Europe
When Homo sapiens turned up in prehistoric Europe, they ran into the Neanderthals. The two types of human were similar enough – intellectually and culturally - to interbreed. But as more Homo sapiens moved into Europe and the population increased, there was an explosion of art and symbolic thought which overwhelmed the Neanderthals.
Episodes
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Europe
S1 E5 - 54m 42s
When Homo sapiens turned up in prehistoric Europe, they ran into the Neanderthals. The two types of human were similar enough – intellectually and culturally - to interbreed. But as more Homo sapiens moved into Europe and the population increased, there was an explosion of art and symbolic thought which overwhelmed the Neanderthals.
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Australia
S1 E4 - 54m 42s
When humans arrived in Australia, they were, for the first time, truly alone, surrounded by wildly different flora and fauna. How did they survive and populate a continent? There is a close cultural and genetic link between early Australians and modern-day Aborigines; here the ancient and modern story intersect as nowhere else.
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Africa
S1 E2 - 54m 41s
200,000 years ago Homo sapiens appeared on the African landscape. While scientists have long imagined eastern Africa as a real-life Garden of Eden, the latest research suggests humans evolved in many places across the continent at the same time. Now, DNA reveals that our ancestors continued meeting, mating and hybridizing with other human type — creating ever greater diversity within us.
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Americas
S1 E1 - 54m 41s
As early humans spread out across the world, their toughest challenge was colonizing the Americas because a huge ice sheet blocked the route. It has long been thought that the first Americans were Clovis people, who arrived 13,000 years ago. But an underwater discovery in Mexico suggests people arrived earlier — coming by boat, not on foot.
Extras + Features
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The First Modern European
S1 E5 - 2m 14s
Deep inside a Romanian cave, archaeologist Joao Zilhao and his team uncover a modern human, amongst the bones of prehistoric bears. On First Peoples: Europe, Zilhao describes the "extreme archeaology" needed to examine the cave.
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A Human Hybrid?
S1 E5 - 1m 28s
When Homo sapiens turned up in prehistoric Europe, they ran into the Neanderthals. The two types of human were similar enough – intellectually and culturally - to interbreed.
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Next on Episode 5 | Europe
S1 E5 - 30s
Find out why Neanderthals, with whom early humans in Europe interbred, went extinct.
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My Ancestors
S1 E4 - 2m 4s
There is a close cultural and genetic link between early Australians and modern-day Aborigines; here the ancient and modern story intersect as nowhere else.
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Next on Episode 4 | Australia
S1 E4 - 30s
Learn how Homo sapiens, new in Australia and truly alone, managed to survive and flourish.
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The Denisovans – A New Type of Human Discovered by Genetics
S1 E3 - 1m 25s
On First Peoples: Asia, geneticist Svante Paabo uncovers a new branch of the human family tree; the Denisovans. Named after the Siberian cave where the single finger bone was found, these early humans were previously undiscovered.
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Next on Episode 3 | Asia
S1 E3 - 30s
Discover a type of ancient human whose genes helped us face down extinction.
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The Curious Species
S1 E3 - 1m 22s
On First Peoples: Asia, scientists explore Homo sapien migration out of Africa and into Asia. Much like modern humans, it was curiosity that drove them to explore new river valleys and make their way into a new continent.
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Omo 1 - The World's First Modern Human
S1 E2 - 59s
Omo-1 died while still in his twenties, but he is the oldest member of our species found anywhere in the world. His remains are 195,000 years old, yet he looked like a modern human.
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The Secret to Our Success - Connectivity
S1 E2 - 2m 19s
200,000 years ago, a new species, Homo sapiens, appeared on the African landscape. While scientists have long imagined eastern Africa as a real-life Garden of Eden, the latest research suggests humans evolved in many places across the continent at the same time.
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Next on Episode 2 | Africa
S1 E2 - 30s
Examine research that suggests we humans are patchwork species of hybrids.
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Eva of Naharon - The First American?
S1 E1 - 1m 2s
Eva of Naharon was discovered by archaeologists on Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula. Her remains, which are far older than any others found in the Americas, have changed what we know about the arrival of the first people on the double continent.
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