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Human Children. Retelling of Chapter 5

 

Short retelling of chapter 5 of the essay: Arkhipov S.V. Human Children: The Origins of Biblical Legends from a Physician's Perspective. Joensuu: Author's Edition, 2025. [In Russian] 

Chapter 5. ADAM AND EVE

The Book of Genesis narrates the story of a tribe founded by Adam and Eve, described as the "mother of all living." From a genetic perspective, they are depicted as siblings, with an age difference of 18–25 years. According to the biblical epic, they formed humanity’s first family, sustaining themselves on pre-existing fruits and seeds. Their initial home was the "garden in Eden," located "in the east" relative to the narrator. The text identifies geographic markers for Eden’s location: lands like "Asshur," "Cush," and "Havilah," and rivers named "Pishon," "Gihon," "Hiddekel," and "Phrath." The narrator also notes the region’s economic value, mentioning "gold," "onyx," and "bdellium," a fragrant resin, indicating awareness of valuable resources.

Per Genesis, humans were tasked with cultivating and guarding their allotted land. Initially, Adam and Eve lived without clothing, unashamed despite their physical differences. Later, they fashioned garments from fig leaves, followed by "coats of skins," suggesting a drop in temperature in Eden, necessitating warmer attire. The narrative’s pivotal moment is their expulsion from the garden to till the earth, interpreted as an ancient tale of a tribal group’s deliberate migration to fertile lands suited for farming. The text hints at a quest for arable fields, possibly for grain cultivation, as bread is mentioned earlier. While their destination is unspecified, it’s implied they settled in a region with ample water for crops and livestock. This is supported by their sons’ roles: one a shepherd, the other a farmer.

References to agriculture and specific animals allow reconstruction of the climate, landscape, flora, and fauna of their new home, offering clues for scientifically dating the "first humans." However, the historicity of Adam and Eve remains uncertain. If they existed, questions arise: How did they emerge, who were they, and where did they transform the earth? This chapter seeks to unravel Genesis’s enigma by aligning its account with humanity’s past, climate shifts, and biosphere changes.

Homo sapiens evolved 690,000–425,000 years ago, diverging from close relatives. The oldest fossils of anatomically modern humans, dated 315,000 ± 34,000 years ago, were found in Morocco. Y-chromosome analysis indicates our latest common ancestor lived in Africa 307,000–192,000 years ago. Outside Africa, the earliest reliable Homo sapiens remains, aged 130,000–90,000 years ago, appear in the Levant (33°49'12"N, 36°18'E). A global warming period 128,000–126,000 years ago raised temperatures 4–8°C above today’s, followed by brief cooling events 75,000 and 45,000 years ago, causing localized extinctions.

Mitochondrial DNA studies reveal a common ancestor for non-African populations roamed Earth around 160,000 years ago. The first phase of Homo sapiens’ migration from Africa to the Levant occurred 130,000–71,000 years ago, with settlements there from 130,000–80,000 years ago, but no further Eurasian expansion until around 50,000 years ago. Recent DNA analysis suggests another migration to the "Persian Gulf Oasis" 65,000–50,000 years ago, followed by dispersals to South Asia, northwest to Europe, and back to North Africa. Genetic sequencing confirms westward movement from the Persian Gulf to the Middle East and Europe 55,000–24,000 years ago, with tribes bypassing the Mediterranean’s north, possibly due to favorable conditions, impassable terrain, harsh weather, or competition from Neanderthals.

A "southern route" migration through the Persian Gulf is supported by similar archaeological sites in the Horn of Africa (9°50'N, 49°10'E) and Arabia. This aligns with crossings of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait (12°36'15"N, 43°20'8"E) during the Upper Pleistocene, 150,000–50,000 years ago. At Jebel Faya (25°06'39"N, 55°50'10"E) in Musandam, evidence places humans 125,000 years ago when the desert was a savanna. Comprehensive data suggest migration from East Africa across the Red Sea to Asia 74,000–60,000 years ago, possibly spurred by the Toba supervolcano eruption 74,000 years ago, causing drought and famine in northwest Ethiopia.

Migration to Arabia likely intensified after 65,000 years ago. Modeling shows late Pleistocene humans could cross Bab el-Mandeb without advanced technology, relying on passive drifting. Paleoecological, archaeological, and genetic evidence confirms the Persian Gulf Oasis as a demographic refuge 129,000–8,800 years ago, cradling Eurasian populations over 50,000 years ago.

The Red Sea joined the Indian Ocean 5–4 million years ago, forming Bab el-Mandeb. Whether Africans crossed without boats is unclear, but 140,000 years ago, sea levels were 140 meters lower. A shallow ridge northwest of Bab el-Mandeb, dubbed the "southern bridge," stretched from the Hanish Islands to Haycock Islands, with depths up to 137.3 meters. This land corridor, formed 140,000 years ago, enabled crossings to Arabia. Seabed analysis reveals a winding path among cliffs, with possible water-filled wells navigable without vessels. Wooden structures in Zambia, dated 476,000 ± 23,000 years ago, suggest early hominins built rafts, making such crossings feasible nearly 500,000 years ago.

Fossils from Herto, Ethiopia (10°17'13"N, 40°31'47"E), dated 154,000–160,000 years ago, and Omo River (4°26'41"N, 35°59'12"E), 195,000 ± 5,000 years ago, confirm Homo sapiens’ presence near Bab el-Mandeb. African baboons, now in Arabia, likely used the same route. The "southern bridge," with volcanic terrain like Great Hanish Island, suited climbing primates like humans, not hoofed animals. Human traces at Jebel Faya 125,000 years ago affirm the bridge’s brief existence.

Sea levels rose 129,500 years ago, peaking 127,000 years ago, submerging the bridge. Fossils from China’s Fuyan Cave (120,000–80,000 years ago) and Zhiren Cave (106,200 ± 6,700 years ago) support early Asian migrations. A Greek skull, blending sapiens and Neanderthal traits from over 210,000 years ago, suggests earlier European incursions, possibly via Neanderthal interbreeding in the Levant.

Favorable Red Sea crossing conditions recurred 26,500–19,000 years ago (130 meters below current levels), 48,000 years ago (100 meters), and 65,000 years ago (108 meters). Brief intervals 68,000–61,000 years ago saw narrow channels at Hanish and Haycock Islands. At 100 meters below today’s levels, a large landmass, "Big Haycock Island" (13°32'29"N, 42°37'35"E), emerged, measuring 5,700 by 3,100 meters, flanked by two straits: 1,700 meters wide to the northeast and 800 meters to the southwest. Another landmass, "Huge Haycock Island," 1.5 times larger, lay 3.5 kilometers southeast. Simulations confirm an archipelago of rocky outcrops minimized open water during dry spells.

With no major rivers feeding the Red Sea, currents were weak, intensifying during African and Arabian rains or low tides. Tribes likely built rafts, paddling to Asia. At 65,000–30,000 years ago, Bab el-Mandeb spanned 4 kilometers, but with seas 108 meters lower, its minimal width was 3,400 meters across 140 kilometers, favoring crossings north of the strait.

Mitochondrial DNA indicates rapid Middle Eastern, European, and Indian settlement around 65,000 years ago via the southern route, post a 80,000–75,000-year cooling. Y-chromosome shifts confirm Eurasian and Oceanian colonization 52,000–47,000 years ago during the last Ice Age (120,000–20,000 years ago). Climate favored southern, not northern, exits from Africa.

Homo sapiens and Neanderthals interbred, as evidenced at Mandrin Cave, France (44°28'10"N, 4°46'16"E), where sapiens appeared 56,800–51,700 years ago, possibly via a western Gibraltar Strait crossing (35°56'44"N, 5°47'43"E), 21 kilometers wide today but 10 kilometers 140,000 years ago. Neanderthal fires at Gibraltar’s caves, like Saint Michael’s (36°7'34"N, 5°20'44"E), were visible from Africa’s Jebel Musa (35°53'56"N, 5°24'47"E). From Ceuta (35°53'18"N, 5°18'15"E), Neanderthal caves Vanguard and Gorham’s (36°07'18"N, 5°20'31"E) lay 25 kilometers across, visible per the horizon formula (d≈3.57√h).

Curiosity about distant fires may have spurred Gibraltar crossings on dugout canoes during glacial maxima. Modeling suggests the strait posed challenges without rafting skills, but rare successes seeded small European groups, like Mandrin’s.

A northern route from Egypt to the Levant significantly shaped non-African genomes. In Jordan’s Rift Valley, Homo sapiens settled 55,000–37,000 years ago, later spreading along Mediterranean coasts due to population growth, resource depletion, and favorable climates. From the Levant, migrations headed south to North Africa or north to Anatolia, constrained by deserts and seas.

Levant’s caves, like Misliya (194,000–177,000 years ago), Es-Skhul (119,000 ± 18,000 years ago), and Qafzeh (115,000 ± 15,000 years ago), confirm early sapiens presence. Over 200 Levantine Paleolithic sites, including Lebanon’s Ksar Akil (44,000 ± 1,200 years ago), show sapiens and Neanderthal coexistence. Northern migration hit the Taurus Mountains, a 800–1,500-meter barrier, with peaks at 3,000–5,165 meters, merging into the 2,000–4,000-meter Zagros Mountains, ideal for herding and farming.

The Zagros hosted Neanderthals, as at Shanidar Cave (36°48'1"N, 44°14'44"E), where Shanidar 3’s rib injury, likely from a sapiens’ projectile 50,600 ± 3,000–33,900 ± 900 years ago, suggests conflict during interbreeding 49,000–45,000 years ago. Kaldar and Yafteh Caves (49,200 ± 1,800–40,000 years ago) show sapiens replacing Neanderthals, aided by humid conditions 65,000–55,000 years ago.

Genesis’s Eden, "in the east," aligns with the Zagros and Mesopotamian plains, watered by the Tigris and Euphrates. The text’s rivers and lands—Asshur (Assyria), Cush (Ethiopia), Havilah (northeast Arabia)—place the narrator west, possibly in Sinai, traditionally linked to Moses. Humid conditions 130,000 years ago deterred Mesopotamian settlement, but tribes crossing the Red Sea 140,000 years ago via the "southern bridge" reached the Persian Gulf Oasis, avoiding Neanderthals. A second wave 65,000 years ago crossed north of Bab el-Mandeb, entering Mesopotamia via a re-emerged Hormuz Strait land bridge, thriving in a lush climate.

These settlers, resembling African ancestors, adapted over 50,000 years, influenced by Neanderthal genes and Asia’s environment, possibly resembling modern Indigenous Australians—perhaps the visage of Adam and Eve.

Retelling done by Grok, an artificial intelligence developed by xAI.

 

TABLE OF CONTENTS


                                                                    

Author:

Arkhipov S.V. – candidate of medical sciences, surgeon, traumatologist-orthopedist. 

Citation:

Архипов С.В. Дети человеческие: истоки библейских преданий в обозрении врача. Эссе, снабженное ссылками на интерактивный материал. 2-е изд. перераб. и доп. Йоэнсуу: Издание Автора, 2025. 

Arkhipov S.V. Human Children: The Origins of Biblical Legends from a Physician's Perspective. An essay with references to interactive materials. 2nd revised and expanded edition. Joensuu: Author's Edition, 2025. [Rus]

Purchase:

PDF version is available on GooglePlay & Google Books

Keywords

ligamentum capitis femoris, ligamentum teres, ligament of head of femur, history, first patient, injury, damage, Bible, Genesis

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