Month: February 2025

Competitive Displacement – The theory that Homo sapiens outcompeted Neanderthals for resources, leading to their decline.

Neanderthal Extinction – The disappearance of Neanderthals around 40,000 years ago, likely due to environmental changes and competition with Homo sapiens.

Symbolic Behavior – Evidence of Neanderthal art, burials, and use of pigments, suggesting cognitive complexity.

Mousterian Tool Industry – A sophisticated stone tool tradition associated with Neanderthals.

Neanderthal Culture – The behavioral and technological adaptations of Neanderthals, including tool use, fire control, and symbolic expression.

Hybridization – The process of interbreeding between different species or subspecies, such as between Neanderthals and modern humans.

Denisovans – A distinct archaic human group that interbred with both Homo sapiens and Neanderthals.

Neanderthal DNA in Modern Humans – The presence of Neanderthal genetic material in modern non-African populations, indicating past interbreeding.

Interbreeding – The genetic exchange between Homo sapiens and Neanderthals, confirmed through DNA evidence.

Neanderthals (Homo neanderthalensis) – An extinct species of archaic humans closely related to modern Homo sapiens.