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What is evolution?
Evolution is the lengthy and [[gradual:: Happening slowly or step by step over a period of time, rather than all at once.]] process of change through which modern humans evolved from apes. The evolution of humans occurred over millions of years, with each new species of humans becoming more advanced.
The theory of evolution was first introduced by Charles Darwin in his work On the Origin of Species in 1859. The story of human evolution was then pieced together due to the contributions of many other scientists.
Human evolution can be understood through the study of [[fossils:: The preserved remains or impressions of plants or animals that lived long ago, found in rocks.]], [[artefacts:: Objects made or used by humans in the past, often found during archaeological studies.]], and human remains, which is also known as archaeology. Archaeologists carefully find fossils and human remains like skulls and bones, in order to recreate the history of humans.
What were early human species like?
According to scientific evidence, the earliest humans evolved from apes around 5.6 million years ago in Africa.
One of the earliest known human species was the Australopithecus, which is known for bipedalism, or the ability to walk on two legs. However, the Australopithecus was still mainly living in trees. It wasn’t until the Homo Erectus, a species of early humans that evolved around 2 million years ago, that humans began to walk completely upright.
The Homo Erectus was also known for having a much larger brain than previous humans. The Homo Erectus was also the species that finally [[migrated:: Moved from one place to another, especially to live or work in a new region or country.]] from the African continent towards Asia and Europe. This migration may have been in search of more food and resources.
How did modern humans evolve?
Modern humans or the Homo Sapiens evolved from the Homo Erectus around 300,000 years ago. However, the evolution of Homo Sapiens has been debated by scientists.
There are two different opinions about how the early human species evolved into modern humans - the [[regional:: Related to a specific area or part of a country or the world.]] origin model and the Out of Africa model.
The regional origin theory argues that modern humans evolved from the Homo Erectus that were already living in various parts of the world. This means that modern humans evolved in different locations, at different times.
On the other hand, the Out of Africa theory argues that modern humans first evolved in Africa, and then migrated into different areas of the world. This would mean that modern humans evolved only from the Homo Erectus in Africa. Any other species of humans living in the world were replaced by these modern humans or Homo Sapiens.
Quick revision
Evolution is the slow process of change through which modern humans evolved from apes.
Human evolution can be studied through fossils and human remains like bones.
Modern humans may have evolved first in Africa, and then moved to the rest of the world.
