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Homo erectus is the ancestrial link between great apes and modern humans. They were the first to expand beyond Africa because of their adapted bodies and evolved brains. Utilizing their intelligence they progressed humanity further than any hominin and became the stepping stone of human evolution.

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G. Philip Rightmire is a biological anthropologist. The Evolution of Homo Erectus documents the history of this extinct human species and suggests a route whereby Homo erectus may have given rise to people more like Homo sapiens.

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Spotify Podcast Episode - BBC In Our Time.

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BBC In Our Time Podcast: Homo erectus - May 12, 2022

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BBC In Our Time Podcast: Homo erectus - May 12, 2022

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Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss one of our ancestors, Homo erectus, who thrived on Earth for around two million years. Homo erectus spread from Africa to Asia and it was on the Island of Java that fossilized remains were found in 1891 in an expedition led by Dutch scientist Eugène Dubois. Homo erectus people adapted to different habitats, ate varied food, lived in groups, and had the stamina to outrun their prey; and discoveries have prompted many theories on the relationship between their diet and the size of their brains, their ability as seafarers, on their creativity and on their ability to speak and communicate.
https://open.spotify.com/episode/0PsUIZOKXHpvL6aXPTUZjZ?si=3dee56ad1f5b4495

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Homo erectus is an important species because it was the earliest hominin discovered outside of Africa displaying modern human-like traits and features.

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Homo erectus lived between 1.89 million and 110,000 years ago. They were descendants of hominin Australopithecus. They are the earliest ancestors to exhibit human proportions and their progress was the key to our evolution as a species.

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Homo erectus had human-like upper and lower bodies compared to their previous ancestors. They were more adapted to walking upright and standing between 4 ft 9 in and 6 ft 1 in. They also had larger brains due to their enlarged cranium measuring at 900cc which was the most important factor in their survival.

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The earliest remains of Homo erectus were discovered in Eastern Africa. This video reveals the migration of Homo erectus from Africa to East Asia.

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Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History

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Human Origins: Expanding World of Homo Erectus

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Homo erectus descended from Australopithecus. Homo erectus is the ancestor of Homo sapiens and Homo neanderthalensis. Humans are all members of the Hominidae family.

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Australopithecus was shorter and had ape-like upper bodies with human-like lower bodies. They created simpler stone tools due to their small brain capacities. Unlike Homo Erectus, Australopithecus had larger molars for grinding food.

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Eugène Dubois discovers Pithecanthropus erectus (later redesignated Homo erectus), or "Java Man".

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Eugène Dubois discovers Pithecanthropus erectus (later redesignated Homo erectus), or "Java Man".

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Eugène Dubois, a Dutch surgeon, found the first Homo erectus individual (Trinil 2) in Indonesia in 1891. In 1894, Dubois named the species Pithecanthropus erectus, or ‘erect ape-man.’

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Homo erectus developed more sophisticated stone tools compared to tools made by Australopithecus. This handaxe was most likely used for hunting, chopping, and cooking.

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1.7 Million – 130,000 years ago.
Explore an interactive map that covers the story of the first Hominids to leave Africa and venture into Europe and Asia and how early Hominids adapted in unique ways to the environments they encountered, developing into Neanderthals in Europe, Denisovans in Asia, and our own species: Homo sapiens in Africa.

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The First Migration out of Africa

The first Hominid species to migrate out of Africa was Homo erectus. The site of Ubeidiya in Israel contains Homo erectus remains dating to 1.7 million years ago. In Georgia there are also remains of a sub-species of Homo erectus, known as Homo erectus georgicus, dating to 1.8 million years ago. (See map 1: 1.7 million years ago) From the remains of Mojokerto Child, we know that by 1.4 million years ago Homo erectus had migrated all the way across Asia to reach Java (which at the time was connected to the mainland by a land bridge. (See map 2: 1.4 million years ago).

By 800,000 years ago, Homo erectus had reached Western Europe, Northwest Africa, and China, and had already begun to evolve and adapt to the different environments it found. It was gradually developing a larger brain that allowed it to make more complex tools. Palaeontologists refer to the larger brained, more human like Homo erectus specimens as Homo heidelbergensis. But because the transitional fossils between these two species are gradual and different in different parts of the world, it is not always clear into which species individual specimens belong. The picture is further complicated by specimens that were found in Western Europe during this period that some palaeontologists consider as another distinct species: Homo antecessor. (See map 3: 800,000 years ago)

Between 500,000-250,000 years ago, we see the descendants of Homo erectus / Homo heidelbergensis really start to diverge into truly separate species in the different regions of the world. The hominids in Europe start to evolve into what will become the Neanderthals, whilst in Africa we see Homo heidelbergensis specimens with very large brains that will eventually evolve into modern man, for example the Bodo Cranium, discovered in Ethiopia and dated to 600,000 years ago, already had a brain size of 1,250 cc (Conroy)(about 88% of the size of modern man). In East Asia, Homo erectus was also developing larger brains, but at a slower rate. The finds refered to as "Peking Man" and those uncovered at Yunxian have an average brain size of about 1,075 cc.

By about 130,000 years ago, we can see 3 clearly different hominid species have evolved. The Neanderthals, a hominid species very similar to modern man, but stronger, stockier, and more adapted to cold environments, lived in Europe and the Middle East. In East Asia, smaller brained Homo erectus hominids were still thriving. And in Africa Homo sapiens (modern man) had evolved. (See map 6: 130,000 years ago) All 3 of these species had originally developed from Homo erectus and all three had evolved larger brains as a survival strategy. But only one of them would have what it took to dominate the world and outcompete the other two: Homo sapiens.

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The First Migration out of Africa The first Hominid species to migrate out of Africa was Homo erectus. The site of Ubeidiya in Israel contains Homo erectus remains dating to 1.7 million years ago. In Georgia there are also remains of a sub-species of Homo erectus, known as Homo erectus georgicus, dating to 1.8 million years ago.

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The story of human evolution began about 7 million years ago, when the lineages that lead to Homo sapiens and chimpanzees separated. Learn about the over 20 early human species that belong in our family tree and how the natural selection of certain physical and behavioral traits defined what it means to be human.

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This is the skeleton of Turkana Boy, also called Nariokotome Boy, a young Homo erectus who lived 1.5 to 1.6 million years ago. He was discovered in 1984 on the bank of the Nariokotome River near Lake Turkana, Kenya. The boy's age ranged between 7 and 11 years old when he died. It is the most complete early hominin skeleton ever found.

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Homo erectus was the first ancestor that showed evidence of using fire.

Fire allowed Homo erectus to cook and prepare meat from prey.

Homo erectus developed hunting parties so they could consume larger animals.

Settlements flourished as a result of ample access to food.

A diverse diet and regular meat consumption helped enlarge their brains.

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“Homo Erectus.” 2022. Open.spotify.com. May 12, 2022. https://open.spotify.com/episode/0PsUIZOKXHpvL6aXPTUZjZ?si=0dc57d2ceeed4c1a.

“Human Evolution Evidence.” 2009. The Smithsonian Institution’s Human Origins Program. December 22, 2009. https://humanorigins.si.edu/evidence.

G Philip Rightmire. 1993. The Evolution of Homo Erectus Comparative Anatomical Studies of an Extinct Human Species. Cambridge Cambridge University Press.

Leakey R, Walker A (November 1985). "Homo Erectus Unearthed". National Geographic. Vol. 168, no. 5. pp. 624–629.

Van Arsdale, Adam P. 2013. “Homo Erectus - a Bigger, Smarter, Faster Hominin Lineage | Learn Science at Scitable.” Nature.com. 2013. https://www.nature.com/scitable/knowledge/library/homo-erectus-a-bigger-smarter-97879043/.

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Homo erectus and modern-day humans share similar arm and leg lengths.

Homo erectus and Homo sapiens have comparably sized brains.

Homo erectus teeth are normal-sized compared to earlier ancestors who had larger molars.

Research suggests Homo erectus childbirth was similar to Homo sapiens.

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This timeline identifies the genetic history of the family Hominidae.