Humans first appeared on Earth at least 315,000 years ago. This figure is based on fossil remains found in Jebel Irhoud, Morocco – the earliest-known remains of modern humans.
The exact time humans first appeared is difficult to judge because species don’t come into being overnight. Rather, they change and evolve slowly from ancestral species.
Because the first human remains date back to around 315,000 years ago, our species will therefore have appeared some time before this. DNA evidence from human chromosomes indicates that humans (scientific name: Homo sapiens) may have first appeared more than half a million years ago.
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