---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: the average Neanderthal cranial capacity…"
description: "\"“the average Neanderthal cranial capacity was greater than that of modern humans.”\" — Juan Luis Arsuaga"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc4/juan-luis-arsuaga-71587_evolution_the-average-neanderthal-cranial-capacity_2384732.jpg"
---

#  the average Neanderthal cranial capacity was greater than…

![“the average Neanderthal cranial capacity was greater than that of modern humans.” quote by Juan Luis Arsuaga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc4/juan-luis-arsuaga-71587_evolution_the-average-neanderthal-cranial-capacity_2384732.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc4/juan-luis-arsuaga-71587_evolution_the-average-neanderthal-cranial-capacity_2384732.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc4/juan-luis-arsuaga-71587_evolution_the-average-neanderthal-cranial-capacity_2384732.jpg)

> ““the average Neanderthal cranial capacity was greater than that of modern humans.””

Juan Luis Arsuaga

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Neanderthals had larger brain volumes than modern humans, suggesting different cognitive capacities.

**In simple terms:** Neanderthals had bigger brains.

Key Takeaway

Consider how brain size relates to intelligence.

Themes

anthropology evolution human origins

Mood

curious thoughtful

Type

scientific informative

When to use this quote

- archaeology
- education
- public talks
- museum exhibits

Key Concepts

cerebral capacity comparative anatomy

Questions to Reflect On

- What other factors influence cognitive ability?
- How does this reshape our view of human evolution?

A Different Perspective

Brain size alone does not determine intelligence.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Evolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evolution/) [Neanderthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/neanderthal/)

## Related quotes

> [“I suggest that the type of consciousness – not merely the degree of intelligence – that Neanderthals possessed was different in important respects from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-david-lewis-williams/i-suggest-that-the-type-of-consciousness-not-merely-the-degree-of/)

[James David Lewis-Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-david-lewis-williams/)

> [“It was said that similar tribes lived farther to the west of Pariha. One of their biggest and most ancient settlements was a land…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amish-tripathi/it-was-said-that-similar-tribes-lived-farther-to-the-west-of-pariha/)

[Amish Tripathi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amish-tripathi/)

> [Anatomically modern humans are found up to 200,000 years ago; behaviourally modern humans appear very recently in evolutionary time, as far as evidence now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/anatomically-modern-humans-are-found-up-to-200-000-years-ago/)

[Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/)

> [“It’s important to keep in mind that when viewed against the full scale of our species’ existence, ten thousand years is but a brief…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-ryan/it-s-important-to-keep-in-mind-that-when-viewed-against-the-full/)

[Christopher Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-ryan/)

> [“Others consider us superior because of our cultured ways and intellectual tendencies; our technology lets us drive cars, use word processors and travel great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lovelock/others-consider-us-superior-because-of-our-cultured-ways-and/)

[James Lovelock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lovelock/)

> [If exposure of body is modernism, then animals are more modern than humans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zakir-naik/if-exposure-of-body-is-modernism-then-animals-are-more-modern-than/)

[Zakir Naik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zakir-naik/)

> [I want to know what changed in fully modern humans, compared with Neanderthals, that made a difference. What made it possible for us to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/svante-p-bo/i-want-to-know-what-changed-in-fully-modern-humans-compared-with/)

[Svante Paabo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/svante-p-bo/)

> [We have grown from primitive man into modern ways and are now looking for modern humans from merely primitive choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-fennis/we-have-grown-from-primitive-man-into-modern-ways-and-are-now-looking/)

[Alexander Fennis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-fennis/)

> [What modern humans need help with is escaping from the despair of politics, commerce and media, escaping from the drabness and oppressiveness of worldly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-leunig/what-modern-humans-need-help-with-is-escaping-from-the-despair-of/)

[Michael Leunig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-leunig/)

> [“An upright hominid could see better, but could also be seen better. Even now as a species, we are almost preposterously vulnerable in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/an-upright-hominid-could-see-better-but-could-also-be-seen-better/)

[Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/)

> [Modern humans became fixated on a collective hallucination of linear time, ignoring the fractal spirals of the surrounding universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/modern-humans-became-fixated-on-a-collective-hallucination-of-linear/)

[Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/)

> [“Why do modern humans love sweets so much? Not because in the early twenty-first century we must gorge on ice cream and chocolate in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/why-do-modern-humans-love-sweets-so-much-not-because-in-the-early/)

[Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/)

> [There are enough fossils showing distinctive features to rule out the possibility these are unusual or aberrant modern humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-are-enough-fossils-showing-distinctive-features-to-rule-out-the/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“Modern humans first emerged about 100,000 years ago. For the next 99,800 years or so, nothing happened. Well, not quite nothing. There were wars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-j-gordon/modern-humans-first-emerged-about-100-000-years-ago-for-the-next-99/)

[Robert J. Gordon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-j-gordon/)

> [“A geneticist is a geek who claims to have proven through regression analyses that a Neanderthal had sex with your great-grandmother 50,000 years ago.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gaede/a-geneticist-is-a-geek-who-claims-to-have-proven-through-regression/)

[Bill Gaede](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gaede/)

## More by Juan Luis Arsuaga

> [“The red mammoth in the cave at Pindal is very special because its heart, also red, is depicted inside its chest.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juan-luis-arsuaga/the-red-mammoth-in-the-cave-at-pindal-is-very-special-because-its/)

Juan Luis Arsuaga

> [“prehistoric humans who discovered death reacted by celebrating life. Through self-adornment and embellishment, they affirmed their existence, defying the final tragedy to come. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juan-luis-arsuaga/prehistoric-humans-who-discovered-death-reacted-by-celebrating-life/)

Juan Luis Arsuaga

> [“the two evolutionary lines, ours and the Neanderthals’, both developed such large brains, and perhaps other characteristics in common, because we exchanged genes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juan-luis-arsuaga/the-two-evolutionary-lines-ours-and-the-neanderthals-both-developed/)

Juan Luis Arsuaga

Explore all 4 Juan Luis Arsuaga quotes

## More Evolution quotes

> [I rap when I'm rich. I rap when I'm broke. I rap when I'm bullshit in the street. I rap about only having one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/killer-mike/i-rap-when-i-m-rich-i-rap-when-i-m-broke-i-rap-when-i-m-bullshit-in/)

[Killer Mike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/killer-mike/)

> [At the deepest level, all living things that have ever been looked at have the same DNA code. And many of the same genes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/at-the-deepest-level-all-living-things-that-have-ever-been-looked-at/)

[Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

> [“A question for Christians who accept evolution: When did we gain a "soul"? Did Homo habilis have a soul? Homo ergaster? Did God only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-g-mcafee/a-question-for-christians-who-accept-evolution-when-did-we-gain-a/)

[David G. McAfee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-g-mcafee/)

> [If the polymer chain assumes a helicoidal conformation in the crystalline state, and if it does not contain asymmetric carbon atoms, it can be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giulio-natta/if-the-polymer-chain-assumes-a-helicoidal-conformation-in-the/)

Giulio Natta

> [“Genetics is a science full of gods, Mr. Sanchez.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valeria-luiselli/genetics-is-a-science-full-of-gods-mr-sanchez/)

[Valeria Luiselli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valeria-luiselli/)

> [We became Homo sapiens not that long ago, from the scientific perspective, and we've retained a lot of our beast nature. We've done all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangechi-mutu/we-became-homo-sapiens-not-that-long-ago-from-the-scientific/)

[Wangechi Mutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangechi-mutu/)

> [Guns have little or nothing to do with juvenile violence. The causes of youth violence are working parents who put their kids into daycare,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-delay/guns-have-little-or-nothing-to-do-with-juvenile-violence-the-causes/)

[Tom DeLay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-delay/)

> [The fact -- not theory -- that evolution has occurred and the Darwinian theory as to how it occurred have become so confused in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gaylord-simpson/the-fact-not-theory-that-evolution-has-occurred-and-the-darwinian/)

[George Gaylord Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gaylord-simpson/)

> [Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this \[step by step, from humans to apes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us-with-so-extraordinary-a/)

[Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/)

> [Evolution happens in jumps, very rapidly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/evolution-happens-in-jumps-very-rapidly/)

[Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/)

> [The true nature of soul is right knowledge, right faith and right conduct. The soul, so long as it is subject to transmigration, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virchand-gandhi/the-true-nature-of-soul-is-right-knowledge-right-faith-and-right/)

[Virchand Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virchand-gandhi/)

> [“Toshiaki learned that all living organisms were governed by their DNA. He was impressed by perfection of this system.Why did existence have the ability…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hideaki-sena/toshiaki-learned-that-all-living-organisms-were-governed-by-their-dna/)

Hideaki Sena

> [The shelves of many evangelicals are full of books that point out the flaws in evolution, discuss it only as a theory, and almost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-collins/the-shelves-of-many-evangelicals-are-full-of-books-that-point-out-the/)

[Francis Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-collins/)

> [I'm all about evolution. I'm the first person to judge myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-weeknd/i-m-all-about-evolution-i-m-the-first-person-to-judge-myself/)

[The Weeknd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-weeknd/)

> [The next evolution of content marketing is not more content; it's better distribution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-penn/the-next-evolution-of-content-marketing-is-not-more-content-it-s/)

[Chris Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-penn/)

[Browse all 6,185 Evolution quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evolution/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“the average Neanderthal cranial capacity was greater than that of modern humans.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Juan Luis Arsuaga"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juan-luis-arsuaga/the-average-neanderthal-cranial-capacity-was-greater-than-that-of/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Evolution"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juan-luis-arsuaga/the-average-neanderthal-cranial-capacity-was-greater-than-that-of/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc4/juan-luis-arsuaga-71587_evolution_the-average-neanderthal-cranial-capacity_2384732.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc4/juan-luis-arsuaga-71587_evolution_the-average-neanderthal-cranial-capacity_2384732.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc4/juan-luis-arsuaga-71587_evolution_the-average-neanderthal-cranial-capacity_2384732.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“the average Neanderthal cranial capacity was greater than that of modern humans.” — Juan Luis Arsuaga",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Juan Luis Arsuaga",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juan-luis-arsuaga/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“the average Neanderthal cranial capacity was...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juan-luis-arsuaga/the-average-neanderthal-cranial-capacity-was-greater-than-that-of/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juan-luis-arsuaga/the-average-neanderthal-cranial-capacity-was-greater-than-that-of/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
