Tracing The Origin Of The Human Species Cannot Be Conclusive

By Author: Ramesh Vittal
Total Articles: 26
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The question of the origin of the Human Species has probably been asked several times with no concrete answer. Humans must have been asking themselves about how, from where and when they came into being. The vexing subject was given a serious thought by Charles Darwin who came out with the theory of evolution during the times when people dare not raise such blasphemous questions in the midst of people. This English naturalist wrote the famous book On the Origin of Species where he attempted to unravel the mystery and, he believed, prove that all species of life descended from a common ancestry.
However, we already know that humans are the only living species in the Homo genus and that they originated in Africa over 200,000 years ago, and achieved modernity as far as behavior is concerned about 50,000 years ago. Humans are uniquely adept at using systems of communication for self-expression of ideas and displaying organizational skills. This is lacking in most other animal species. The question then arises as to how all could have descended from a common ancestry and only one particular species could develop leaving behind ...
... the others as they were.

Humans are capable of creating complex social structures, which could vary according to the genes and geographical locations and cultural backgrounds. The basic trait present in all humans is that they live in groups and cooperate and compete with each other. The way human beings think was almost the same though they were located thousands of miles apart with no knowledge about the existence of each other. For instance, domesticating of animals took place across the world around the same time. The animals that were domesticated were mainly goats, sheep, cows, hens, buffaloes etc. The amazing thing is that people were living continents apart with no contact whatsoever; however they were doing similar things without being aware of fellow beings doing the same. Another example would be the institution of marriage. It was a common social practice for men and women to marry and raise a family. It was the socially accepted norm. However, when this came into practice is the question. The possibility of all humans thinking on the same lines at almost the same point of time makes us think.

People started living in groups and communes. The normal practice was that a particular clan would have a chief who possessed special leadership qualities and had certain responsibilities and tasks assigned to him. This system was in place in almost every race or tribe that existed across the world. The thinking gradually progressed to a more organized way of governance with chieftains and taking the place of just ordinary chiefs of a small clan. People developed further and more refinements and changes were put in place and some semblance of governance came into being where a king started ruling an area which was under his control. The king had his own council of ministers and who were designated with specific tasks. Taxes started being collected and were used to fill up the king's treasury. Good or bad governance depended solely on the king. It was a practice to spend part of the revenue towards the well being of the subjects. Provision was also given for unexpected famine and floods, and during such distressing situations most kings would dip into the treasury and lend a helping hand.

Today we live in a society that has done away with the monarchial form of governance. There are few countries that still believe in maintaining the titles and traditions. This is mainly because of preserving the last vestiges of a bygone era. We live in a democratic setup where every person has equal rights and may do as he pleases provided he does not break the law of the land. We believe that we have achieved a balance and reached level that is optimum. However, shortfalls and room for improvement will always be there and diverse cultures will still have their own ways. Related programs on human evolution can be view on programs that are aired by popular service providers like FiOS TV