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<p>Morocco’s paleoanthropological and prehistoric record has significantly advanced our understanding of hominin evolution in general and of <i>Homo sapiens</i> in particular. This paper encompasses prehistoric and paleoanthropological data spanning the earliest human occupations to the emergence of <i>Homo sapiens</i>. In this context, three major discoveries constitute key milestones that substantially extend the timeline of hominin presence in Morocco: 1) The <i>Homo sapiens</i> fossils from Jebel Irhoud (Hublin et al. 2017); 2) The Acheulean assemblages at Thomas Quarry 1 (Gallotti et al. 2021); and 3) Evidence of butchery practices at the Rhinoceros Cave (Daujeard et al. 2020). The revised dating of the Irhoud fossils to 315 ± 34 ka (Richter et al. 2017), combined with their mosaic morphology, has reshaped prevailing models of <i>Homo sapiens</i> emergence. These findings support a more complex and temporally deep pan-African evolutionary model for the emergence of <i>Homo sapiens</i>, in which multiple populations across Africa contributed through gene flow and local adaptation (Hublin et al. 2017). Moreover, Morocco’s strategic geographical position, at the crossroads of Europe, sub-Saharan Africa, and the Levant, together with its rich and chronologically well-constrained fossil record, positions it as a key region for understanding prehistoric population dynamics, migration patterns, gene flow, and adaptive processes.</p>

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Moroccan Fossil Hominins and their Role in the Branching Model of Hominin Evolution

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年8月4日

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  • Abdelouahed Ben-Ncer

摘要

Morocco’s paleoanthropological and prehistoric record has significantly advanced our understanding of hominin evolution in general and of Homo sapiens in particular. This paper encompasses prehistoric and paleoanthropological data spanning the earliest human occupations to the emergence of Homo sapiens. In this context, three major discoveries constitute key milestones that substantially extend the timeline of hominin presence in Morocco: 1) The Homo sapiens fossils from Jebel Irhoud (Hublin et al. 2017); 2) The Acheulean assemblages at Thomas Quarry 1 (Gallotti et al. 2021); and 3) Evidence of butchery practices at the Rhinoceros Cave (Daujeard et al. 2020). The revised dating of the Irhoud fossils to 315 ± 34 ka (Richter et al. 2017), combined with their mosaic morphology, has reshaped prevailing models of Homo sapiens emergence. These findings support a more complex and temporally deep pan-African evolutionary model for the emergence of Homo sapiens, in which multiple populations across Africa contributed through gene flow and local adaptation (Hublin et al. 2017). Moreover, Morocco’s strategic geographical position, at the crossroads of Europe, sub-Saharan Africa, and the Levant, together with its rich and chronologically well-constrained fossil record, positions it as a key region for understanding prehistoric population dynamics, migration patterns, gene flow, and adaptive processes.