Homo sapiens idaltu

[ hoh-moh sey-pee-uhnz i-dahl-too ]

noun

1. an extinct subspecies of Homo sapiens that lived in Africa during the Pleistocene Epoch and is believed to be the likely immediate ancestor of the modern human ( Homo sapiens sapiens ): the first fossil specimen was discovered in Herto Bouri, Ethiopia, in 1997.
2. a fossil belonging to this species.

Word History and Origins

Origin of Homo sapiens idaltu¹

First recorded in 2000–05; from New Latin; Homo sapiens ( def ) + Afar idaltu “first born, elder”