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Humans

Hominins may have left Africa 700,000 years earlier than we thought

Our hominin ancestors originated in Africa and the consensus is that they didn't leave there until about 1.8 million years ago, but stone tools found in Jordan challenge the idea

By Michael Marshall

9 February 2024

The Upper Zarqa valley in Jordan

Fabio Parenti

Our ancient ancestors may have ventured outside of Africa much earlier than previously believed, according to archaeologists working in Jordan. They say they have found stone tools there that were made and used 2.5 million years ago.

“Now we know that hominins left Africa at least 700,000 years before we thought,” says Walter Neves at the University of São Paulo in Brazil.

Read more

A family tree of humanity released in 2022 shows how we're all related

Our lineage appears to have remained in Africa…

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