Science tells us that our current human species, called ‘hom*o sapiens,’ came from a long lineage of the family known as ‘Hominids.’ Life on earth itself emerged around 3.7 billion years ago, and there have been millions of different types of life forms, plants and animals included. The presence of the hom*o sapiens alone on earth with no other species of the same genus is something to wonder about.
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Unlike other plants and animals, hom*o sapiens is the only species to have no other species under the genus ‘hom*o.’ Fossil evidence shows various types of human-like species that once roamed the earth. So how did it come to the present state? And who was the first person on earth? Scroll down below to learn about the identity of Who was the first person on earth.
1. Do We Have Any Idea About The First Person On Earth?
As far as humans have been able to study and gather data on human evolution and lineage, there have been certain findings that have provided us with some idea about the human species. When talking about who was the first person on earth, the question of ‘What is considered a person?’ or how many years ago did the human species begin?’ naturally arises. Therefore to understand and quench our curiosity, we need to go back to our ancestor species.
2. Hominids (Family Hominidae)
It is a scientific fact that the human species share a common ancestor with the apes. There are two major Hominidae families of two apes/primates, both extant and extinct species. First is the ‘Superfamily Hominoidea’, consisting of humans, chimpanzees, Orangutans, and Gorillas. This family is also known as ‘Greater Apes.’ The second family is the ‘Hylobatidae’ which consists of Gibbons. This family is also known as the ‘lesser Apes.’
After the split from the ape family 2.5 million years ago, a new family of hominins was born. Historically and taxonomically, Hominids are considered a family of primate species that come under the genus ‘hom*o.’ Under this group/family, there have been more than 20 different species due to evolution. Some existed simultaneously, while others were a new version of an earlier species.
3. Who Was The First Person On Earth? Can It Be Decided?
Deciding on who was the first person on earth is an extremely difficult topic since the word itself is not well-defined. A human can mean a lot of different species other than the modern humans that exist at the current times. In general, a human means anyone belonging to the family Hominidae, which consists of several different humans and human-like apes. After the splitting, the hominids were still ape-like such as Australopithecus (southern apes). Let us look at the ‘hom*o’ species to get a clearer idea of who was the first person on earth?
4. First hom*o Species
The first species of the genus ‘hom*o’ was hom*o Habilis or ‘Handyman’. Therefore if ‘first person/human’, it is meant species of the hom*o genus, then the first human species would be hom*o habilis. Although hom*o erectus was the first to be upright, hom*o habilis is considered the first hom*o species. Even then, no one person was first, as evolution happens gradually in a group rather than one individual at a time. With time, evolution took place, and the hom*o genus is left with the last of its species, ‘hom*o sapiens‘ or modern humans. What do you feel like? Does this answer the question of ‘who was the first person on earth?’
4.1. Why Are hom*o Sapiens Alone?
Sapiens means wise; maybe that is why this species still strives to this day. Since the beginning of the human species, there have been several different species developing in different areas on earth. Most of these have lived simultaneously and even reproduced (hybrids). hom*o sapiens are hybrids of different human species.
hom*o sapiens became a unique species only around 15,000 years ago. Even then, other human species, such as the Neanderthals (hom*o neanderthalensis) and the Denisovans, were present and even bred with hom*o sapiens. But today, why are only hom*o sapiens left in the whole world?
It has been suggested that the hyper-social nature of the hom*o sapiens. Since sapiens is a hybrid of several different species of humans, the hybridization has worked in its favor. Especially the brain size, which is much bigger than in other species, is one important reason behind its survival. The sense of community and relationships more than kinship, language, nationality, and such ideas make hom*o sapiens unique and more resilient than others. The evolutionary phrase ‘survival of the fittest is probably at play here.
4.2. Archaic Humans (Genus hom*o)
No such evidence gives us a picture of who was the first person on earth. But the human lineage history does give us information on how many different human species once lived.
hom*o Habilis or Handyman is an extinct human species. These lived in the early Pleistocene east and South Africa. These were the first ape-like humans under the ‘hom*o’ genus. hom*o habilis was a descendant of the Australopithecus hominids (early hominins). These humans used stone tools. hom*o rudolfensis was another archaic human that lived around the same time.
hom*o Erectus, or ‘Upright-man’, was as the name suggests, more upright than hom*o habilis. These humans also existed during the Pleistocene epoch, around 2 million years ago. These humans developed and used tools such as spears for hunting.
These archaic humans evolved in western Asia around 40,000 years ago. Although humans are considered descendants of these human species, it is suggested that anatomically modern humans existed even before the Neanderthal recording. Most Asians have around 3 percent neanderthal DNA, probably from breeding with these human species.
The human lineage is not a straight line but a messy mix of different species developing on their own or mixing and becoming unique through evolution. Therefore it is difficult to determine who was the first person on earth.
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5. Human Evolution
Starting from the first common ancestor of Humans and chimps, there are many stages of human evolution. Although it is not a simple line of who came next, below is the most commonly used human evolutionary lineage. Studying this might provide us with a clearer picture of who was the first person on earth.
i. Dryapithecus
The species of this genus was the last link between humans and apes. They lived throughout Africa, China, Europe, and India. These inhabited dense forests and were largely herbivores.
Ii. Ramapithecus
Next comes Ramapithecus, which were separated species from apes. This could be the first human or hominin species. Mostly ape-like, these humans used to live in open grasslands.
iii. Australopithecus
The species of this genus were also ape-like, but these walked erect and used stone and such tools in their everyday life. The average adult height of these humans was around 4 feet tall. They are believed to be occupying the African continent since a fossil was found in Ethiopia. The Top 25 Things To Know About Anteaters
iv. hom*o Habilis
The first human of the genus ‘hom*o’, hom*o habilis, means handy-man. These can use their hands much more efficiently than humans before it. These are the most ancient representative of the ‘hom*o’ genus to which modern humans belong.
v. hom*o Erectus
The Upright-man used tools from bones, wood, stone, and even quartz. These are the first humans to use fire and live in caves in small communities. Their body is much closer to modern humans in terms of the spine.
vi. hom*o Sapiens Neanderthalensis
A sub-species of the species ‘hom*o Sapiens’, these descended from hom*o erectus. Their cranial size is much bigger than others before it. Evidence has shown the use of spears to kill big and small prey.
vii. hom*o Sapiens Sapiens
Another sub-species of hom*o sapiens is what modern humans come under. Bigger cranial size and a more rounded skull are what define this species. Art is said to have its beginning with this species.
That is the general picture of human evolution simply. However, there are several branches in the real human family tree. And studies are constantly being done on it since newer species are being found, adding to more complexity.
6. What Is The Modern Human?
Currently, there are two models explaining the origin of modern humans. The first is the ‘Out-of-Africa’ while the second is called the ‘multi-regional’ model. One of the models is more accepted by the experts than the others since it has more evidence to support it. But take a look at both models to get a good idea of the origin of modern humans.
6.1. Out-Of-Africa Model
Although the origin of the modern human is a highly active research field, the out-of-Africa model is the most widely accepted of the two. Genetic studies and genomic evidence support this model.
According to this model, modern humans evolved only in Africa and then migrated across the world to settle in different locations. It is supported by genetic study and the ‘mitochondrial Eve’ theory.
i. Mitochondrial Eve
In genetic studies, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is the most preferred for studying the evolution of humans. Modern DNA can be linked back to one African woman who lived 50-500,000 years ago. Therefore it supports the model that all modern humans share the same DNA. Does that mean we can determine who was the first person on earth? Can this answer the ever-lingering question of Who was the first person on earth?’
i.i. Who Was The First Person On Earth? Mitochondrial Eve?
This DNA is known as the ‘Mitochondrial Eve because this is passed down from a mother to her offspring. Any DNA from the father is destroyed during fertilization. Therefore the mitochondrial DNA that all humans carry is from the mother. The (mtDNA) that was passed down from one woman does not mean that the Mitochondrial Eve was the modern human, the fact is, this African mother of all modern humans was the last surviving human on the brink of extinction.
Another piece of evidence that supports this model is the Y chromosome which is only passed down from a father to a son. Therefore all modern human males can be traced back to one father. This supports the idea that modern humans evolved in only one place before migrating to other parts of the world.
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6.2. Multi-Regional Model
This model of human evolution proposes that hom*o sapiens evolved independently in different places on earth. According to this model, the hom*o sapiens were a mixture of the other human species. Studies of the extinct hominid genomes suggest the mixing of genes of different species. It is called ‘admixture’; two different and originally separated species interbreed to form new species.
Even today, most modern humans have at least 3 percent of the neanderthal genome, meaning that humans are a mixture or a hybrid of different human species rather than one unique independent species. This would also mean Neanderthals were the ancestors of modern humans rather than a cousin to our species.
It can be seen that both models are plausible, although currently, the first model is more accepted and popular than the other. This is because the first model has more evidence to support it. Nothing can be said with absolute certainty since it is still being actively researched and studied by evolutionary biologists. And this model answers the question of ‘ who was the first person on earth?’
7. Who Was The First Person On Earth? Myth
There are various religious ideas as to who was the first person on earth. Each religion or even mythology accounts for the first person put on earth. Here we discuss one of the most popular characters Adam in the Bible. Here is some religious opinion on the topic of ‘who was the first person on earth?’
7.1. Was Adam The Person On Earth?
Whether one is religious or not, pretty much everyone has heard about the mythical Adam and Eve of the Abrahamic religions, the tree of knowledge, the forbidden apple, etc. All this is explained in Genesis (1 & 2), the first book of the Hebrew Bible. The books of genesis 1 and 2 both give a different account of how god created man and who was the first person on earth.
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i. Genesis (God created Adam)
The first book tells that god created males and females simultaneously in his image. (Genesis 1: 27). These two first humans are not named in this narrative. They were just created and given the task of looking over everything God had created, like a steward of the earth.
ii. God Created Adam
The second book (Genesis 2:7) tells that the first man named Adam was created by god using dust from the ground, god breathed into Adams’s nostrils, and the first man on planet earth sprung to life. He was put in the Garden of Eden by god and advised not to eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
Afterward, god created Eve, the first female, from Adam’s rib. After some time, a snake convinces Eve to try the forbidden Apple from the tree of knowledge, and she then persuades Adam to do the same. They both get wise, and the concept of negative thoughts such as shame and evil starts to make their way into the human conscience. This act is known as the ‘original sin’ or the first sin and is considered the fall of mankind.
7.2. Adam And Eve Out Of Eden
After they were cast out from the ‘Garden Of Eden’ by god, Eve fell in Jeddah while Adam fell in a mountain peak located in Sri Lanka. These two meet once again in Mecca, and there, Adam decides that Mecca would be the second Garden of Eden.
Adam was not only the first male on earth but ‘Adam’ is used in the Bible (Genesis 2.7) as a pronoun to mean the first person (male and female both) or collectively as the whole ‘Mankind.’
8. Was Lucy The First Human?
If we take a ‘human’ to mean the first hominin, then Lucy, an Australopithecus, would be our oldest ancestor. Not Lucy as one individual but the species she represented would be the first person/humans on earth. Is Lucy the answer to ‘Who was the first person on earth?’
Scientists think that if we include the species before the hom*o genus was developed and the species right after the splitting from the chimps, then Australopithecus Afarensis would be the first species of humans. But nothing can be said as an absolute fact since studying fossils require more than just some amount of bones. Therefore scientists need more fossils from Lucy’s time to study more details to get a clearer picture.
8.1. The Australopithecus, Who Was The First Person On Earth
Lucy was an Australopithecus who lived 3.18 million years ago. Her fossils were discovered in Ethiopia. Lucy had a body covered with hair like that of apes and she was much shorter than current humans. Although she was an adult, her height is estimated to be around 3 feet tall. She is the earliest hominid fossil to date.
9. Modern Human And Society
Although humans have lived for millions of years, there were hardly any developments in a systematic society. The origin of modern humans dates back to thousands of years (40,000-70,000); the earliest evidence of a complex and systematic society shows that it started only 6000 years ago in Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq and Kuwait).
Finally, after that entire information overload, it is evident that we cannot decide, ‘who was the person on earth?’ It all depends on what one means by the term ‘human’ or ‘person.’ And even if the term is defined solidly, there will not be a single person that would be considered the first.
A human species can be considered the ‘first humans’ but not one individual. This is because evolution is a gradual, continuous, and collective phenomenon that occurs among a group rather than only one individual. Even if our DNA is traced back to one individual, it does not prove that it was a single individual who was unique and independently originated.
Scientifically, it is impossible not to know the identity of the first human or person. But mythically, many like Adam, who was the first person on earth, according to different religions and cultures. Therefore, there are multiple answers and opinions on the question, ‘Who was the first person on earth?’
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