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| bone needles |
Recent discoveries
have uncovered three more-recent Families of Homo who lived at the same time – Cro-Magnon, Neanderthal, and
Denisovan – thereby making our view of ourselves more complex. The mystery that these Families present to us
is how they interacted with each other.
Did They ignore each other, make war with each other, or intermarry? Did They even
regard each other as Human?
What modern scientists have uncovered
in their DNA studies of modern humans was astonishing. Many people of European ancestry have a small
percentage of Neanderthal DNA in their genetic make-up. Because the Neanderthals grew up in the cold
climates of Europe, They were stocky and heavy-boned. Migrating from Africa, Cro-Magnons were
smaller and slighter. Interbreeding with
Neanderthals helped the Cro-Magnons to withstand the freezing cold.
Meanwhile, the Denisovans left
Africa about a million years after H.
erectus did and half-million years before the Neanderthals appeared in
Europe. Living in Siberia, Denisovans
used advanced tools such as bone needles.
However, what fossils remains of Them that we have were their very large
teeth, which were similar to Australopithecus. Migrating to South Asia and nearby Asian
Islands, Denisovans also interbred with Cro-Magnons there. Today, people in New Guinea and other islands
carry Denisovan DNA in their genetic make-up.
The picture that emerges is that
though the majority of these Familes did not interact, some did, and regarded
each other as Human. (Scientists claim that the ratio of inbreeding was about
fifty Denisovans to every thousand Humans.) As we move forward in time, we see
the grove of Humankind dwindling down one by one. We modern humans may be all that is left, but
we carry the Others inside of ourselves.
We can celebrate our ancient Ancestors by acknowledging their
contribution to our well-being. Since They
chose to become a part of us, let us be true to our heritage and be tolerant of
each other.
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