Katie Jeffs

04/26/2017

Research Paper

There are two models in the theory of Modern Human Origins. There is the

Regional Continuity Model also known as the Multiregional model. Then there is the

Out-of-Africa or better known as the Replacement model. These two models have a

great deal of evidence to support the both. Both models have an impressive amount of

evidence in the fossil record, as well as genetics. The Replacement Model is more

accepted as the true model. But how do we know which theory proves to be the most

correct? Well here are the merits to support both sides.

The Regional Continuity model was proposed in 1984 by Wilford H. Wolpoff. The

model envisions a wave of Homo sapiens migrating earlier from Africa and interbreeding

with local Homo erectus populations in multiple regions of the globe. i Which means he

suggests that modern humans dispersed from Africa earlier than suggested in the

replacement model, and interbred with local species of Homo erectus. The model

suggests Through geneflow and natural selection, local populations would not have

prevented speciation between the regional lineages and thus maintained humans as a

single, although polytypic, species throughout the Pleistocene ii

The replacement model suggests otherwise. It was developed in 1988 by Christopher

Stringers, and Peter Andrews. It proposes, that modern humans had one speciation in

Africa, from archaic humans, about 200,000 years ago. Then some dispersed into the

other regions completely replacing all the Neanderthals and late archaic humans about
50,000-100,000 years ago. So, in this view, migrating African modern Homo sapiens

could not have interbred with local non-African populations, because the African modern

humans were biologically a different species. iii There are some other suggestions as to

how they replaced them, they are: Extermination, and out competing. So, either by

killing them all of or by Natural Selection choosing the more advanced traits, and killing

off the weak ones.

The replacement model argues that there is little to no fossil record evidence for

the regional continuity model. They argue that all modern humans could not have

developed simultaneously in all regions simply because the oldest fossil records have

only been found in Africa. The earliest fossil of modern humans was found in Ethiopia,

the fossil was 195,000 years old. While in all the other regions combined the oldest

fossil evidence we have found is 130,000-100,000 years ago. Wolpoff combats that

argument with the simple saying Just because we havent found them yet, does not

mean they are not there. He thinks the lack of evidence is evidence in itself.

Though we may not have found fossils in the other regions as old as the fossils in

Africa, there is still a great deal of fossil evidence to support the Regional Continuity

model. First, even though the fossil in Africa was dated back 195,000 years ago, in

South Africa we have a site dated 120,000-80,000 years ago. And in West Asia we have

two sites where we have discovered more than thirty individuals, dated 130,000- 92,000

years ago between both sites. So, it seems that both groups of modern humans were

developing at the same time in those two regions. Also, we have over lapping in Central

and Western Europe, Asia, and Australia. All dating anywhere between 50,000 years

ago to 25,000 years ago.

 Another support in the fossil record for the Regional continuity model is in

Western Europe. In Portugal, we have a site called, Abrigo do lagar velho which is

dated at 24,500 years ago. In this site, we uncovered a fossil of a one year old called

the Lapedo child along with some other individuals. The Lapedo child fossil shows

features of not only modern humans, but Neanderthal features as well. None of the

other fossils at this site have been found with both features. This shows that there must

have been interbreeding with Neanderthals and modern humans in Portugal. Which

counters the replacements theory hypothesis, that modern humans didnt interbreed

with Homo Erectus and Neanderthals outside of Africa.

However, there is still the evidence to support the replacement theory as well. It

returns to the original fossil found. Since the only 195,000-year-old fossil found, was in

Africa. They conclude that modern humans originated in only in Africa, with one

speciation. The evidence to support this is simply, we have only found fossils from

195,000-154,000 years ago in Africa. Then in South Africa from 120,000-80,000 years

ago, which is around the same time that the fossils in Western Asia were found. So, if

there was one speciation in Eastern Africa 200,000 years ago, it is possible that

between 154,000 years ago and 130,000 years ago, some of the species dispersed to

Africas close neighbor Asia. Then spread further from then on into, Europe, all of Asia,

and Australia.

On the genetic side of things, it seems that the Replacement model is the most

accepted. The model shows that modern day Africans are the most genetically diverse.

In fact they are more diverse then all the other continents combined. This is evidence

for the replacement model because if Africans truly have been the only ones around the
longest, they would be the most genetically diverse. They have further concluded that

the common ancestor of all modern people can be traced back to a woman who lived in

Africa 200,000 years ago. This common ancestor is called mitochondrial Eve. Studies

have shown that Africans have the most diverse Mitochondrial DNA, Y chromosome,

and chromosome 12. The Regional continuity theory criticize the mitochondrial eve

theory. They say that the Molecular clock is not necessarily constant, which makes

the 200,000-year date for mitochondrial Eve unreliable. They also found that the

betaglobin gene is widely distributed in Asia and not in Africa. This gene is believed to

have originated over 200,000-years-ago, it counters the claim that African modern

humans dispersed to Asia 60,000-years-ago.iv They also have strong correlations

between archaic humans and modern ones in physical features. This suggests that

Modern Asians for example descended from archaic Asian populations. But it doesnt

rule out geneflow from archaic African populations.

In conclusion, the regional continuity theory has strong evidence to support it in,

fossil records, like the Lapedo child, the fossil sites in different continents dates

overlapping and the fact that we havent found fossils that old in the other main regions

doesnt mean they are not there. Then in genetics, they see physical traits in modern

humans that are the same as archaic humans. It also suggests that the mitochondrial

Eve is unreliable. On the other side the Replacement theory has evidence in fossils by

having the proof that the oldest fossils have only been found in Africa, and that there

was a significant amount of time in-between fossil sites found in Africa, and all other

major regions. Enough time for a species to migrate to find more land, and resources.

With genetics, it has the proof that Africans are more genetically diverse than anywhere
else in the world combined. Also, that they can trace back the mitochondrial DNA to

200,000 years ago in Africa.

I agree with the Regional Continuity model the most. I think that I found the most

evidence on that model that I agree with. I dont know if I believe that we all just started

in Africa. I think that all the archaic humans developed and interbred with each other to

all create one species over time, and based on where look modern humans do have

physical features of the hominoids that lived there in ancient times. So, I agree that we

all advanced simultaneously in all the regions, then kept dispersing from there, and then

all evolved into what we are today, based on the environment that we currently reside

in.
i https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recent_African_origin_of_modern_humans

ii Jurmain, Robert, and Kilgore, Lynn, and Trevathan, Wenda. Introduction to Physical
Anthropology, page 385. Cengage learning, 2013. Print.

iii Lewis, Barry, and Jurmain, Robert, and Kilgore, Lynn. Cengage Advantage Books:
Understanding Humans: An Introduction to Physical Anthropology and Archaeology page
285. Cengage learning, 2012. Print.

iv http://anthro.palomar.edu/homo2/mod_homo_4.htm

Works Cited

http://anthro.palomar.edu/homo2/mod_homo_4.htm

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recent_African_origin_of_modern
_humans

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiregional_origin_of_modern_
humans

Lewis, Barry, and Jurmain, Robert, and Kilgore, Lynn. Cengage

Advantage Books: Understanding Humans: An Introduction to
Physical Anthropology and Archaeology page 285. Cengage
learning, 2012. Print.
Jurmain, Robert, and Kilgore, Lynn, and Trevathan, Wenda.
Introduction to Physical Anthropology, page 385. Cengage
learning, 2013. Print

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