For decades, the story of human evolution has been rooted in Africa, celebrated as the cradle of humanity. But a recent discovery in Turkey may challenge this narrative, unearthing a fossil that suggests our ancient ancestors might have first emerged in Europe. With a well-preserved skull of Anadoluvius turkae dating back 8.7 million years, scientists are reexamining the origins of hominines. Could this groundbreaking find rewrite the story of where we come from? The debate begins.
The Discovery of Anadoluvius turkae: A Window Into the Past
In 2015, a research team unearthed a partial skull in Çorakyerler, central Anatolia, dating back 8.7 million years. The skull belonged to Anadoluvius turkae, an ancient ape species believed to weigh between 110 to 130 pounds, comparable to a large male chimpanzee. This fossil provides crucial insights into the evolutionary relationships between ancient hominines—the group that includes humans, African apes like chimpanzees and bonobos, and their fossil ancestors.

Excavations at the site revealed not only the fossil but also traces of its ancient environment. Geological evidence and animal remains, including giraffes, warthogs, and rhinos, suggest that A. turkae lived in a dry forest environment. This habitat mirrors those associated with early humans in Africa, hinting at potential parallels in ecological conditions that shaped the evolution of early hominines.
Video
A groundbreaking 8.7-million-year-old skull discovered in Turkey is rewriting history – watch the video to uncover the significance of this incredible find!
A European Origin for Hominines?
The study posits that Anadoluvius turkae, along with other fossil apes like Ouranopithecus in Greece and Turkey and Graecopithecus in Bulgaria, belongs to a group of early hominines. If true, this suggests that the common ancestor of humans and African apes may have originated in Europe or the eastern Mediterranean, evolving from even earlier ancestors in Western and Central Europe. Such a hypothesis challenges the conventional “Out of Africa” theory, which has dominated the field of human evolution for decades.
Professor David Begun, a co-senior author of the study and paleoanthropologist at the University of Toronto, explained the distinction between this ancestor and the human lineage. “Since that divergence, most of human evolutionary history has occurred in Africa,” he noted. “It is also most likely that the chimpanzee and human lineages diverged from each other in Africa.” In other words, while Europe may have been the cradle of the common ancestor, Africa remains the primary stage for human evolution.

The Skeptics’ Perspective
While the discovery of Anadoluvius turkae is groundbreaking, it has not convinced everyone in the scientific community. Christopher Gilbert, a paleoanthropologist at Hunter College, highlights that most recent analyses of fossil apes and early hominines do not support a European origin for the group. Instead, he argues that European apes likely diverged from the evolutionary tree earlier than African apes, making them distant relatives rather than direct ancestors.
Gilbert also pointed out the possibility of gaps in the African fossil record. The lack of hominine fossils from Africa during the period in question does not necessarily mean they were absent. “Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence,” he emphasized. Until more fossils are discovered, it remains difficult to definitively pinpoint the geographical origin of hominines.

Evolution’s Unpredictable Path
The study raises intriguing questions about why hominines, if they did originate in Europe, are no longer found there today, except for humans who arrived more recently. Similarly, why didn’t ancient hominines migrate to Asia, despite being so close geographically?
Professor Begun suggests that evolution is shaped by a series of random and unrelated events. While Europe may have been home to early hominines, Africa likely offered more favorable conditions for their descendants to thrive and evolve. Between 14 million and 7 million years ago, the ecological conditions in Europe, Asia, and Africa differed significantly, much as they do today. These environmental factors would have played a crucial role in determining where hominines could survive and evolve.
What Does This Mean for Human Evolution?
Although the study does not claim that Eurasia played a central role in human evolution, it underscores the importance of understanding the ecological contexts in which early ancestors lived. The discovery of Anadoluvius turkae may reshape our understanding of the evolutionary timeline, offering a new perspective on the origins of hominines.
Future research will be essential to verify these findings. Further excavations in Europe and Africa may yield additional fossils, filling in gaps in the record and providing a clearer picture of our shared evolutionary past. Until then, the debate over the origins of hominines is likely to continue, with A. turkae serving as a fascinating piece of the puzzle.
Conclusion: A New Chapter in Evolutionary History?
The discovery of Anadoluvius turkae is a reminder of how much we still have to learn about our origins. While the study’s findings are controversial, they open the door to new questions and avenues of research. Whether or not Europe was the birthplace of hominines, this fossil highlights the complexity of evolution and the interconnectedness of ecosystems across continents.
As scientists continue to unearth the past, each discovery brings us closer to understanding the story of human evolution—a story that, much like Anadoluvius turkae, is still being written.