Humans In Europe Research Articles

Archaeological Evidence for the Emergence of Language, Symbolism, and Music–An Alternative Multidisciplinary Perspective

In recent years, there has been a tendency to correlate the origin of modern culture and language with that of anatomically modern humans. Here we discuss this correlation in the light of results provided by our first hand analysis of ancient and recently discovered relevant archaeological and paleontological material from Africa and Europe. We focus in particular on the evolutionary significance of lithic and bone technology, the emergence of symbolism, Neandertal behavioral patterns, the identification of early mortuary practices, the anatomical evidence for the acquisition of language, the development of conscious symbolic storage, the emergence of musical traditions, and the archaeological evidence for the diversification of languages during the Upper Paleolithic. This critical reappraisal contradicts the hypothesis of a symbolic revolution coinciding with the arrival of anatomically modern humans in Europe some 40,000 years ago, but also highlights inconsistencies in the anatomically–culturally modern equation and the potential contribution of anatomically “pre-modern” human populations to the emergence of these abilities. No firm evidence of conscious symbolic storage and musical traditions are found before the Upper Paleolithic. However, the oldest known European objects that testify to these practices already show a high degree of complexity and geographic variability suggestive of possible earlier, and still unrecorded, phases of development.

Influenza: prospect for prevention and control.

Influenza is an emerging and re-emerging disease. Since the late 1930s influenza viruses have been isolated yearly from different parts of the world during epidemics and pandemics. The "epidemiologic success" of influenza is due largely to rapid and unpredictable antigenic changes (antigenic drift) among human influenza viruses, and the emergence of new subtypes (antigenic shift), mostly from reassortment between human and avian influenza viruses. Antigenic shifts were attributed to the global pandemic viruses of 1957 (H2N2 Asian flu) and 1968 (H3N2 Hong Kong flu). Concern over possible new pandemics has been heightened by recent reports of human infection in Asia in 1997 with avian viruses (H5N1) and in 1999 (H9N2) and isolation of human-avian reassorted viruses from pigs and humans in Europe. Influenza has a high rate of inapparent infection, short incubation and high infectivity; epidemics usually start abruptly and spread rapidly to neighboring communities and countries. Isolation and quarantine are often unsuccessful in preventing the spread of the infection. Although not perfect, immunization and chemoprophylaxis are highly effective at minimizing the spread of influenza and reducing morbidity and mortality, social disruption and economic loss. Plans for future influenza epidemics and pandemics require national and international programs to be in place for the monitoring of influenza activity, the dissemination and exchange of information and the provision and delivery of sufficient quantities of vaccines and antiviral agents. This paper reviews and discusses the antigenic variations of the influenza virus, potential influenza pandemics, protective efficacy of inactivated vaccines and antiviral agents and preparation for control of future epidemics and pandemics.

The Geography of Neandertals and Modern Humans in Europe and the Greater Mediterranean:The Geography of Neandertals and Modern Humans in Europe and the Greater Mediterranean.

American AnthropologistVolume 103, Issue 4 p. 1180-1181 Book Reviews First published: December 2001 https://doi.org/10.1525/aa.2001.103.4.1180AboutPDF ToolsExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Abstract Book reviewed in this article: The Geography of Neandertals and Modern Humans in Europe and the Greater Mediterranean. Ofer Bar-Yosef and David Pilbeam, eds. Volume103, Issue4December 2001Pages 1180-1181 RelatedInformation

Troubling the Neandertals: A Reply to Langbroek's ‘The Trouble with Neandertals’

We cannot but agree with the basic contentions of Langbroek's paper that 1) the replacement of Neandertals by early modern humans in Europe is best understood from a perspective of historical contingency and 2) that it must have had a lot to do with the ‘very dynamic spatio-temporal redrawings of the population maps of Europe during the Weichsel glacial’ against the background of ‘the emergence of increasing climatological instability during the later part of OIS 3, with significant fluctuations at relatively short timescales’. This is the kind of approach we have been advocating to effectively supersede the reductionist ‘superiority’ paradigm that has dominated the literature on Neandertal extinction for the last twenty years.

Troubling the Neandertals: A Reply to Zilhã and Trinkaus

We cannot but agree with the basic contentions of Langbroek's paper that 1) the replacement of Neandertals by early modern humans in Europe is best understood from a perspective of historical contingency and 2) that it must have had a lot to do with the ‘very dynamic spatio-temporal redrawings of the population maps of Europe during the Weichsel glacial’ against the background of ‘the emergence of increasing climatological instability during the later part of OIS 3, with significant fluctuations at relatively short timescales’. This is the kind of approach we have been advocating to effectively supersede the reductionist ‘superiority’ paradigm that has dominated the literature on Neandertal extinction for the last twenty years.

The Geography of Neandertals and Modern Humans in Europe and the Greater Mediterranean. Ofer Bar-Yosef , David Pilbeam

Previous articleNext article No AccessBook ReviewsThe Geography of Neandertals and Modern Humans in Europe and the Greater Mediterranean. Ofer Bar-Yosef , David Pilbeam Lawrence Guy StrausLawrence Guy Straus Search for more articles by this author PDFPDF PLUS Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail SectionsMoreDetailsFiguresReferencesCited by Journal of Anthropological Research Volume 57, Number 1Spring, 2001 Article DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1086/jar.57.1.3630802 Views: 3Total views on this site Copyright 2001 The University of New MexicoPDF download Crossref reports no articles citing this article.

Le gisement pléistocène de la « Sima del Elefante å (Sierra de Atapuerca, Espagne)

‘Sima del Elefante’: A New Pleistocene Site at the Sierra de Atapuerca (Spain). We present preliminary results of the study of a new Pleistocene site at the Atapuerca Hill, known as the ‘Sima del Elefante’. This is a cave deposit more than 21 m thick of sedimentary sequence that has been divided into 21 litostratigraphic units, grouped in three sedimentary phases, with well-distinguished texture, colour and composition. The ‘Sima del Elefante’ has offered a variety of paleontological record, with a particular richness in fossil birds, rodents and carnivores. Paleomagnetic and biostratigraphic data allow dating the lower levels of the site (E-8 to E-14) as Lower Pleistocene. On the other hand, the middle and upper levels of the sequence (E-15 to E-19) seem to correspond to the end of the Middle Pleistocene in the light of the macro-vertebrates remains and the presence of several archaeological levels with a lithic industry of musterian features. During the 2000 field season, a flake on flint of anthropic manufacture was discovered at E-11 level. This finding, together with other evidences recovered in previous seasons, represent the oldest evidence of human occupation at the Sierra de Atapuerca, and confirms the presence of humans in Europe at least one million years ago.

Dating the origin of modern humans

Abstract One of the most serious past difficulties facing realistic tests of evolutionary models for modern human origins was the lack of widely applicable dating procedures that could reach beyond the practical limits of radiocarbon dating. Moreover, the amount of fossil material that had to be sacrificed to obtain a conventional radiocarbon date meant that human fossils could generally only be dated indirectly through supposedly associated materials. Because of these limitations, the transition from Neanderthals to modern humans in Europe was believed to have occurred about 35 000 radiocarbon years ago, but detailed reconstruction of the processes involved (for example, evolution or population replacement) was not practicable. In the Levant, the transition period from Neanderthals to modern humans was believed to lie only slightly beyond this 35 000-year watershed. Elsewhere, in Africa, east Asia and Australasia, the chronology for modern human origins was even more difficult to establish. However, over the last fifteen years, radiocarbon and non-radiocarbon physical dating techniques such as luminescence and electron spin resonance have been increasingly refined, leading to a revolution in our understanding of the timescale for human evolution, particularly for the last 200 000 years. Although each dating method has its own strengths and weaknesses, the picture that now emerges is one of a gradual evolution of Neanderthal morphology in Europe, in parallel with a similar evolution of modern humans in Africa. Modern humans also appear surprisingly early in the Levant ( c. 100 ka ago) and Australia ( c. 60 ka ago). However, many uncertainties still surround the process of establishment of our species globally.

Activity, Climate, and Postcranial Robusticity

Postcranial robusticity—the massiveness of the skeleton—figures prominently in the debate over the origin of modern humans. Anthropologists use postcranial robusticity to infer the activity levels of prehistoric populations, and changes in robusticity are often used to support scenarios of adaptive change. These scenarios explain differences in morphology as the result of a change in lifestyle (habitual activity). One common scenario posits that early modern humans were more gracile than Neandertals because the modern humans’ complex culture required less physical exertion. However, lifestyle is only one of many influences on morphology. Climate has clear correlations with physique and skeletal proportions. Analysis of recent humans that differ in terms of lifestyle and climatic adaptations reveals that limb bone robusticity varies with climate as much as or more than with lifestyle. Many of the differences in robusticity between Neandertals and early modern humans appear to be related to climatic adaptations. The results support the single‐recent‐origin model of modern human origins. The differences in robusticity between Neandertals and early modern humans suggest that population replacement rather than local evolution best explains the emergence of modern humans in Europe. Both climatic adaptations (primarily body proportions) and lifestyle should be considered in analyses of robusticity.

Activity, Climate, and Postcranial Robusticity: Implications for Modern Human Origins and Scenarios of Adaptive Change

Postcranial robusticity--the massiveness of the skeleton--figures prominently in the debate over the origin of modern humans. Anthropologists use postcranial robusticity to infer the activity levels of prehistoric populations, and changes in robusticity are often used to support scenarios of adaptive change. These scenarios explain differences in morphology as the result of a change in lifestyle (habitual activity). One common scenario posits that early modern humans were more gracile than Neandertals because the modern humans' complex culture required less physical exertion. However, lifestyle is only one of many influences on morphology. Climate has clear correlations with physique and skeletal proportions. Analysis of recent humans that differ in terms of lifestyle and climatic adaptations reveals that limb bone robusticity varies with climate as much as or more than with lifestyle. Many of the differences in robusticity between Neandertals and early modern humans appear to be related to climatic adaptations. The results support the single-recent origin model of modern human origins. The differences in robusticity between Neandertals and early modern humans suggest that population replacement rather than local evolution best explains the emergence of modern humans in Europe. Both climatic adaptations (primarily body proportions) and lifestyle should be considered in analyses of robusticity.

Direct radiocarbon dates for Vindija G(1) and Velika Pecína late Pleistocene hominid remains.

New accelerator mass spectrometry radiocarbon dates taken directly on human remains from the Late Pleistocene sites of Vindija and Velika Pecina in the Hrvatsko Zagorje of Croatia are presented. Hominid specimens from both sites have played critical roles in the development of current perspectives on modern human evolutionary emergence in Europe. Dates of approximately 28 thousand years (ka) before the present (B.P.) and approximately 29 ka B.P. for two specimens from Vindija G(1) establish them as the most recent dated Neandertals in the Eurasian range of these archaic humans. The human frontal bone from Velika Pecina, generally considered one of the earliest representatives of modern humans in Europe, dated to approximately 5 ka B.P., rendering it no longer pertinent to discussions of modern human origins. Apart from invalidating the only radiometrically based example of temporal overlap between late Neandertal and early modern human fossil remains from within any region of Europe, these dates raise the question of when early modern humans first dispersed into Europe and have implications for the nature and geographic patterning of biological and cultural interactions between these populations and the Neandertals.

Earliest humans in Europe: the age of TD6 Gran Dolina, Atapuerca, Spain

Hominid remains found in 1994 from the stratified Gran Dolina karst-filling at the Atapuerca site in NE Spain were dated to somewhat greater than 780ka based on palaeomagnetic measurements, making these the oldest known hominids in Europe (sensu stricto). We report new ESR and U-series results on teeth from four levels of the Gran Dolina deposit which confirm the palaeomagnetic evidence, and indicate that TD6 (from which the human remains have been recovered) dates to the end of the Early Pleistocene. The results for the other levels are consistent with estimates based mainly on microfaunal evidence, and suggest that TD8, TD10 and TD11 date to the Middle Pleistocene.

Evaluation of human seroreactivity to Bartonella species in Sweden.

Among the species that compose the expanding genus Bartonella, thus far only B. henselae and B. quintana have reportedly been isolated from humans in Europe. To evaluate the prevalence of Bartonella infection in Sweden, we conducted a retrospective serological examination of 126 human serum samples. These samples were analyzed for antibodies to B. henselae, B. quintana, and B. elizabethae. Serum samples from 100 blood donors, who spanned the ages of 20 to 60 and had no apparent clinical signs of illness, were also studied as a control group. An immunoglobulin G indirect fluorescence antibody assay revealed 4 and 8.3% Bartonella positivity rates for the blood donor and patient group, respectively, when a cutoff titer of >/=64 was chosen. Among the blood donors, four were seropositive to B. elizabethae; one of these also had concordant positive titer to B. henselae. In the patient group, 14 serum samples were positive against Bartonella spp. These serum specimens represented nine patients. In three of these seropositive patients, paired serum samples displayed a fourfold increase in antibody titer to at least one of the three antigens. These three patients are discussed. In this report we also present a case study of a 60-year-old Swedish male with fatal myocarditis. Postmortem serological analysis revealed a high titer against B. elizabethae. PCR and nucleotide sequencing of the myocardial tissue from this patient, and of liver tissue from one of the other three patients, showed sequences similar to B. quintana. The age, geographical origin, animal contacts, and serological response pattern to the different Bartonella antigens differed among the four patients. This study substantiates the presence of Bartonella spp. in Sweden, documents the seroreactivity to three Bartonella antigens in Swedish patients, and reports the first two cases of B. quintana-like infections in Sweden.

Molecular characterization of Coxiella burnetii isolates.

Restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) was used for the differentiation of 80 Coxiella burnetii isolates derived from animals and humans in Europe, USA, Africa and Asia. After NotI restriction of total C. burnetii DNA and pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) 20 different restriction patterns were distinguished. The index of discrimination for this typing system was 0.86. Comparison and phylogenetic analysis of the different RFLP patterns revealed evolutionary relationships among groups that corresponded to the geographical origin of the isolates. This finding was confirmed by genetic mapping. No correlation between restriction group and virulence of isolates was detected.

From Asia to Europe: mitochondrial DNA sequence variability in Bulgarians and Turks.

Two hypervariable sequence segments in the control region of mitochondrial DNA were determined in samples of Bulgarians and Turks. The Turkish sample presented a higher degree of internal diversity, in terms of total number of variable nucleotides, as well as in the average pairwise nucleotide difference. Pairwise difference distributions were built for both samples, yielding smooth bell shapes in agreement with the Rogers and Harpending model. The Bulgarian and Turkish data were compared with several European and W. Asian Caucasoid populations (Basques, Tuscans, Sardinians, British, Middle Easterners and Indians). Mean pairwise differences suggest that a demographic expansion occurred sequentially in the Middle East, through Turkey, to the rest of Europe (Bulgaria included). Current mutation rate estimates date this expansion in times ranging between 50,000 and 100,000 years ago and, thus, would correspond to the arrival of anatomically modern humans in Europe. Sequence trees for segment I show that European and Middle Eastern sequences derived from the reference sequence. Coalescence times for segment I sequences agree with those predicted by pairwise distributions. Genetic trees were constructed between populations and revealed an extreme homogeneity between European samples.

Lower limb length of European early modern humans in relation to mobility and climate

There are two competing hypotheses to explain the relatively long lower limbs of the earliest modern Europeans. The first follows from Allen's (1877) rule and posits that the long legs are indicative of gene flow from warmer regions at the time of the archaic/modern Homo sapiens transition. The second maintains that the long lower limbs are an adaptive response to selection for locomotor efficiency. This paper tests predictions derived from these two competing hypotheses using anthropometric, residential mobility and climatic data for a sample of 19 recent hunter-gatherer groups. For this sample, there is no relationship between relative lower limb length (as reflected in relative sitting height) and residential mobility. Consequently, the mobility hypothesis can be rejected. However, a significant relationship between climate and relative lower limb length could not be rejected. With regard to Later Pleistocene human evolution, these results are interpreted as evidence for significant gene flow from tropical regions associated with the first appearance of modern humans in Europe.

Simulating the global human expansion in the LatePleistocene

A computer model of human population dynamics is used to study the migration of the first modem humans across the world in the Late Pleistocene. An African origin for modern humans is found to be consistent with archaeological data on the time of arrival of humans in Europe, Australia and the New World. The quantitative model allows for a more precise discussion of human origins and it can be modified and extended as new data and new questions arise.

Subsistence, Technology, and Adaptive Variation in Middle Paleolithic Italy

This collaborative study addresses questions about variation in behavior within the Middle Paleolithic period of west‐central Italy. The findings are directly relevant to the evolutionary “fate” of Neandertals and the appearance of anatomically modern humans in Europe. Analyses focus on variation in a number of dimensions of subsistence and technology, including patterns of ungulate procurement, food transport, and tactics of stone tool manufacture and use. All of these dimensions exhibit marked, possibly “vectored” change in the study area between 110,000 and 35,000 years ago. Interpretations of the archeological data are supported by independent studies linking food search, procurement, and transport behaviors to ecological rules affecting all large terrestrial predators. In this way, variation observed in the faunal and lithic data sets can be shown to reflect startling diversity in the responses of Mousterian hominids to the world around them. The data provide important insights into the nature of adaptive “raw material” already in place during the Middle Paleolithic, the foremost conclusion of this study. That this variation in resource exploitation and land use also appears directional is more difficult to evaluate. It could be explained by hominids' adjustments to local changes in coastal habitat as sea level regressed or, alternatively, an evolutionary shift in hominid capabilities. The first interpretation is preferred, on the basis of available evidence, but cannot be advanced as a certain conclusion. This question provides much stimulus for continued research in the study area and other regions, using the methods presented.

Rethinking the Middle/Upper Paleolithic Transition

Previous articleNext article FreeCultural TransformationsRethinking the Middle/Upper Paleolithic TransitionRandall WhiteRandall White Search for more articles by this author PDFPDF PLUS Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail SectionsMoreDetailsFiguresReferencesCited by Current Anthropology Volume 33, Number S1Feb., 1992Supplement: Inquiry and Debate in the Human Sciences: Contributions from Current Anthropology, 1960-1990 Sponsored by the Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research Article DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1086/204020 Views: 1073Total views on this site Citations: 4Citations are reported from Crossref Copyright 1991 The Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological ResearchPDF download Crossref reports the following articles citing this article:José-Miguel Tejero, Rivka Rabinovich, Reuven Yeshurun, Talia Abulafia, Ofer Bar-Yosef, Omry Barzilai, Mae Goder-Goldberger, Israel Hershkovitz, Ron Lavi, Maayan Shemer, Ofer Marder, Anna Belfer-Cohen Personal ornaments from Hayonim and Manot caves (Israel) hint at symbolic ties between the Levantine and the European Aurignacian, Journal of Human Evolution 160 (Nov 2021): 102870.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhevol.2020.102870José-Miguel Tejero, Stefano Grimaldi Assessing bone and antler exploitation at Riparo Mochi (Balzi Rossi, Italy): implications for the characterization of the Aurignacian in South-western Europe, Journal of Archaeological Science 61 (Sep 2015): 59–77.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2015.05.003José-Miguel Tejero Towards complexity in osseous raw material exploitation by the first anatomically modern humans in Europe: Aurignacian antler working, Journal of Anthropological Archaeology 36 (Dec 2014): 72–92.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaa.2014.08.004Tamara Dogandžić, Shannon P. McPherron Demography and the demise of Neandertals: A comment on ‘Tenfold population increase in Western Europe at the Neandertal-to-modern human transition’, Journal of Human Evolution 64, no.44 (Apr 2013): 311–313.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhevol.2013.01.005

Cognitive Changes and the Emergence of Modern Humans in Europe

Explicitly symbolic behaviour is usually seen as the hallmark of the behavioural transition from the Middle to the Upper Palaeolithic in Europe. It is suggested here that this new symbolic component is reflected not only in art and personal ornamentation, but also in the design and form of stone tools, and perhaps also in features such as the organization of living structures. All these new features could be argued to reflect the emergence of typically Upper Palaeolithic ‘culture’ and technology. Whether these features can be correlated directly with the transition from archaic to modern skeletal forms remains more problematic; and whether the changes need reflect any significant shift in the neurological capacities for behaviour and cognition is equally controversial.