Read this article in 4 levels: Basic A1 (英検3級), Intermediate B1(英検2級), Advanced C1(英検1級), original version. Multiple choice content questions for each level. Free English reading practice. The more you read in English, the more your English will improve. How did humans spread across the world?
A1 Beginner 英検3級
B1 Intermediate 英検2級
C1 Advanced 英検1級
Original article
Basic A1 (英検3級) Version:
Article: How did humans spread across the world? Early humans moved around by walking on land, using land bridges, and sometimes using boats.
The first migration happened long before modern humans, called Homo sapiens, existed. A species called Homo erectus evolved in Africa about three million years ago. Over time, they spread into Europe and Asia. In Europe, they evolved into Neanderthals. In Asia, they became Denisovans. In Africa, they evolved into modern humans, or Homo sapiens, about 300,000 years ago.
Homo sapiens first started to leave Africa around 125,000 years ago. They went to the Middle East, southern Asia, and maybe even Europe. However, they didn’t stay because they lost in competition for food or mixed with other humans like Neanderthals.
The second migration, the one that spread us all over the world, began about 70,000 years ago. This time, Homo sapiens were stronger and smarter than other human species. They became the dominant species in every place they moved to, and Neanderthals and Denisovans slowly disappeared. One idea is that our brains got bigger because we ate a lot of shellfish, which made our brains stronger. We also started to use language, which gave us a big advantage.
Humans slowly moved out of Africa by walking over land bridges during the Ice Age. During this time, sea levels were much lower, connecting many continents. For example, Africa was connected to Asia, and Europe was connected to Asia. By 70,000 years ago, early humans followed the coasts and reached the Middle East. By 65,000 years ago, they had traveled through India and reached Australia, using boats for short sea crossings.
From India, they spread north, east, and west. By 50,000 years ago, they were in Turkey and Europe, and by 45,000 years ago, they were in China. By 30,000 years ago, humans had reached Japan and the edges of the ice sheets in Europe. About 15,000 years ago, they crossed from Siberia to Alaska and spread throughout the Americas.
By 10,000 years ago, humans lived almost everywhere except places like Hawaii, New Zealand, and Greenland, which they reached later by boats.
Questions:
- How did early humans move to different places?
- A) By flying
- B) By walking and using boats
- C) By swimming
- D) By cars
- What species existed before modern humans?
- A) Dinosaurs
- B) Neanderthals
- C) Homo erectus
- D) Robots
- Where did Homo erectus first evolve?
- A) Asia
- B) Europe
- C) Africa
- D) America
- When did the first migration of Homo sapiens out of Africa occur?
- A) 10,000 years ago
- B) 125,000 years ago
- C) 1,000 years ago
- D) 5,000 years ago
- What helped Homo sapiens become stronger than other human species?
- A) They could fly
- B) Their brains got bigger
- C) They built houses
- D) They had more food
- How did sea levels affect human migration during the Ice Age?
- A) Sea levels were higher
- B) Sea levels were lower, creating land bridges
- C) Sea levels didn’t change
- D) Sea levels stopped migration
- How did early humans reach Australia?
- A) By walking all the way
- B) By boat
- C) By flying
- D) By swimming
- When did humans reach Japan?
- A) 100,000 years ago
- B) 45,000 years ago
- C) 20,000 years ago
- D) 5,000 years ago
- How did humans reach the Americas?
- A) By swimming
- B) By crossing a land bridge from Siberia to Alaska
- C) By airplane
- D) By walking through Europe
- Which place was reached last by humans?
- A) Africa
- B) Hawaii
- C) Europe
- D) Asia
Answers:
- B) By walking and using boats
- C) Homo erectus
- C) Africa
- B) 125,000 years ago
- B) Their brains got bigger
- B) Sea levels were lower, creating land bridges
- B) By boat
- B) 45,000 years ago
- B) By crossing a land bridge from Siberia to Alaska
- B) Hawaii
Intermediate B1 (英検2級) Version:
Article: Humans spread across the world mainly by using land bridges, ice bridges, and occasionally boats. The first major migrations happened before modern humans, or Homo sapiens, existed. Homo erectus, an earlier human species, evolved in Africa around three million years ago. Over time, they spread to Europe and Asia, eventually evolving into Neanderthals in Europe, Denisovans in Asia, and Homo sapiens in Africa about 300,000 years ago.
The first migration of Homo sapiens out of Africa occurred around 125,000 years ago. They moved into the Middle East, southern Asia, and possibly Europe, but they did not settle permanently. They were either outcompeted by Neanderthals and Denisovans or integrated with them.
The second and more successful migration began about 70,000 years ago. During this migration, Homo sapiens became the dominant species wherever they settled, leading to the decline of Neanderthals and Denisovans. The reasons for this are not entirely clear, but it is believed that Homo sapiens experienced a rapid increase in brain size, possibly due to a diet rich in shellfish, which provided essential fatty acids. This brain development likely enhanced their ability to innovate, make more advanced tools, and develop language.
As Homo sapiens moved out of Africa, they mainly walked, taking advantage of the Ice Age’s lower sea levels, which connected many landmasses. Around 70,000 years ago, they followed coastlines into the Middle East and continued along the shores, reaching Australia by 65,000 years ago. To get to Australia, they had to build simple boats to cross small sea gaps.
From their base in the Indian subcontinent, early humans spread northward into Asia and westward into Europe. By 50,000 years ago, they had reached what is now Turkey and southern Europe. Around the same time, they moved into China and other parts of East Asia. By 30,000 years ago, Homo sapiens had settled across Europe and Asia, reaching Japan. They paused during the peak of the Ice Age but resumed their expansion as the ice sheets retreated.
Around 15,000 years ago, Homo sapiens crossed the land bridge from Siberia to Alaska and moved south through the Americas, reaching all the way to the southern tip. By 10,000 years ago, humans had settled on all continents except a few islands like Hawaii, which they reached much later by boat.
Questions:
- How did early humans primarily move from one continent to another?
- A) By flying
- B) By walking and using boats
- C) By swimming
- D) By train
- What species did Homo erectus evolve into in Europe?
- A) Neanderthals
- B) Homo sapiens
- C) Denisovans
- D) Australopithecus
- When did Homo sapiens first start leaving Africa?
- A) 200,000 years ago
- B) 70,000 years ago
- C) 125,000 years ago
- D) 5,000 years ago
- What might have helped Homo sapiens develop larger brains?
- A) A diet rich in meat
- B) A diet rich in shellfish
- C) Warmer climate
- D) Farming techniques
- How did the Ice Age help human migration?
- A) It made food more available
- B) It lowered sea levels, connecting landmasses
- C) It improved human health
- D) It stopped volcanic eruptions
- Which continent did early humans reach using boats?
- A) Europe
- B) Africa
- C) Australia
- D) Asia
- When did humans reach Japan?
- A) 100,000 years ago
- B) 30,000 years ago
- C) 10,000 years ago
- D) 50,000 years ago
- How did humans enter the Americas?
- A) Through a tunnel
- B) By crossing a land bridge from Siberia to Alaska
- C) By flying
- D) Through Europe
- Which areas were settled by humans last?
- A) Europe and Asia
- B) Hawaii and New Zealand
- C) Africa and Australia
- D) The Middle East and India
- Who were the last people to reach Hawaii and New Zealand?
- A) Native Americans
- B) Vikings
- C) Polynesians
- D) Romans
Answers:
- B) By walking and using boats
- A) Neanderthals
- C) 125,000 years ago
- B) A diet rich in shellfish
- B) It lowered sea levels, connecting landmasses
- C) Australia
- B) 30,000 years ago
- B) By crossing a land bridge from Siberia to Alaska
- B) Hawaii and New Zealand
- C) Polynesians
Advanced C1 (英検1級) Version:
Article: Humans spread across the globe through a series of migrations primarily facilitated by land bridges and, occasionally, by early seafaring. The initial human migrations began even before modern Homo sapiens evolved. The first migratory human species, Homo erectus, emerged in Africa around three million years ago, as evidenced by ancient stone tools. Over the next million years, Homo erectus spread into Eurasia and Asia. Over time, they evolved into distinct species: Neanderthals in Eurasia, Denisovans in Asia, and Homo sapiens in Africa around 300,000 years ago.
The initial migration of Homo sapiens from Africa began roughly 125,000 years ago, with early humans venturing into the Middle East, southern Asia, and possibly southern Europe. However, these early migrations did not result in lasting settlements, possibly due to competition with Neanderthals and Denisovans, or integration with them.
A more significant migration that spread Homo sapiens across the globe occurred around 70,000 years ago. During this migration, Homo sapiens established dominance, gradually leading to the extinction of other human species. Theories suggest that Homo sapiens may have developed larger brains, possibly fueled by a diet rich in shellfish, which provided the necessary fatty acids for brain growth. This neurological advancement coincided with increased innovation, more sophisticated tools, and the emergence of language, which likely gave Homo sapiens a crucial advantage.
During the Ice Age, lower sea levels created land bridges that connected many parts of the world, allowing early humans to walk across continents. For instance, Africa was connected to Asia through the Sinai Peninsula, and Europe was linked to Asia. Around 70,000 years ago, Homo sapiens followed coastal routes, reaching the Middle East, southern Asia, and eventually Australia, where they used simple boats to navigate gaps between landmasses.
By 50,000 years ago, humans had reached the region of modern-day Turkey and southern Europe, and by 45,000 years ago, they were in China. By 30,000 years ago, humans had reached Japan and the edges of the ice sheets across Europe and Asia. After a period of stasis during the peak of the Ice Age, they resumed their northward expansion, eventually reaching northern Europe and Siberia by 12,000 years ago.
Around 15,000 years ago, humans crossed the Bering land bridge from Siberia to Alaska, beginning the migration down the Americas. Some theories suggest that they may have also used boats to travel along the coastlines. By 10,000 years ago, humans had settled almost everywhere except a few remote islands, including Hawaii and New Zealand, which were reached by Polynesian navigators using advanced seafaring techniques around 1,000 years ago.
Questions:
- What facilitated early human migrations across continents?
- A) Land bridges and boats
- B) Airplanes
- C) Submarines
- D) Hot air balloons
- Which species evolved in Europe from Homo erectus?
- A) Homo sapiens
- B) Denisovans
- C) Neanderthals
- D) Australopithecus
- What is one reason Homo sapiens may have outcompeted other human species?
- A) Larger brains and advanced tools
- B) Stronger muscles
- C) Faster running speed
- D) Better eyesight
- How did the Ice Age aid in human migration?
- A) It provided more food
- B) It created land bridges by lowering sea levels
- C) It connected all the continents
- D) It stopped wild animal attacks
- What dietary factor might have contributed to Homo sapiens’ brain growth?
- A) Consuming a lot of meat
- B) Eating shellfish rich in fatty acids
- C) Eating only fruits
- D) Drinking milk
- When did Homo sapiens first reach Australia?
- A) 10,000 years ago
- B) 65,000 years ago
- C) 30,000 years ago
- D) 5,000 years ago
- When did humans cross into the Americas?
- A) 50,000 years ago
- B) 25,000 years ago
- C) 15,000 years ago
- D) 5,000 years ago
- Which regions were reached by humans last?
- A) Europe and Asia
- B) Hawaii and New Zealand
- C) Africa and Australia
- D) The Middle East and India
- How did Polynesians reach remote islands like Hawaii?
- A) By walking across land bridges
- B) By advanced sailing and navigation
- C) By flying
- D) By swimming
- What happened to other human species as Homo sapiens spread?
- A) They migrated to another planet
- B) They became dominant
- C) They went extinct
- D) They moved to caves
Answers:
- A) Land bridges and boats
- C) Neanderthals
- A) Larger brains and advanced tools
- B) It created land bridges by lowering sea levels
- B) Eating shellfish rich in fatty acids
- B) 65,000 years ago
- C) 15,000 years ago
- B) Hawaii and New Zealand
- B) By advanced sailing and navigation
- C) They went extinct
Original Version:
Article: How did humans spread across the world? Generally, early humans moved around the world using land bridges or ice bridges. Occasionally, they may have used boats.
The first migration happened before Homo sapiens had even evolved. Homo erectus evolved in central Africa at least three million years ago. This can be attested to by the oldest stone tools that have been found. From there, over the next million years or so, Homo erectus spread up into Eurasia and across into Asia. Once they had reached these places, they gradually evolved. In Eurasia, they became Neanderthals, in Asia, they became Denisovans, and in Africa, they became Homo sapiens, who had evolved by about 300,000 years ago.
The great migration of Homo sapiens from Africa that would end up with us on every continent on Earth began about 70,000 years ago, but that is not the first time that Homo sapiens traveled out of Africa. The first migration appears to have started about 125,000 years ago, and they traveled into the Middle East, southern Asia, and possibly southern Europe. There is no evidence that they made lasting settlements, so they were either beaten in competition for food by the Neanderthals and Denisovans, or they were assimilated.
The second migration, and the one that resulted in us being here, started about 70,000 years ago. This time, Homo sapiens were the dominant species in every place they settled, slowly pushing the Neanderthals and Denisovans to extinction. What had happened? No one really knows, but a dominant theory is that our brains suddenly increased in size. Huge quantities of shellfish shells have been found in ancient Homo sapiens settlements. This is linked to a sudden increase in innovation among Homo sapiens that started about 80,000 years ago, such as more intricate tools, jewelry, and rudimentary farming. It is possible that the fatty acids from the shellfish fueled these new, bigger brains, and set us on our path. It is very likely that these larger brains enabled speech, which would give us a huge advantage over every other type of human. About 10,000 years after this, humans started to leave Africa. It isn’t like they just picked up and walked out of Africa. It was a process that took generations, with each generation moving further away.
So, how did they get to every continent? Most of the time, they just walked. 70,000 years ago was at the start of the Wisconsinan glacial period. Ice sheets reached halfway down North America and halfway down Europe. This is the glacial period that left the Great Lakes in North America when it retreated. Sea levels were 100 m lower than they are today, and many of the continents were connected together. Africa was connected to Asia through Egypt, as it is today, but also through Yemen. It was also connected to Europe through Morocco and the bottom of Spain. Europe was entirely connected, including the UK, and Asia was connected by land bridges almost as far as Australia. The sea level continued to drop until it peaked at about 130 m below modern levels 20,000 years ago, and then it rapidly rose as the ice melted.
Homo sapiens started by following the coasts, and that took them across the land bridges into the Middle East by about 70,000 years ago. They kept going along the coasts and within 5,000 years, they had traveled around India, down through Asia, and into Australia. The land bridge didn’t go all the way to Australia, so the early Homo sapiens had to make boats to traverse the gaps. The Homo sapiens that were in the Indian subcontinent started to move north, east, and west. By 50,000 years ago, they had reached the Turkey area and 5,000 years after that, they were across southern Europe. At the same time, people were moving through Asia and by 45,000 years ago, they were in China. By 30,000 years ago, Homo sapiens had reached the edge of the ice sheets all across Europe and Asia and had also crossed to Japan. Then there was a pause until the ice started to recede, and they continued north, occupying northern Europe and Siberia by 12,000 years ago. Roughly 15,000 years ago, Homo sapiens crossed the land bridge between Siberia and Alaska and began to move down the Americas. There is one theory that they built boats and sailed along the coast, but any settlements there might have been would have been buried when the sea levels rose. By 10,000 years ago, people were everywhere except for Greenland, Iceland, Hawaii, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, and Madagascar. All of them were finally settled, but it would take until about 1,000 years ago for people to reach Hawaii and New Zealand. They were Polynesians, and they sailed there by boat. And that is how humans spread across the world.
Questions:
- How did early humans primarily migrate across continents?
- A) By building bridges
- B) By land bridges and boats
- C) By flying
- D) By digging tunnels
- What species evolved in Africa into modern humans?
- A) Denisovans
- B) Homo erectus
- C) Neanderthals
- D) Homo sapiens
- When did the great migration of Homo sapiens out of Africa begin?
- A) 200,000 years ago
- B) 125,000 years ago
- C) 70,000 years ago
- D) 50,000 years ago
- What is one theory that explains why Homo sapiens became dominant?
- A) They developed farming first
- B) They had larger brains fueled by shellfish consumption
- C) They were faster runners
- D) They had stronger bones
- How did the Ice Age affect human migration?
- A) It created deserts
- B) It lowered sea levels, connecting landmasses
- C) It stopped all travel
- D) It made new rivers
- How did humans reach Australia?
- A) By a long land bridge
- B) By crossing the ice
- C) By using boats to cross sea gaps
- D) By walking on water
- When did humans first reach China?
- A) 10,000 years ago
- B) 45,000 years ago
- C) 30,000 years ago
- D) 20,000 years ago
- How did early humans enter the Americas?
- A) By a land bridge from Siberia to Alaska
- B) By swimming across the ocean
- C) By flying
- D) Through Europe
- Which areas were settled last by humans?
- A) Hawaii and New Zealand
- B) Europe and Asia
- C) Africa and Australia
- D) India and China
- Who were the last people to reach Hawaii and New Zealand?
- A) Romans
- B) Polynesians
- C) Vikings
- D) Native Americans
Answers:
- B) By land bridges and boats
- D) Homo sapiens
- C) 70,000 years ago
- B) They had larger brains fueled by shellfish consumption
- B) It lowered sea levels, connecting landmasses
- C) By using boats to cross sea gaps
- B) 45,000 years ago
- A) By a land bridge from Siberia to Alaska
- A) Hawaii and New Zealand
- B) Polynesians
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