[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":140},["ShallowReactive",2],{"article-extinction-of-denisovans-en":3},{"id":4,"name":5,"keywords":4,"slug":6,"author":7,"status":4,"defaultLang":4,"ogImage":8,"ogType":9,"updateDate":10,"createDate":11,"isDeleted":4,"availableLangs":4,"i18nMeta":12,"relatedBlogs":23},null,"丹尼索瓦人灭绝","extinction-of-denisovans","卜可","https://image.big-history.online/tree_24.40/1773021375116_Denisovans_extinct.jpg","article","2026-03-09T09:57:37","2025-09-28T00:27:26",{"name":13,"h1Title":14,"title":15,"subtitle":4,"keywords":16,"content":17,"overview":4,"description":18,"ogTitle":19,"ogDescription":20,"preface":4,"note":4,"langCode":21,"updateDate":10,"createDate":11,"priority":22,"author":7},"Denisovan Extinction","Denisovans Extinction: The Evolutionary Elegy of Ancient Humans","Denisovan Extinction: An Elegy of Human Evolution Hidden in the Hinterland of Asia","Denisovans,DragonPeople,YunxianPeople","## Denisovans Extinction\n\nIn the history of human evolution, in addition to Neanderthals, Denisovans are another mysterious ancient human group. The discovery process of this group also reflects the strength of molecular anthropology, because scientists have fully confirmed the existence of this unique ancient human group with only one finger bone, half mandible and sporadic tooth fossils. In 2008, archaeologists discovered a fragment of a finger bone about 76200 to 51600 years ago in the \u003Cspan class=\"marker\" enus=\"Denisova Cave\" lon=\"84.6724\" lat=\"51.3919\" map=\"HB\" zoom=\"3\">Denisova Cave\u003C/span> in Russia. In 2010, DNA sequencing confirmed that it belonged to a new branch of ancient humans and was named Denisovans-The first ancient human discovered only through genetic classification. Due to the scarcity of fossils, they have long been known as the \"ghost group\".\n\nThey have spanned at least 200000 years on the Asian continent, leaving behind stone tools belonging to their own ethnic group, as well as a few skeletal fossils, and genetic fusion with other ethnic groups. About 30000 years ago, the Denisovans became extinct, while modern humans continued to live on the land they once lived on. The extinction of the Dan people is not only the end of an ethnic group, but also a puzzle that has not been fully solved in the history of human evolution. It also hides the story of early modern people struggling to adapt to the environment.\n\n\u003Cdiv class=\"img-container-article\">\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://image.big-history.online/tree_24.25.27/1772182153237_Denisovan.png\" alt=\"丹尼索瓦人的装饰品\" />\n\u003Cspan>\nImage source: \u003Ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denisovan\" target=\"_blank\">Denisovan\u003C/a>\n\u003C/span>\nPart of the ornament found in the \u003Cspan class=\"marker\" enus=\"Denisova Cave\" lon=\"84.6724\" lat=\"51.3919\" map=\"HB\" zoom=\"3\">Denisova Cave\u003C/span> (Denisova Cave) in\u003Cp class=\"description\">. Overall observation shows that the tool-making ability of the Denisovans was in the middle and late Paleolithic period, and the technology gradually developed from basic punching to the finishing of bone tools and the production of complex ornaments. The level of the late stage was close to that of the Neanderthals, even partially surpassing that of the Neanderthals of the same period.\u003C/p>\n\u003C/div>\n\n\u003Cdiv class=\"img-container-article\">\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://image.big-history.online/tree_24.25.27/1772182287907_Denisova_Cave_pendants_notched_bones.png\" alt=\"Denisova pendants\" />\n\u003Cspan>\nImage source: \u003Ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denisovan\" target=\"_blank\">Denisovan\u003C/a>\n\u003C/span>\nBone and stone tools found in \u003Cspan class=\"marker\" enus=\"Denisova Cave\" lon=\"84.6724\" lat=\"51.3919\" map=\"HB\" zoom=\"3\">Denisova Cave\u003C/span> in\u003Cp class=\"description\">.\u003C/p>\n\u003C/div>\n\n## Multiple crises led to the extinction of the Denisovans?\n\nAt present, the extinction of Denisovans is the result of the superposition of climate, competition and its own limitations. It is generally believed that Denisovans died in the late Pleistocene 32000 to 28000 years ago.\n\nThe Denisovan experience also reveals the vulnerability of humans in the face of environmental change. About 115000 years ago, the Last Glacial Period (LGP) of the Late Pleistocene came, which was a serious climate disaster. The sudden drop in global temperatures has caused the main habitat of the Denisovans to be covered with ice and snow, animal resources have plummeted, and food shortages have caused the population to shrink in size. This can lead to a deadly vicious cycle: glaciers block gene exchange between groups, and small isolated groups fall into a vicious circle of inbreeding, physical weakening, and population decline. Even the Danes are extremely adaptable to the cold environment at high altitudes because they cannot cope with this dilemma.\n\nAnother factor that has to be taken into account comes from the expansion of modern man. 60000 to 50000 years ago, modern people out of Africa began to spread rapidly on the Eurasian continent; one of them entered East Asia and formed direct competition with Denisovans. Modern people master more advanced stone technology, cooperation mode and language ability, and it is easier to seize high-quality hunting resources and compress the living space of Denisovans. Although there is a genetic exchange between the two (modern Southeast Asian and Oceanian populations and Tibetans still retain their genes), reproductive isolation may have reduced the fertility of mixed offspring and further exacerbated the Denisovan decline. Whether or not this hypothesis holds, it is a basic fact that the Denisovan niche was eventually replaced by modern humans.\n\nHowever, the Denisovan ethnic group's own factors cannot be ignored. Genes show that this ethnic group has been in a small population state for a long time, resulting in insufficient genetic diversity, weak disease resistance and adaptability; lack of communication will also lead to lagging cultural development, they fail to realize the necessary innovation of complex tools, and the original social organization structure is difficult to stimulate individual potential. The entire ethnic group's ability to respond to the crisis is insufficient, and the lonely ethnic groups are eventually eliminated one by one.\n\n## Denisovan heritage\n\nScientists' research is constantly unraveling the mystery of this group. For example, Fu Qiaomei's team's research on the \"Dragon Man\" (Harbin cranium) and Lanzhou University's exploration of the \u003Cspan class=\"marker\" enus=\"Baishiya Karst Cave\" lon=\"102.571\" lat=\"35.4481\" map=\"HB\" zoom=\"8\">Baishiya cave\u003C/span>. Extinction is not the end. As an independent cultural Denisovan group, they have died out, but their genes have been integrated into the modern human gene pool through hybrids. The more famous EPAS1 gene, which is the core gene of the human body to regulate the ability to adapt to hypoxia; due to the plateau hypoxia environment, the gene is fixed in the modern Tibetan population by natural selection. In addition to the EPAS1 gene, genes derived from Denisovans also profoundly affect the immunity and metabolic capacity of modern people.\n\nThere are still many mysteries about the specific time of the Denisovan extinction, regional differences in extinction, and whether diseases and natural disasters accelerate their extinction. With the progress of archaeological technology, these questions will be gradually solved, helping us to understand the complexity of human evolution more deeply. The extinction of the Denisovans is the result of natural selection and competition for survival, and it also reminds us that**human evolution cannot be separated from the exchange and integration of ethnic groups**.\n\n\u003Cdiv class=\"img-container-article\">\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://image.big-history.online/tree_24.25.27/1772182426967_Dali_Man_Skull_Replica.jpg\" alt=\"Dali Man Skull\" width=\"70%\"/>\n\u003Cspan>\nPhoto by \u003Ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harbin_cranium\" target=\"_blank\">Harbin Cranium\u003C/a>\n\u003C/span>\nThe \u003Cp class=\"description\">Dragon Man (Homo longi) is a new species of ancient humans that was officially named in 2021. The fossil is a nearly complete skull discovered in Harbin in 1933, at least 146000 years ago. It has both the original and progressive characteristics, the brain capacity of about 1420 ml. In 2025, the latest research confirmed by ancient DNA and ancient protein, the dragon people or Denisovans, providing the first complete skull morphological evidence for this mysterious race.\u003C/p>\n\u003C/div>\n\n\u003Cdiv class=\"img-container-article\">\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://image.big-history.online/tree_24.25.27/1772182568606_Spread_and_evolution_of_Denisovans.jpg\" alt=\"Spread and evolution of Denisovans, an ancient human group that went extinct\" />\n\u003Cspan>\nImage source: \u003Ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denisovan\" target=\"_blank\">Denisovan\u003C/a>\n\u003C/span>\n\u003Cp class=\"description\">Comparison of the evolution and geographic spread of the Denisovans (green) with the Neanderthals (yellow), the Heidelbergs (red), and the homo erectus. Coastal light blue outlines the coastline of the ice age; during the ice age, a large amount of seawater froze, forming huge ice sheets on various continents, and the sea level at its worst was at least 100 meters lower than it is now.\n\u003C/p>\n\u003C/div>\n\n\u003Cdiv class=\"img-container-article\">\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://image.big-history.online/tree_24.25.27/1772182673760_Yunxian_Man.png\" alt=\"Yunxian_Man\" width=\"90%\"/>\n\u003Cspan>\nSource: A \u003Ca href=\"https://www.stdaily.com/web/gdxw/2025-09/26/content_407729.html\" target=\"_blank\">million-year-old skull fossil confirms that the Denisovans belonged to the Dragonian branch\u003C/a>\n\u003C/span>\n\u003Cp class=\"description\">phylogenetic tree of the genus hominis. The figure in the picture is from \u003Cspan class=\"marker\" enus=\"Yunxian County\" lon=\"110.82\" lat=\"32.84\" map=\"HB\" zoom=\"3\">Yun County\u003C/span> and belongs to a branch of the dragon that is closely related to the Denisovans. Ni Xijun Team.\n\u003C/p>\n\u003C/div>\n\n## References\n\n\n\n\u003Ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denisovan\" target=\"_blank\">Denisovan\u003C/a>\n\n\u003Ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harbin_cranium\" target=\"_blank\">Harbin Cranium\u003C/a>\n\n\n---\n\n\n  ","Why did the Denisovans become extinct? Reveal the survival trajectory of this mysterious ancient human group, analyze the core causes of extinction such as the Last Ice Age and Homo sapiens competition, and take you to understand the invisible walker in the history of human evolution.","Denisovans Extinction: Evolutionary Elegy of Ancient Humans in Asia, What Secrets Are Hidden in Genetic Heritage?","Why did the Denisovans, who thrived in Asia for 200,000 years, suddenly go extinct? This article explains the combined effects of glacial catastrophes, competition with Homo sapiens, and population limitations, shedding light on the evolutionary puzzle of ancient humans.","en",0.7,[24,32,39,46,53,60,68,76,83,90,98,106,113,120,126,133],{"id":25,"name":26,"keywords":4,"slug":27,"author":7,"ogImage":28,"isBlog":4,"createDate":29,"updateDate":30,"description":31},"23d76e12c94e41c1859cb32f2488d014","The Evolution of Modern Man","divergence-neanderthals-denisovans-homo-sapiens","https://image.big-history.online/tree_24.40/1770276305930_720_000124_1704330139624.jpg","2023-11-23T15:49:40","2026-03-12T10:23:51","770000 to 550000 years ago, the ancestors of modern humans diverged from those of Neanderthals and Denisovans, but there was no complete \"reproductive isolation\" between the three subspecies \". In fact, from a genetic point of view, they are just a \"weaker\" ancestor of modern people tens of thousands of years ago. Every modern person has more or less their genes in his body.",{"id":33,"name":34,"keywords":4,"slug":35,"author":7,"ogImage":36,"isBlog":4,"createDate":37,"updateDate":30,"description":38},"02dc8cb3fb8a4f41a87671463267f5e8","Denisovans mixed with modern people","hybridization-between-denisovans-and-modern-humans","https://image.big-history.online/tree_24.40/1770276654946_720_000124_1704329927656.jpg","2023-11-24T14:20:52","Denisovans are an ancient human species discovered through DNA analysis. They coexisted with Neanderthals and modern humans and interbred with both. This paper provides a detailed analysis of gene flow, the EPAS1 gene on the Tibetan Plateau, the Xiahe mandible, and the distribution of ancestral components across global populations.\n",{"id":40,"name":41,"keywords":4,"slug":42,"author":7,"ogImage":43,"isBlog":4,"createDate":44,"updateDate":44,"description":45},"f7684aff24744766b9849f56b04617f2","Longshan Culture","longshan-culture","https://image.big-history.online/tree_24.40/1780474978266_longshan-culture8.jpg","2026-06-05T15:10:49","The Longshan Culture is one of the most important archaeological cultures of the Late Neolithic period in China, dating from approximately 4,500 to 4,000 years ago. This article systematically examines the origins and geographical distribution of the Longshan Culture, its black‑ware pottery techniques, social stratification, the emergence of proto‑writing, prehistoric urban sites, and its relationship with the Erlitou Culture of the Xia Dynasty, thereby illuminating a crucial phase in the formation of Chinese civilization.",{"id":47,"name":48,"keywords":4,"slug":49,"author":7,"ogImage":50,"isBlog":4,"createDate":51,"updateDate":51,"description":52},"a5e600c3d725475595abfd581b704176","Hongshan Culture","hongshan-culture","https://image.big-history.online/tree_24.40/1780389885606_hongshan-culture62.jpg","2026-06-02T20:46:01","Hongshan Culture is one of the most important late Neolithic archaeological cultures in northern China, renowned for the Niuheliang site, the Goddess Temple, the cairn tombs, and its exquisite jade artifacts. This article provides a systematic overview of the Hongshan Culture, covering its chronological framework, geographical distribution, agricultural practices, jade-crafting traditions, and its pivotal significance for research on the origins of Chinese civilization.",{"id":54,"name":55,"keywords":4,"slug":56,"author":7,"ogImage":57,"isBlog":4,"createDate":58,"updateDate":30,"description":59},"47281d4cfe6e440e97e2ca10729e61f6","Homo erectus","homo-eractus","https://image.big-history.online/tree_24.40/1770175824343_000124_1709605257579.jpg","2023-11-23T15:48:07","Homo erectus, which existed about 1.8 million to 200000 years ago, is a critical and successful species in the history of human evolution. Their body proportions are close to those of modern people. They can systematically use fire and make complex tools. They not only created the Acheri culture, but also made human beings walk out of Africa for the first time, which can be called a milestone in the evolution of the human genus.",{"id":61,"name":62,"keywords":4,"slug":63,"author":7,"ogImage":64,"isBlog":4,"createDate":65,"updateDate":66,"description":67},"d90a829e9d7e4138af470f7451aa5107","Tutankhamun","tutankhamen","https://image.big-history.online/tree_24.40/1770278680370_720_000176_1762998682805_000176_1710122449266.jpg","2026-03-04T12:42:48","2026-03-04T16:54:16","Tutankhamun is the most famous pharaoh in ancient Egypt. It is not because of his achievements, but because of his unstolen KV62 tomb and gold mask that shocked the world and solved many mysteries of the 18th dynasty of ancient Egypt.",{"id":69,"name":70,"keywords":4,"slug":71,"author":7,"ogImage":72,"isBlog":4,"createDate":73,"updateDate":74,"description":75},"8f6adef1f3eb4d62ad48ffd2897d9ba0","Y chromosome Adam","y-chromosomal-adam","https://image.big-history.online/tree_24.40/1770276518548_720_1763566058169_y-chromosomal-adam.jpg","2026-02-27T00:04:54","2026-03-04T22:24:49","What is Y chromosome Adam? This article explains the paternal inheritance of Y chromosome, molecular clock age, African origin of 120000 year, and the difference between it and mitochondrial Eve.",{"id":77,"name":78,"keywords":4,"slug":79,"author":7,"ogImage":80,"isBlog":4,"createDate":81,"updateDate":81,"description":82},"f77439bc374d47d6a738373cc900017a","The founding of the city of Carthage","establishment-of-carthage","https://image.big-history.online/tree_24.40/1770283657313_720_1765467646917_Dido.jpg","2026-03-08T22:24:07","In the 9th century BC, the Phoenician princess Dido founded Carthage in North Africa. This paper examines how Carthage evolved from a refuge trading post into the most powerful commercial empire in the Mediterranean, explores the context of the conflict between Punic culture and Greek colonists, and analyzes how Carthage came to be Rome’s destined rival.",{"id":84,"name":85,"keywords":4,"slug":86,"author":7,"ogImage":87,"isBlog":4,"createDate":88,"updateDate":88,"description":89},"e95c775480f547f9b889c30cf3d785cc","Tielepin edict","telepinu-proclamation","https://image.big-history.online/tree_24.40/1770278424562_720_1764160453480_Telepinu-Proclamation.jpg","2026-03-05T20:05:04","Infighting within the Hittite royal family was frequent. To address this, Telepinu issued the Telepinu Proclamation, which standardized the succession to the throne and imposed limits on royal authority. Despite its profound historical significance, it failed to put an end to palace assassinations.\n",{"id":91,"name":92,"keywords":4,"slug":93,"author":7,"ogImage":94,"isBlog":4,"createDate":95,"updateDate":96,"description":97},"d61ebb9a9f7c48b9a4a67bcb9edc73d0","Reformation in Ehnaon","akhenaten-aten-god-reform","https://image.big-history.online/tree_24.40/1770278654850_720_000176_1710122409119.jpg","2026-03-04T12:22:41","2026-03-04T16:53:43","Ehnatun (Amenhotep IV) was the most controversial pharaoh in ancient Egypt. He carried out the religious reform, abolished the god of Amun, respected the god of Aton, and moved the capital of Ehtarton. Although the reform failed, it left the earliest bud of monotheism and the statue of Queen Naftiti.",{"id":99,"name":100,"keywords":4,"slug":101,"author":7,"ogImage":102,"isBlog":4,"createDate":103,"updateDate":104,"description":105},"f57e163efcf24ea8b230b0c200911ef8","The oldest known human member—Orrorin tugenensis","orrorin-tugenensis","https://image.big-history.online/tree_24.40/1770170182584_1760324824811_the-origin-of-our-species2.jpg","2026-02-25T14:47:25","2026-06-05T11:35:17","Orrorin tugenensis, also known as the “Millennium Man,” lived in Africa 6 million years ago and is one of the earliest known hominins to have walked upright. This paper presents the fossil discoveries, morphological characteristics, and evolutionary significance of this taxon.",{"id":107,"name":108,"keywords":4,"slug":109,"author":7,"ogImage":110,"isBlog":4,"createDate":111,"updateDate":111,"description":112},"cb709ac6ad83472d9da5c8867b45289d","The end of the Egyptian Empire","downfall-of-egyptian-empire","https://image.big-history.online/tree_24.40/1770283044845_720_1765021735012_Rulers_of_Kush_Kerma_Museum.jpg","2026-03-04T22:40:34","The end of the Egyptian imperial era began with the murder of Ramses III, the harassment of the sea, the dictatorship of the priests, the prevalence of tomb robberies and the workers' strike, which eventually led to the collapse of the new kingdom and the return of ancient Egypt to its former glory.",{"id":114,"name":115,"keywords":4,"slug":116,"author":7,"ogImage":117,"isBlog":4,"createDate":118,"updateDate":118,"description":119},"cb379ebd67614a04b01b318201ccf1c6","The heyday of Mycenaean civilization","mycenaean-palatial-bronze-age","https://image.big-history.online/tree_24.40/1770278551734_720_000186_1715741489174.jpg","2026-03-05T20:40:37","The Mycenaean civilization entered its heyday in the 15th century BC, controlling the Aegean region, building acropolis and palaces, and unearthed a large number of gold relics, which were revealed by Schliman's archaeological discoveries.",{"id":121,"name":4,"keywords":4,"slug":122,"author":7,"ogImage":123,"isBlog":4,"createDate":124,"updateDate":124,"description":125},"b03a4da682ff469189c55b7db325a9cc","australopithecus-garhi","https://image.big-history.online/tree_24.40/1770175774943_000124_1704333478298.jpg","2026-02-25T16:47:20","The amazing species of Australopithecus lived in Ethiopia about 3.3 million years ago. It was in the same period or even partially overlapped with the famous Afar species of Australopithecus (such as \"Lucy\"), which proved the diversity of human evolution and completely changed the previous The simple view of \"straight line evolution\" of human origin",{"id":127,"name":128,"keywords":4,"slug":129,"author":7,"ogImage":130,"isBlog":4,"createDate":131,"updateDate":131,"description":132},"b59e3b5120294f44ad7bc049bf50c386","Ancient Egyptian civilization died out","decline-and-fall-of-ancient-egyptian-civilization","https://image.big-history.online/tree_24.40/1770290955170_720_000212_1756715712173_Sais-of-Egypt2.jpg","2026-03-05T00:32:09","In 525 BC, the Persian Empire Cambyses II conquered Egypt and destroyed the 26th Dynasty. The last native pharaoh era of ancient Egypt ended, and the ancient Egyptian civilization, which lasted for more than 2,500 years, went to extinction.",{"id":134,"name":135,"keywords":4,"slug":136,"author":7,"ogImage":137,"isBlog":4,"createDate":138,"updateDate":138,"description":139},"935261c3d89f46ca8b0a61f2b3117e1f","The Nubian Dynasty of Egypt","twenty-fifth-dynasty-of-egypt","https://image.big-history.online/tree_24.40/1770290155089_720_000202_1719368322205.jpg","2026-03-04T23:39:41","The 25th Dynasty of Egypt was founded by the black pharaoh of Nubian (Kushi). It was the last dynasty in the third intermediate period. Pier, Shabaka and Takhka once unified Egypt and revived ancient Egyptian beliefs and pyramid buildings.",1780647326284]