Book contents
- African Genesis:
- Series page
- African Genesis
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Contributors
- Foreword
- Acknowledgements
- 1 African Genesis: an evolving paradigm
- 2 Academic genealogy
- Part I In search of origins: evolutionary theory, new species and paths into the past
- Part II Hominin morphology through time: brains, bodies and teeth
- Part III Modern human origins: patterns and processes
- 17 Body size in African Middle Pleistocene Homo
- 18 The African origin of recent humanity
- 19 Assimilation and modern human origins in the African peripheries
- 20 Patterns of Middle Pleistocene hominin evolution in Africa and the emergence of modern humans
- 21 Integration of the genetic, anatomical and archaeological data for the African origin of modern humans: problems and prospects
- Part IV In search of context: hominin environments, behaviour and lithic cultures
- Index
- Plate Section
20 - Patterns of Middle Pleistocene hominin evolution in Africa and the emergence of modern humans
from Part III - Modern human origins: patterns and processes
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 April 2012
- African Genesis:
- Series page
- African Genesis
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Contributors
- Foreword
- Acknowledgements
- 1 African Genesis: an evolving paradigm
- 2 Academic genealogy
- Part I In search of origins: evolutionary theory, new species and paths into the past
- Part II Hominin morphology through time: brains, bodies and teeth
- Part III Modern human origins: patterns and processes
- 17 Body size in African Middle Pleistocene Homo
- 18 The African origin of recent humanity
- 19 Assimilation and modern human origins in the African peripheries
- 20 Patterns of Middle Pleistocene hominin evolution in Africa and the emergence of modern humans
- 21 Integration of the genetic, anatomical and archaeological data for the African origin of modern humans: problems and prospects
- Part IV In search of context: hominin environments, behaviour and lithic cultures
- Index
- Plate Section
Summary
Over the last two decades, different views have emerged on the mode of Middle Pleistocene evolution in Africa, and the origin of modern humans. These mainly range from an evolutionary change within one species Homo sapiens over much of the Middle Pleistocene, to the existence of two or three different species during this time. This chapter presents the results of a new comprehensive study of the Middle and early Late Pleistocene cranial remains based on a large number of both non-metric and metric features of potential phylogenetic relevance. The aim of the study is to examine whether modern human cranial morphology is a result of long-term diachronic changes favouring a single evolving species, H. sapiens, or whether multiple Middle Pleistocene species were involved in the evolution to modern H. sapiens. Results from this study suggest that the origin of modern human anatomy is a product of a continuous remodelling of major aspects of vault and face from conditions seen in early Middle Pleistocene groups. The increasing mosaic-like emergence and accumulation of more derived, near-modern or modern morphology over this long period of time does not provide convincing evidence for any anagenetic or cladogenetic speciation events. Rather, it appears that any patterns or subdivisions were below the species level.
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- Chapter
- Information
- African GenesisPerspectives on Hominin Evolution, pp. 394 - 422Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2012
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