For a long period, there has been debate on the origin on humanity especially from researchers. This mostly contributed by the ignorance of the African history, where research has been focused on other parts of the world. In addition, the slow development of African countries greatly has contributed to the undermining of Africa as the origin of human race. Nevertheless, the facts remain in Africa and evidence has shown that it’s only in Africa where the first traces of human existence have been discovered, no other part of the world. The spread of these discoveries in the Northern, Southern and Eastern parts of Africa ascertain these claims. In addition, the oldest forms of civilization are linked to the earliest ancestors of man in Africa. Many years of research has evidence that Africa is the mother of humanity.
Human race links to the genus Homo (Homo sapiens) to which modern man evolved had oldest remains in Africa
There is no doubt that the birth place of humanity has origins in Africa. Researches done on the history of humanity indicate that first the Homo genus linked to human beings emerged in Africa, and this increases the probability that the Homo sapiens, which evolved to the complete modern man has roots in Africa. This indicates that Africa is the mother of the world’s three significant developments of human race. The implication in this is thus, despite the current discrepancies in skin color, all human beings are Africans under their skin (Connah 1). In addition, despite these important discoveries about Africa, historians have much failed to notice the significance of Africa in general. For this reason, they have been interesting on researching on other parts of the world mostly because the African history has been a generally forgotten history. This ignorance has led to the lack of adequate information about human history and has then led to the current thorough reconstruction of the available traces of history. Irrespective of the success of the reconstruction, it has been a late effort as it only captures the last 100 years where it bases evidence on the material remains that the early man used and archaeologists use these traces to try to establish the possibility of human characters of the past and this coupled by any remembered characters as told by our ancestors, viable understanding becomes evident. In addition, the fossil studies of animal remains has been mostly significant in this process as they illustrate the inherited characters, giving information on the fundamental biological data, which coupled by the archaeologists data, the consolidated information assist in linking the history of humanity birthplace as Africa.
Inheritance of biological characteristics led to evolution that links modern man to Homo sapiens whose remains where found in Africa
A study by Charles Darwin undertaken 150 years ago and the understanding that inheritance of characteristics can lead o evolution, greatly suggests that the earliest remains of the Homo genus, first discovered in Africa, relates to the current modern person. Inherited characteristics that have gradually changed through evolution have left traces that help in ascertaining that Africa is the birthplace of humanity. The discovery of inherited and evolution characters have also made possible for geologists to assist in uncovering the impact of environmental changes on the evolution of man. With regard to this paleontologists have been successful in indicating how the human race has evolved to adapt to the changing climatic conditions in order to survive.
These discoveries made, dates back to the understanding that approximately 65 million years ago, primates to which the human beings belong existed in Africa. Despite the closest relative being the Chimpanzee, which we separated approximately between 5 and 8 million years ago, and as the time with hardly any documentation on the African fossils has been made, there are other fossils similar to the apes dating back approximately 20 million years still discovered in Africa. Nevertheless, the oldest evidence of upright walking ancestors dates back to approximately 4.4 million years.
Moreover, human paleontologists classify the earliest human ancestor in the Australopithecus meaning a southern ape. This was named so because its remains were discovered in caves on the Southern parts of Africa. Similar remains have also been found in East African Rift Valley. The oldest Australopithecus traces were discovered in Ethiopia and have significant evidence of its footprints that indicate that the hominid existed approximately between 3.9 and 2.8 million years ago (Connar 2). It was characterized by small brains when compared to current man. Despite being small in size, its skull has ancestral characteristics linked to ape and had strong arms and legs similar to man.
8,000 years ago, Africa was habitable when other parts of the world were covered with ice
History indicates that “8,000 years ago when much of Europe was still under ice, the Sahara desert in Africa was green, fertile and teeming with life” (Kamalu 11). This is evidenced by the cave paintings from our ancestors that were discovered in Africa and they helped in the efforts to tracing the source of humanity to be in Africa. The cave paintings mostly help to understand the ancient Saharans. As the discoveries suggest, these early people were hunters and gatherers whose predecessors still lived in Africa. In addition, these paintings assist in understanding the human characters of those periods. They suggest that the ancient Saharans kept cattle and lived in rounded houses. For example, a 6,000 year old paintings from the current Algerian area, shows men engaging in a dancing ceremony while another indicates women trying to perhaps gather wild grains (Kamalu 11). These paintings indicate most of activities that current human being undertake has origin from the early man from Africa. As they range from the socialization characteristics to law, order and defense of territories, it is a strong indication that humanity mostly originated in Africa.
As time went on, the Sahara started drying up and approximately 3,500 years ago, this forced people to advance towards the Nile River to enhance their chances of survival. This later led to the initiation of the oldest forms of civilized agricultural activities ever to be undertaken on the surface of the world. As settlement continued, it led to the establishment of the ancient Egypt where late discoveries indicate their early engagement in arts, science, philosophy, astronomy and mathematics (Kamalu 12). The broad range of paleo-environmental and paleo-anthropological as well as archaeological evidence elevates Africa to the most possible source of mankind (Berger et al. 30).
Apart from the Saharan region in the Northern parts of Africa, the southern parts were too thriving with life, for example, the Kalahari Desert. Here, there are higher possibilities that the ancient Saharan’s descendants, many generations later could be the Khoisan bushmen. Their mode of socialization presented a humble atmosphere for art which after many years of developing; it resulted to the current abstract art (Kamalu 12).
A huge mistake to denying that Africa as the birth place for humanity
Even before the ancient Saharans, the discovery of an 11,000 year old bone in the current Democratic of Congo, then known as Zaire, and the bone later renamed “Ishango Bone” it had markings of prime and even numbers, “the earliest evidence of mathematical activity anywhere on the earth” (Kamalu 12). Holding a crucial significance in mathematical field, it is the source of the oldest lunar calendar. Still in the Southern parts of Africa, this time in Swaziland, another discovery of an iron mine, 43,000 years old, indicates the earliest efforts in science development. With these discoveries, archaeologists believe that Africa civilization could be as old as 50,000 years. Religious wise, the interest of researchers from America to work on the sacred science of West Africa, for instance the Bwiti’s ancestor’s kind of worship is an indicator of the importance of the African history concerning origin of humanity as indicated in Ndzigou that “Africa waits for them, she is the mother of earth, the origin of humanity” (50).
Conclusion
With regard to the above research, it is certain that the many years of research has evidence that Africa is the mother of humanity. From the earliest discoveries, they illustrate that human linked to the genus Homo, which is related to the latest Homo sapiens to which the modern person evolved, originates has roots in Africa. In addition, inherited biological characters that have remained despite the effects of evolution indicate that the oldest fossil remains discovered in Africa belonged to ancestors of the current modern person. 8,000 years ago, history indicate that Africa was habitable when other parts of the world like Europe were inhabitable due to ice, it indicates that Africa was the only habitable place for any existing predecessor of human race. Finally, it is a huge mistake to denying that Africa as the birth place for humanity because the evidence is there that makes Africa the only possible origin of humanity.