Concise Oxford Dictionary of Archaeology (317 page)

BOOK: Concise Oxford Dictionary of Archaeology
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homology
[Th].
A special form of analogy in which two temporally separate things or social phenomena are similar to each other because of historical and/or genetic connections.
Homo neanderthalensis
[Sp].
An early species of
Homo
that is believed to have developed from
Homo erectus
in Eurasia around 200000 years ago and continued until around 30000 years ago. See
NEANDERTHAL MAN
.
Homo sapiens
[Sp].
Modern humans. Although it is generally believed that this species emerged about 40000 years ago, claims of exceptionally early finds dating back to between 130000 and 70000 years ago have been made for fossils found in Africa and the Levant. The toolmaking traditions of the Upper Palaeolithic outside Africa are associated with modern humans, and these date back to about 40000 years ago too. The main controversy surrounding the origin of
Homo sapiens
is whether they are all descendants of early examples in Africa or whether there was local multi-regional development from
Homo erectus
. In the
multiregional hypothesis
, advocated by Milford Wolpoff , Alan Thorne , and others, it is believed that major population groups established in Africa, Europe, Asia, and Indonesia all developed in parallel, with some gene flows between regions, and with no one region developing modern humans any earlier than any of the others. The
out of Africa model
, also known as the African replacement hypothesis, is championed by Chris Stringer , Rebecca Cann , Alan Wilson , and others and suggests that regional groups of
Homo erectus
developed independent evolutionary trajectories, leading, for example, to the appearance of
Homo neanderthalensis
, but that these were overtaken and eventually replaced modern humans, who had evolved from
Homo erectus
in Africa and spread rapidly to other areas.
honey jar
[Ar].
A double-handled, often bulbous jar with a wide mouth. There is no firm evidence that such jars held honey.
Honorius , Flavius
[Na].
Emperor of the western Roman empire from ad 395 and widely recognized as one of the least effective holders of that title. During his reign Britain, Spain, and parts of Gaul were lost to the empire and Rome itself was captured by Alaric . Honorius was the son of Theodosius the Great.
hood-moulding
[Co].
A projecting moulding on the face of a wall above an arch, usually following the form of the arch.

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