Definition
Homo erectus is a long-lived hominin species first appearing in Africa around 1.9 million years ago and surviving in some regions until perhaps 100,000 years ago. It is the first hominin to disperse out of Africa and the first to occupy a range stretching from western Europe through East Asia, including Eurasian sites like Dmanisi (~1.8 mya, Georgia), Zhoukoudian (China), and Sangiran and Trinil (Java).
Compared with earlier Homo, erectus had modern body proportions — long legs, short arms, narrow hips — and a substantially larger brain (~800–1100 cc, varying through time). The skull is robust with a thick brow ridge and a low, long braincase. Some researchers split early African specimens off as Homo ergaster; others lump them all under H. erectus.
Why it matters
Where it shows up
The first H. erectus fossils were Eugene Dubois's Java specimens from the 1890s. Subsequent African discoveries (Olduvai, Koobi Fora, Nariokotome) showed that the species originated in Africa, with the Asian fossils representing later dispersal. Dmanisi has produced exceptionally well-preserved specimens that document the early Eurasian phase.
The Nariokotome boy — a near-complete juvenile skeleton from 1.5 mya — provided the same kind of anchor for H. erectus that Lucy provided for A. afarensis. From him we can reconstruct stature, body proportions, growth, and pathology in unprecedented detail for the species.