The Origins of Humankind

by Stephen Tomkins

The Origins of Humankind gives a concise account of human evolution. It covers evolutionary theory, the primates, the human fossil story, the cultural evolution of humans and the origins of agriculture and civilisation. It begins with an account of the development of ideas about evolution, from pre-Darwinian theories through to the study of molecular evolution, and goes on to give detailed explanations of the physical and evolutionary stages leading to Homo sapiens.

Genres: Evolution

146 pages, Paperback

First published April 12, 1984

About the author

Stephen Tomkins is the author of several books, including biographies of John Wesley and William Wilberforce. He is the deputy editor of Third Way magazine.

Reviews

[Cory · Rating 3 out of 5]

I remember from this book being fascinated by the theory of how we went from tree dwelling apes to bipedal humans, all from needing to transit across plains in search of food and water. Being forced to cover this large area of tall grass, the apes needed to stand upright to see over the tall grass, as well as carry their young. Pretty cool.