Homo Erectus - Descendants and Subspecies

Descendants and Subspecies

Homo erectus remains one of the most long-lived species of Homo, having existed over a million years, while Homo sapiens has so far existed for 200,000 years. As a distinct Asian species, however, no consensus has been reached as to whether it is ancestral to H. sapiens or any later hominids.

• Homo erectus

• • Homo erectus erectus
  • Homo erectus yuanmouensis
  • Homo erectus lantianensis
  • Homo erectus nankinensis
  • Homo erectus pekinensis
  • Homo erectus palaeojavanicus
  • Homo erectus soloensis
  • Homo erectus tautavelensis
  • Homo erectus georgicus

Related Species

• Homo ergaster
• Homo floresiensis
• Homo antecessor
• Homo heidelbergensis
• Homo neanderthalensis
• Homo sapiens
  • Homo sapiens idaltu
  • Homo sapiens sapiens
• Homo rhodesiensis
• Homo cepranensis

Previously Referred Taxa

• Homo erectus wushanensis (actually a stem-orangutan)

The discovery of Homo floresiensis in 2003 and of the recentness of its extinction has raised the possibility that numerous descendant species of Homo erectus may have existed in the islands of Southeast Asia and await fossil discovery (see Orang Pendek). Homo erectus soloensis, who was long assumed to have lived on Java at least as late as about 50,000 years ago but was re-dated in 2011 to a much higher age, would be one of them. Some scientists are skeptical of the claim that Homo floresiensis is a descendant of Homo erectus. One explanation holds that the fossils are of a modern human with microcephaly, while another one holds that they are from a group of pygmies.