Our earliest human ancestors developed in Africa. From here their descendants spread as far as East Asia more than a million years ago and into Europe before 500,000 BC.
Continuing evolution saw the emergence of fully modern humans in Africa around 120,000 BC. They spread into West Asia where they coexisted with their cousins the Neanderthals for 50,000 years.
Modern humans reached East Asia where they replaced the descendants of earlier humans. From here they colonized Australia by 50,000 BC, a journey that involved crossing many miles of open sea.
Modern humans were also moving into Europe at this time. Although the local Neanderthals eventually died out, they coexisted with modern people for at least 10,000 years.
By 12,000 BC, the northern icesheets were melting, allowing people to colonize new areas. Humans spread very rapidly into the Americas, reaching the far south within a few thousand years.
Later, new technology and new ways of life enabled people to colonize the last pockets of the globe - the Pacific islands, Central Asia's steppe and, most recently, Antarctica.
