7 Facts About the Earliest Humans on Earth

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Recorded human history is just a tiny blip on the temporal radar. The Pyramids of Giza were built around 2500 BCE, but 4,500 years ago seems like yesterday when you compare it to the 300,000 years our species, Homo sapiens, has been around. Since our earliest ancestors didn’t leave as much behind, we know very little about how they lived.

Human,” however, is a genus, not a species, and the history of humanity includes much more than sapiens. With new genetic research, we’re learning more about our ancestry all the time — but much of what we learn just raises even more questions. How closely related are we to Neanderthals? When did humans start making art? What were our ancestors’ day-to-day lives like? Pique your curiosity with these seven facts about the very earliest humans on Earth.

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The Earliest Homo Sapiens Were From Africa

Scientists first theorized in the 19th century that humans originated in Africa, and modern genetic science has largely confirmed that to be the case, though researchers are still working to determine the exact geography. Scientists also disagree on when and how humans dispersed. One early theory suggested that our Homo sapiens ancestors started to leave Africa around 60,000 years ago. Most non-African humans today can trace their origins back to a large exodus around that time, but smaller migrations may have started much earlier. Fossil evidence shows that groups of foragers arrived in Asia around 120,000 years ago, and brought skills such as deep-sea fishing and cave art with them. Other fossil discoveries, including a 210,000-year-old skull found in Greece, suggest some humans left Africa even earlier.

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Early Human Species Mated With One Another Frequently

Homo sapiens, Neanderthals, and Denisovans — the latter of which is an early human species discovered in 2008 — share a common ancestor, Homo heidelbergensis. This species also probably came from Africa, but had reached modern-day Israel more than 700,000 years ago. It has been theorized that when one group of Homo heidelbergensis left Africa more than 400,000 years ago, some moved west to Europe and evolved into Neanderthals; others moved east to Asia and became Denisovans. Those who stayed in Africa evolved into Homo sapiens.

When Homo sapiens eventually left Africa, they encountered Neanderthals and Denisovans and started reproducing, and Denisovans and Neanderthals mated with one another, too. Those two species are now extinct, but they live on in modern human DNA, which contains a significant amount of both — most non-Africans are between 1% and 4% Neanderthal, and many people with Southeast Asian and Pacific Island heritage are up to 5% Denisovan. Recent research shows that people of African descent have some Neanderthal DNA, too, likely a result of back-and-forth migration.

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5 Myths and Misconceptions About Ancient Rome

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Despite what popular culture would have us believe, ancient Rome was not a single historical period when everyone wore togas and overindulged at decadent feasts. The rise and subsequent fall of ancient Rome encompassed several distinct time frames, from the founding of the city of Rome in 753 BCE to the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 CE. These periods included the Roman Kingdom from 753 BCE to 509 BCE, denoting Rome’s first political model (a monarchal government); the Roman Republic from 509 BCE to 27 BCE, when the Romans switched from a monarchy to elected magistrates; and the Roman Empire from 27 BCE to 476 CE, which combined elements from both the republic and the monarchy.

The Roman Empire, which began with the rise of Augustus as the first emperor in 27 BCE, is often considered the peak of ancient Roman civilization. It was during this time that Rome expanded its territory across three continents and became a dominant world power. Today, much of what we think we know about ancient Rome has been blurred to encompass hundreds of years of history and thousands of miles of geography. Here are five common myths and misconceptions about this ancient superpower.

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Myth: The Roman Empire Fell in 476 CE

Often, when people talk about the fall of the Roman Empire, they’re speaking only about the Western Roman Empire. The fall of Western Rome — which ushered in the period in Europe known as the Middle Ages — is traditionally noted as 476 CE, when Romulus Augustulus, the last Roman emperor of the West, was deposed by the Germanic leader Odoacer. The Eastern Roman Empire, meanwhile, was formed in 330 CE by Constantine I at the site of the ancient Greek colony of Byzantium. Also known as the Byzantine Empire, it continued to exist for nearly a thousand years after the fall of the Western Roman Empire, until the conquest of Constantinople by the Ottoman army in 1453. The Eastern Roman Empire developed a more diverse culture that flourished during the early medieval period. After the fall, the influence of Byzantine culture continued in countries that practiced its Eastern Orthodox religion, including Greece, Romania, and Russia.

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Myth: Togas Were Always White, and They Were Worn by Everyone

The epic poem “Aeneid,” written by the Roman poet Virgil sometime around 30 BCE to 19 BCE, refers to Romans as “masters of the world, and people of the toga.” The most commonly reproduced image of the Roman toga is a long, white piece of fabric draped over the shoulder, but toga styles were more complex throughout the ancient Roman era. While any Roman citizen could wear the natural, undyed wool toga, togas in other colors, including purple and red, as well as togas with stripes and designs, signified a specific status in Roman society. Over time, the toga became a ceremonial garment rarely worn by the average Roman citizen. The enduring association between Rome and the toga may have something to do with the fact that Virgil was commissioned by Emperor Augustus to write the “Aeneid.” Under Augustus, all Roman citizens who conducted business in the forum or attended the theater were required to wear a toga to distinguish themselves from noncitizens and identify their social class.

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6 Little-Known Facts About Greek Mythology

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From Theseus’ battle with the minotaur to the epic siege of Troy, tales from Greek mythology have gripped humanity’s imagination for millennia. Likely originating with the Minoan civilization on the island of Crete (around 3000 to 1100 BCE), these stories portray the adventures and foibles of gods and heroes. The ancient Greeks looked to these myths — which were passed down orally for centuries before being transcribed — to explain everything from earthquakes to the creation of the universe. Though our scientific understanding of the world has progressed since ancient times, Greek mythology continues to shape and inspire many aspects of our culture to this day, from business to entertainment to sports. For a quick look at the history of this fascinating body of stories, here are six facts about Greek mythology.

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The Amazons Were Based on the Real Warrior Women of the Steppe

The Greek myth of the Amazons — a race of warrior women descended from Ares, the god of war — has inspired countless works of art, including the character of Wonder Woman. According to the myths, these warriors lived in a city called Themiskyra composed entirely of women, located on the Black Sea. Until recently, scholars believed that the Amazons were the stuff of fiction — but a growing body of evidence suggests that the stories were inspired by real-life female warriors who roamed the grasslands of the Eurasian Steppe on horseback and wielded bows and arrows. While these women differed from the Amazons of legend in some specifics (for example, they lived alongside men), leading experts now believe that ancient Greek encounters with these warriors gave rise to the legend that spread across the world.

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Greek Mythology’s Most Famous Author May Have Never Existed

Credited as the author of theIliadand theOdysseytwo of Greek mythology’s most important texts — Homer has been viewed as a towering literary figure for much of history. Traditionally, he was thought to have lived in the eighth or ninth century BCE, and was described as being blind and, by some accounts, illiterate (dictating his poems to a literate assistant for transcription). However, since the 18th century, scholars have questioned whether Homer even existed. Some academics, such as the American classicist Milman Parry, have suggested that Homer’s epic poems were the result of oral stories told by various poets and folk singers being compiled into singular texts. Other scholars have questioned historical inconsistencies throughout the poems that could imply parts of the text were written in different time periods. This debate has inspired an entire field of study around Homer’s identity, known as the “Homeric Question.” While Homer’s existence is uncertain, one thing is for sure: The Iliad and the Odyssey continue to transfix and entertain readers to this day.

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5 Myths About the Egyptian Queen Cleopatra

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Though she’s one of the most famous leaders of the ancient world, Cleopatra’s life is still shrouded in mystery. Cleopatra VII Thea Philopator ruled Egypt for 22 years as a powerful queen, and while her legacy is filled with tales of a goddess incarnate who seduced men to get what she wanted and had no problem killing anyone who got in her way (even her own siblings), much of this image is thanks to Hollywood and other pop culture depictions of the Egyptian queen. Actress Elizabeth Taylor famously played her in the big-budget 1963 film Cleopatra, and there have been numerous other portrayals of this enigmatic leader in art, fiction, and film — most of them filled with anachronisms and exaggerations and lacking in historical accuracy.

What historians do know is that when Cleopatra’s father, Ptolemy XII, died in 51 BCE, 18-year-old Cleopatra was named his successor. Over the course of her reign, she ruled alongside two of her brothers and her oldest son. She envisioned herself as the sole ruler of Egypt, however, and formed alliances with two of Rome’s most powerful generals in order to protect and maintain her power. In 47 BCE, she bore a son by Julius Caesar, nicknaming him Caesarion, or “little Caesar,” despite his illegitimacy. A few years later, in 44 BCE, Cleopatra’s relationship with Caesar came to an abrupt end when the Roman leader was assassinated, forcing her to develop new strategic alliances to secure her reign.

The Egyptian queen found a new political and romantic partner in Caesar’s friend and ally Mark Antony. With Antony, Cleopatra continued her political alliance with Rome, and they had three children together. However, Caesar’s adopted son Octavian declared war on the pair, leading to their untimely deaths. Cleopatra died in 30 BCE at age 39, as the last Egyptian queen and next-to-last Egyptian pharaoh. (Octavian had the last pharaoh, Cleopatra and Caesar’s 17-year-old son Caesarion, put to death just days later.) Octavian went on to become the first Roman emperor, dubbed Augustus Caesar, embracing his role as Caesar’s heir and ending the Ptolemaic kingdom.

It has been over 2,000 years since Cleopatra’s death, but her fascinating life still captures the imagination. Here are five popular myths about the Egyptian queen that separate the truth from the legend. 

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Myth: Cleopatra Was Ethnically Egyptian

Cleopatra is one of the best-known figures in Egypt’s history , but she wasn’t ethnically Egyptian. Though she was born in Alexandria, Egypt, around 69 BCE, Cleopatra’s lineage is traced to Macedonian Greece. She was the daughter of Ptolemy XII, a descendant of Ptolemy I Soter, a Macedonian general who served under Alexander the Great and founded the Ptolemaic dynasty that ruled in Egypt. Historians aren’t certain about the identity of Cleopatra’s mother, but theories suggest Cleopatra was the daughter of either Ptolemy’s first wife, Cleopatra V; his second wife, whose name is unknown; or a concubine.

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Myth: Cleopatra Wasn’t Prepared to Be Queen

Little is known about Cleopatra’s life before she became queen, but as a member of Ptolemaic royalty, she was highly educated and received a well-rounded Hellenistic education that included rhetoric, philosophy, astronomy, music, and Greek literature. She spoke around nine languages (Egyptian, Greek, Latin, Syrian, Arabic, Hebrew, Ethiopian, Persian, and Aramaic) and was the first of the Ptolemaic line to learn the Egyptian language. Praised for her intellect, she was knowledgeable in a wide variety of subjects, including economics, military strategy, law, and linguistics.

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The Most Popular Things Traded on the Silk Road

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Though it’s often thought of as a single trail, the Silk Road was actually a vast network of trade routes spanning multiple centuries and continents, connecting cultures as far as 6,000 miles away from each other. The network started around 138 BCE, when Han dynasty China sent out an envoy to make trading connections with other Asian countries. Over the next two centuries, trade routes extended westward through the Indian subcontinent, the Syrian desert, and the Arabian Peninsula, all the way to Greece and Rome. Some of these connections were made over land, but many were made by sea, too. This vibrant network lasted around 1,500 years, ending in 1453 CE when the Ottoman Empire closed off trade with the West — but not before the global exchange of goods and ideas changed the course of history. Here are seven of the most influential and sought-after things that were traded on the Silk Road.

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Silk and Other Textiles

Craftspeople in China had been raising silkworms and working with silk for thousands of years before the luxurious textile became a valuable commodity. Silk was so prized in ancient Rome that one 19th-century German geographer named the Silk Road after the coveted material. Silk reached India in the second century BCE, and in the third century CE, Persia became a major silk-trading hub that connected Europe to East Asia. The trade route spread the popular textile around the world, paving the way for the complex woven patterns of Byzantium and Iran. Silk production, however, remained a closely guarded secret in Asia even after Byzantine Emperor Justinian I had silkworms smuggled over in bamboo tubes.

Silk wasn’t the only fiber that changed hands along the Silk Road, however. Hemp, cotton, and wool were all popular items as well. The cultural exchange also included finished fabric and weaving techniques. Different types of clothing traveled between nations, too; trousers, which made horseback riding easier, originated in Mongolia, and various sorts of woven belts evolved throughout the era.

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5 Facts About the World’s Oldest Countries

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While some modern countries are little more than a decade old, others boast a rich history dating back thousands of years. Long before nations such as Iran and Egypt became the independent states we know them as today, early governments were formed by ancient civilizations in those regions, laying the foundation for thousands of years of expansion and development.

It can be a challenge to determine the exact age of any given country, but based on the current archaeological data, there are several nations in the Middle East and Asia that consistently rank among the oldest in human history. Here are five facts about some of the world’s oldest countries.

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The First Architect Known by Name Lived in Ancient Egypt

Though the Great Pyramids of Giza are the most famous ancient Egyptian landmarks, the region is home to an even older structure. The Pyramid of Djoser — built in the mid-27th century BCE — predates the Great Pyramids by roughly a century, and was designed by a man named Imhotep, who is considered to be one of human civilization’s first architects. Imhotep not only conceived of this groundbreaking pyramidal structure, but also gets credit for using columns before anyone else and revolutionizing the use of stone in building construction. He also offered vast contributions to the world of medicine, writing texts describing the early diagnosis and treatment of many ailments. In 525 BCE, centuries after his death, Imhotep even rose to the status of full deity, being dubbed the Egyptian god of science, medicine, and architecture.

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Two Vietnamese Sisters Led a Successful Revolt Against China

According to Vietnamese legend, the origins of Vietnam date back to around the year 2879 BCE, which marked the beginning of the Hồng Bàng dynasty — the first recorded dynasty in the nation’s history. For millennia, the Vietnamese people ruled over their own territory, which was invaded by members of China’s Han dynasty in 111 BCE. After a century of Chinese control, two women rose up to push back against their Chinese invaders, earning the status of national heroes in the process. The Trưng sisters — Trưng Trắc and Trưng Nhị — mobilized locals in an effort to avenge the death of the former’s husband, who had been executed by Chinese forces without trial. This newly formed army consisted of around 80,000 soldiers and 36 female generals. The forces rebelled against the Chinese in the year 39 CE, successfully driving the invaders out of the country. Though the sisters' reign over the region was brief, as China recaptured the territory in 43 CE, the legend of their exploits and tragic fate only grew from there. Temples were dedicated in their honor throughout Vietnam, as people prayed to them for rain in times of drought. They remain important figures in Vietnamese history two millennia later.

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Fascinating Facts About Everyday Life in Ancient Rome

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Ancient Roman history is usually dominated by larger-than-life rulers such as Julius Caesar and eloquent senators such as Cicero. However, these men led an empire of millions of everyday citizens who were usually less concerned with conquering the world than they were with putting bread on the table and simply enjoying life. A look at the lives of typical Roman citizens reveals a culture that in many fundamental ways is not so different from ours; the ancient Romans worked, played, socialized, and expressed themselves — albeit often quite rudely. Here are six facts that offer a glimpse of what it was like to be an average citizen in one of the world’s largest and most influential empires.

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No Matter Where You Went, You Could Always Find a Public Bath

The Romans were masterful architects of public baths, called thermae. These were complex facilities with elaborate heating systems where Romans from all walks of life came together to relax, socialize, and of course, get clean. Bathing in the Roman thermae wasn’t just a simple dip in the water — there was a whole process involved. A visitor would begin by doing some light exercise followed by a hot bath, then a warm bath, and then a cold bath; they could also spend time in a steam room or get a massage. Public baths were a central part of Roman culture, and some citizens even considered them a symbol of Roman identity. In fact, baths were such an essential component of daily life that they were built in nearly every part of the Roman Empire, even in its most remote regions. Roman thermae could be found as far north as the British Isles and as far south as Egypt.

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The Empire’s Cities Were Filled With Graffiti

Archaeological evidence from well-preserved ancient Roman cities such as Pompeii and Herculaneum reveals that, much like people in modern society, the denizens of ancient Rome liked to express themselves through some good old-fashioned graffiti. Since the ancient Romans lived a few millennia before the invention of spray paint, they had to make do by scratching and carving their designs and messages into plaster surfaces around the empire’s cities. Graffiti carved by everyday Romans can be found on the walls of bars, public baths, and other places where people commonly went to socialize. Ancient Roman street art ranged from simple drawings of stick figures and animals to colorful, R-rated jokes and insults. While some of the more famous Romans, such as emperors and statesmen, were commemorated through huge monuments and stately statues, graffiti was often a common person’s best shot at leaving their mark on the world, and many ancient graffiti artists included their names in the messages they left, to be remembered by future generations — even if it was just for a rude boast or scatological joke.

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6 Amazing Breakthroughs Made by the Ancient Greeks

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For more than two millennia, the ideas of the ancient Greeks have spurred some of humanity’s greatest achievements. Philosophy, drama, science, and mathematics sprung from that particular peninsula in the Mediterranean. The work of the Greek scholars propelled Muslim thinkers during the Islamic Golden Age, and the European rediscovery of their ancient texts ignited the Renaissance and sustained the Enlightenment, giving way to new scientific advancements and even new ways of living and governing. These are six amazing breakthroughs from ancient Greece, born from some of history’s greatest minds.

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Pythagoras’ Theorem Formed the Foundation of Geometry

Pythagoras of Samos is arguably the most famous mathematician from ancient Greece (and there were a lot of them), and that’s because nearly every person at some point in their educational journey is taught his eponymous theorem. Expressed as a2 + b2 = c2, the Pythagorean theorem states that the square of two sides of a right triangle is equal to the hypotenuse. In ancient times, this proved the existence of irrational numbers and formed the cornerstone of what became Euclidean geometry (more on Euclid later), which plays a very real role in construction and navigation today. Some of the world’s smartest minds have set out to provide proofs of the Pythagorean theorem, including Albert Einstein (he was 12 at the time), and new proofs are still being discovered to this day. Simply put, the world would be a very different place without Pythagoras’ triangular insight.

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7 Facts That Reveal the Wonder of the Ancient Maya

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For thousands of years — beginning around 1800 BCE — the Maya flourished throughout Mexico and Central America, primarily calling modern-day southern Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, and parts of Honduras and El Salvador home. One of the great civilizations of ancient Mesoamerica (along with the Olmecs and Aztecs), the Maya created a sophisticated society with advanced mathematics, architecture, and writing. Today, the Maya peoples make up one of the largest Indigenous populations in the Americas.  Here are seven facts that explore the complexity and wonder of this ancient culture.

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The Maya Were Skilled Mathematicians 

The numerical system used by the Maya, as well as many other Mesoamerican cultures, was a vigesimal (or “base 20”) system. While our modern “base 10” system uses 1, 10, 100, 1,000, and so on, the Maya used 1, 20, 400, 8,000, etc. The Maya system was much more effective for counting than the confusing system of numerals used in the Roman Empire, and the Maya also devised the concept of zero (perhaps around the year 36 BCE), a major mathematical accomplishment. The Maya leveraged their mathematical skills to build impressive cities, chart astronomical movement (using little more than geometry and some sticks), and develop their famous calendar. Speaking of which…

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7 Facts About the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World

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The first list of the wonders of the world was compiled by the ancient Greek writer and poet Antipater of Sidon in the second century BCE, and it included seven extraordinary landmarks around the Mediterranean and modern-day Middle East. Since then, these ancient marvels have been a subject of study, fascination, and awe. The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World were stunning achievements of sculpture and architecture, built with such intricacy and at such a massive scale that in some cases historians remain baffled as to how ancient civilizations were able to create them. Most of the wonders have been lost to time — only the Great Pyramid of Giza remains in any substantial form — but they still capture the imaginations of generations of people who look to them as a source of beauty and inspiration. Here, we take a brief tour around the ancient Mediterranean and Middle East with seven facts about the ancient wonders of the world.

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The Great Pyramid of Giza Is the Largest Compass Ever Built

If you happen to find yourself lost in the deserts of Egypt, you might want to seek out the Great Pyramid of Giza to find your way home. The four corners of the Great Pyramid are aligned with the four cardinal directions, and with such a high degree of accuracy that experts are still trying to puzzle out how the ancient Egyptians pulled it off. The pyramid’s alignment is accurate within one-fifteenth of a degree, a measure that’s difficult to achieve even with modern technology, and especially for a structure so massive (in its prime, the Great Pyramid stood 481 feet tall). Historians theorize that ancient engineers may have used shadows cast by the sun or the location of stars in the night sky to orient the massive structure. However, to this day, the exact method the Egyptians used to pull off this stunning feat of architecture and engineering remains a mystery.

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