[Paper] Early presence of Homo sapiens in Southeast Asia by 86–68 kyr at Tam Pà Ling, Northern Laos

via Nature, 13 June 2023: New research from Tam Pa Ling pushes back the date of early Homo sapiens in Southeast Asia to around 86,000 years. The paper is Open Access, and a roundup of news stories is linked below.

The timing of the first arrival of Homo sapiens in East Asia from Africa and the degree to which they interbred with or replaced local archaic populations is controversial. Previous discoveries from Tam Pà Ling cave (Laos) identified H. sapiens in Southeast Asia by at least 46 kyr. We report on a recently discovered frontal bone (TPL 6) and tibial fragment (TPL 7) found in the deepest layers of TPL. Bayesian modeling of luminescence dating of sediments and U-series and combined U-series-ESR dating of mammalian teeth reveals a depositional sequence spanning ~86 kyr. TPL 6 confirms the presence of H. sapiens by 70 ± 3 kyr, and TPL 7 extends this range to 77 ± 9 kyr, supporting an early dispersal of H. sapiens into Southeast Asia. Geometric morphometric analyses of TPL 6 suggest descent from a gracile immigrant population rather than evolution from or admixture with local archaic populations.

Source: Early presence of Homo sapiens in Southeast Asia by 86–68 kyr at Tam Pà Ling, Northern Laos | Nature Communications

See also:

• Laos cave fossils prompt rethink of human migration map | Nature, 13 June 2023
• Bones, the ‘Cave of the Monkeys’ and 86,000 years of history: new evidence pushes back the timing of human arrival in Southeast Asia | The Conversation, 13 June 2023
• 86,000-year-old human bone found in Laos cave hints at ‘failed population’ from prehistory | Live Science, 13 June 2023
• Early humans left Africa and reached Asia earlier than thought, fossil discovery reveals | CNN, 14 June 2023
• A rare glimpse of our first ancestors in mainland Southeast Asia | Flinders University, 14 June 2023
• Rare glimpse of our first ancestors in mainland Southeast Asia | National Tribune, 14 June 2023
• Rare glimpse of our first ancestors in mainland Southeast Asia | Southern Cross University, 14 June 2023
• Archaeologists Uncover Earliest Evidence of Modern Humans in Southeast Asia | Smithsonian Magazine, 14 June 2023
• 86,000-year-old human bone shows failed expansions out of Africa – study | The Jerusalem Post, 17 June 2023
• Ancient Human Remains In Laos Cave Hint At Early Migrations | Science Blog, 23 June 2023
• Pinoy archaeologist helps rewrite human history in Southeast Asia | Journal PH, 28 June 2023
• Fossil discovery adds to evidence humans reached Southeast Asia over 80,000 years ago | ABS-CBN News, 29 June 2023