Neanderthals and modern humans lived together for many thousands of years. This happened around 40,000 to 30,000 years ago. Here are some important things to know about their time together:
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Where They Lived:
- Neanderthals mostly lived in Europe and parts of Western Asia.
- Modern humans came from Africa and moved into these areas, so they shared spaces.
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Sharing Cultures:
- Archaeologists found signs that Neanderthals and modern humans might have exchanged ideas and tools.
- They both used similar stone tools, which are part of what we call Mousterian and Upper Paleolithic cultures.
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Mixing Genes:
- Studies show that people who are not from Africa have about 1-2% Neanderthal DNA.
- This means that modern humans and Neanderthals had children together.
- Mixing their genes might have helped modern humans adapt better to different challenges, especially in their immune systems.
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Changes in Populations:
- Neanderthal numbers were going down when modern humans arrived, which might have led to their extinction.
- At one point, there were about 70,000 Neanderthals in Europe, but their numbers started to drop after that.