Origins of Universe, Earth & Human Evolution
Let’s begin right from the beginning of time — not just human history, but the cosmic timeline, because without understanding the birth of the Earth, we cannot appreciate how life — and later, human civilisation — emerged.
🌀 Big Bang Theory: Beginning of the Universe
- According to modern scientific consensus, the universe began around 13.7 billion years ago through a massive cosmic explosion known as the Big Bang.
- Imagine this: there was a tiny, extremely dense and hot ball of matter. Suddenly, this tiny point exploded violently, and that expansion has been continuing ever since — the universe is still stretching!
- This is not mythology — it’s physics, based on observations of galaxies and radiation patterns. You can read more about this here.
🌍 Formation of Earth & Conditions for Life
- The Earth formed much later — around 4.6 billion years ago.
- In its early phase, it was just a hot, barren, rocky sphere. No life. No rivers. No atmosphere that we could breathe.
- Over time, Earth developed a crust, water bodies, and a stable atmosphere. With these ingredients, life finally emerged around 3.8 billion years ago.
📊 Understanding Geological Time Scale
History doesn’t unfold over centuries here — we are talking in billions of years. To keep track, geologists have created a time chart. Let’s understand:
| Eon | Era | Period | Epoch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hadean | |||
| Archean | |||
| Proterozoic | |||
| Phanerozoic | Palaeozoic | ||
| Mesozoic | |||
| Cenozoic | Tertiary, Quaternary | Pleistocene, Holocene |
- Our focus for early human history lies in the Quaternary Period, especially:
- Pleistocene Epoch: 2.6 million to 12,000 years ago — often called the Ice Age.
- Holocene Epoch: 12,000 years ago to present — this is the time of agriculture, civilisation, and all recorded history.
🚶♂️ Early Human Migration: From Africa to India
If you want to understand the history of humankind, remember this one thing — the first human was born in Africa.
Let’s trace the evolution of humans under the genus Homo (Latin for “man”):
1. Homo habilis (2–3 million years ago)
- Lived in Africa during early Pleistocene.
- Known as the “Handyman” because they used simple stone tools.
- But they did not migrate out of Africa, so we don’t find their fossils elsewhere.
2. Homo erectus (~1.8 million to 200,000 years ago)
- Name means “upright man” — they walked on two legs.
- Migrated out of Africa — reached Asia and Europe.
- Used more advanced tools than Homo habilis.
3. Homo sapiens (200,000 to 300,000 years ago)
- This is the “wise man”, the modern human species.
- Emerged in Southern Africa, then migrated across the globe.
- As they moved into new environments, their lifestyles and even physical features adapted — this led to the formation of different races.
So when you see that people have different skin tones and appearances, it’s a result of environmental adaptation — there is no such thing as a superior or inferior race.
🔁 Transition Species
- Between Homo erectus and Homo sapiens, there were some Archaic Homo sapiens — they had both primitive and modern features.
🧭 Arrival of Early Humans in India
A very important question is: When did the first humans arrive in India?
- In Africa, human-like fossils with tools are 3 million years old.
- But in India, the earliest evidence (not bones, but tools) comes from around 600,000 BCE.
- This was discovered at Bori, in Maharashtra — the earliest known Lower Palaeolithic site in India.
🪨 Evidence from India
- No complete human fossils from that period, except one:
- A fossil skull was found at Hathnora village in the Narmada Valley by Arun Sonakia in 1982.
- Estimated to be 5–6 lakh (500,000–600,000) years old.
- Possibly a late Homo erectus or archaic Homo sapiens.
🔥 Modern Homo sapiens in India
- Modern humans (Homo sapiens) probably arrived in India around 74,000 years ago.
- Evidence: Tools found under a volcanic ash layer in Kurnool district, Andhra Pradesh.
🧠 Quick Recap — Human Evolution Timeline
| Species | Emerged | Notes |
| Homo habilis | 2–3 mya | Handyman; used simple tools; Africa only |
| Homo erectus | 1.8 mya | Upright man; migrated to Asia, Europe |
| Archaic Homo sapiens | Transitional | Mix of modern and primitive features |
| Homo sapiens | ~200,000 ya | Modern humans; migrated globally |
| Homo sapiens in India | ~74,000 ya | Evidence in Andhra Pradesh |