ago And during this period, they interbred with and supplanted the existing population of their close relatives, the Neanderthals. Neanderthals .
Into Oceania
Mitochondrial DNA analysis has suggested that H. sapiens reached Southeast Asia approximately 60,000 years ago Richards explained. Subsequently, these creatures expanded into the ancient Sunda and Sahul areas, which later evolved into what we now know as Southeast Asia and Australia, when those regions were largely interconnected landmasses.
Archaeological evidence suggests that contemporary humans inhabited the area around New Guinea as far back as 50,000 years ago. Researchers currently believe these people migrated outwards across the Pacific Islands in several waves of movement that also encompassed Lapita expansion roughly 3,000 years ago and the Polynesian expansion roughly 1,500 years ago.
Into North America
The primary hypothesis for the beginnings of Indigenous North Americans suggested that " Paleo-Indian" peoples migrated around 13,000 years ago from Siberia via a land connection known as Beringia , to Alaska. But archaeologists have now discovered evidence of pre-Clovis settlements and even older human footprints from New Mexico that suggest the first North Americans reached via that path, and possibly following the Pacific coastline, as early as 23,000 years ago.
Into South America
Archeological findings and genetic data indicate that early modern humans migrated from North America through Central America to reach South America, as evidenced by fossils and archeological artifacts suggesting their presence there by this time. about 15,000 years ago ; for instance, the extensively studied site of Monte Verde II in southern Chile dates back to around 14,550 years ago . However, some scientists debate The timing of when humans first arrived in South America.
To Antarctica
Traditionally, the first person to set foot in Antarctica was the American sealer and explorer John Davis. apparently attained the seventh continent In 1821, though this assertion is contested. It could possibly have been visited by the Norwegian businessman Henrik Bull or the Norwegian explorer Carsten Borchgrevink, who each asserted they had traveled there in 1895. Additionally, there’s a theory that Early Maoris traveled to Antarctica. from New Zealand as far back as the seventh century, but this is not accepted According to numerous historians and scientists.
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