Ancient Ape Fossil Challenges Traditional Human Origins Theory

The discovery of a fossilized ape named Anadoluvius turkae in Türkiye suggests that the ancestors of humans and African apes may have evolved in Europe before migrating to Africa between 9 and 7 million years ago. The well-preserved partial cranium of A. turkae indicates that it belonged to an early hominine, a group that includes African apes. This challenges the long-held belief that African apes and humans evolved exclusively in Africa, providing evidence that hominines originated in Europe and dispersed into Africa. However, further fossils are needed to establish a definitive connection between the two groups.