---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The truth is that from about 2 million…"
description: "\"“The truth is that from about 2 million years ago until around 10,000 years ago, the world was home, at one and the same time, to several human species..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2f/yuval-noah-harari-100_truth_the-truth-is-that-from-about-2-million-y_1903589.jpg"
---

#  The truth is that from about 2 million years ago until…

![“The truth is that from about 2 million years ago until around 10,000 years ago, the world was home, at one and the same time, to several human species.” quote by Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2f/yuval-noah-harari-100_truth_the-truth-is-that-from-about-2-million-y_1903589.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2f/yuval-noah-harari-100_truth_the-truth-is-that-from-about-2-million-y_1903589.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2f/yuval-noah-harari-100_truth_the-truth-is-that-from-about-2-million-y_1903589.jpg)

> ““The truth is that from about 2 million years ago until around 10,000 years ago, the world was home, at one and the same time, to several human species.””

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

## About This Quote

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

Human evolution included multiple Homo species coexisting for millions of years before Homo sapiens became dominant.

**In simple terms:** Many human species lived together before modern humans.

Key Takeaway

Recognize the deep, shared evolutionary past.

Themes

evolution anthropology diversity

Mood

reflective inquisitive

Type

historical educational

When to use this quote

- archaeology
- education
- public policy
- science communication

Key Concepts

coexistence species competition genetic interbreeding

Questions to Reflect On

- How does this perspective change our view of humanity?
- What responsibilities arise from recognizing shared ancestry?

A Different Perspective

Modern humans are not the sole heirs of Earth’s biological legacy.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[000 Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/000-years-239543/) [Ago World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ago-world-2824530/) [Evolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evolution/) [Human species](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-species/) [Million years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/million-years/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Years ago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years-ago/)

## Related quotes

> [“The truth is that from about 2 million years ago until around 10,000 years ago, the world was home, at one and the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/the-truth-is-that-from-about-2-million-years-ago-until-around-10-000/)

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

> [“A very long time ago, some 2.5 million years B.C., the mother of human species as we know it, our ultimate ancestor, appeared in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-f-cantor/a-very-long-time-ago-some-2-5-million-years-b-c-the-mother-of-human/)

[Norman F. Cantor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-f-cantor/)

> [“The human species has only engaged in agriculture and pasturage for 12,000 to 15,000 years, a mere 1% of our time on earth. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-palmer/the-human-species-has-only-engaged-in-agriculture-and-pasturage-for/)

[Gabrielle Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-palmer/)

> [Man has been here 32,000 years. That it took a hundred million years to prepare the world for him is proof that that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/man-has-been-here-32-000-years-that-it-took-a-hundred-million-years/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [“To get a sense of the scale of Earth history, imagine walking back in time, a hundred years per step—every pace equal to more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-hazen/to-get-a-sense-of-the-scale-of-earth-history-imagine-walking-back-in/)

[Robert M. Hazen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-hazen/)

> [A rise of 5C would be a temperature the world has not seen for 30 to 50 million years. We've been around only 100,000…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-stern/a-rise-of-5c-would-be-a-temperature-the-world-has-not-seen-for-30-to/)

[Nicholas Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-stern/)

> [“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/)

> [The earth's history over the past several million years is that for every 100,000 years, we go through a dramatic climatic cycle where we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-ross/the-earth-s-history-over-the-past-several-million-years-is-that-for/)

[Hugh Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-ross/)

> [Man has existed for about a million years. He has possessed writing for about 6,000 years, agriculture somewhat longer, but perhaps not much longer.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/man-has-existed-for-about-a-million-years-he-has-possessed-writing/)

[Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/)

> [“In Africa by 1.2 million years ago the brains of Homo rhodesiense had grown to within 6 per cent of the volume of modern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-oppenheimer/in-africa-by-1-2-million-years-ago-the-brains-of-homo-rhodesiense-had/)

[Stephen Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-oppenheimer/)

> [That is certainly the point: when the human species was born, on the African savanna, life was pretty good; we could live in harmony…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirkpatrick-sale/that-is-certainly-the-point-when-the-human-species-was-born-on-the/)

[Kirkpatrick Sale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirkpatrick-sale/)

> [I learned that the first technology appeared in the form of stone tools, 2.6 million years ago. First entertainment comes evidence from flutes that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zeresenay-alemseged/i-learned-that-the-first-technology-appeared-in-the-form-of-stone/)

[Zeresenay Alemseged](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zeresenay-alemseged/)

> [“It’s our current exclusivity, not that multi-species past, that is peculiar – and perhaps incriminating. As we will shortly see, we Sapiens have good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/it-s-our-current-exclusivity-not-that-multi-species-past-that-is/)

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

> [“What kind of cultures, societies and political structures would have emerged in a world where several different human species coexisted? How, for example, would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/what-kind-of-cultures-societies-and-political-structures-would-have/)

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

> [“It’s a common fallacy to envision these species as arranged in a straight line of descent, with Ergaster begetting Erectus, Erectus begetting the Neanderthals,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/it-s-a-common-fallacy-to-envision-these-species-as-arranged-in-a/)

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

## More by Yuval Noah Harari

> [“For similar reasons, archaic humans did not initiate any revolutions. As far as we can tell, changes in social patterns, the invention of new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/for-similar-reasons-archaic-humans-did-not-initiate-any-revolutions/)

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

> [“Today the main source of wealth is knowledge. And whereas you can conquer oil fields through war, you cannot acquire knowledge that way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/today-the-main-source-of-wealth-is-knowledge-and-whereas-you-can/)

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

> [“How do you cause people to believe in an imagined order such as Christianity, democracy or capitalism? First, you never admit that the order…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/how-do-you-cause-people-to-believe-in-an-imagined-order-such-as/)

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

> [I think the basic thing that happened is we have lost our story. Humans think in stories, and we try to make sense of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/i-think-the-basic-thing-that-happened-is-we-have-lost-our-story/)

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

> [“Whereas chimpanzees spend five hours a day chewing raw food, a single hour suffices for people eating cooked food. The advent of cooking enabled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/whereas-chimpanzees-spend-five-hours-a-day-chewing-raw-food-a-single/)

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

> [“the Chinese air-purification market is booming.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/the-chinese-air-purification-market-is-booming/)

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

> [“Whereas liberalism merged with the milder versions of nationalism to protect the unique experiences of each human community, evolutionary humanists such as Hitler identified…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/whereas-liberalism-merged-with-the-milder-versions-of-nationalism-to/)

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

> [“Corporations, money and nations exist only in our imagination. We invented them to serve us; why do we find ourselves sacrificing our lives in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/corporations-money-and-nations-exist-only-in-our-imagination-we/)

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

> [“Small children in affluent societies often dislike showering, and it takes them years of education and parental discipline to adopt this supposedly attractive custom.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/small-children-in-affluent-societies-often-dislike-showering-and-it/)

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

> [“Ever more scholars see cultures as a kind of mental infection or parasite, with humans as its unwitting host. Organic parasites, such as viruses,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/ever-more-scholars-see-cultures-as-a-kind-of-mental-infection-or/)

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

> [“Soviet Communism was a fanatical and missionary religion. A devout Communist could not be a Christian or a Buddhist, and was expected to spread…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/soviet-communism-was-a-fanatical-and-missionary-religion-a-devout/)

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

> [“Whereas religion asks us to believe in something, money asks us to believe that other people believe in something”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/whereas-religion-asks-us-to-believe-in-something-money-asks-us-to/)

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

> [“Terrorists are like a fly that tries to destroy a china shop. The fly is so weak that it cannot budge even a single…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/terrorists-are-like-a-fly-that-tries-to-destroy-a-china-shop-the-fly/)

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

> [“Yet what happens if the greedy shoemaker increases his profits by paying employees less and increasing their work hours? The standard answer is that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/yet-what-happens-if-the-greedy-shoemaker-increases-his-profits-by/)

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

> [“A natural order is a stable order. There is no chance that gravity will cease to function tomorrow, even if people stop believing in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/a-natural-order-is-a-stable-order-there-is-no-chance-that-gravity/)

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

[Explore all 1,200 Yuval Noah Harari quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/)

## 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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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 truth is that from about 2 million years ago until around 10,000 years ago, the world was home, at one and the same time, to several human species.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Yuval Noah Harari"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/the-truth-is-that-from-about-2-million-years-ago-until-around-10-000-2/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Evolution"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/the-truth-is-that-from-about-2-million-years-ago-until-around-10-000-2/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2f/yuval-noah-harari-100_truth_the-truth-is-that-from-about-2-million-y_1903589.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2f/yuval-noah-harari-100_truth_the-truth-is-that-from-about-2-million-y_1903589.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2f/yuval-noah-harari-100_truth_the-truth-is-that-from-about-2-million-y_1903589.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The truth is that from about 2 million years ago until around 10,000 years ago, the world was home, at one…” — Yuval Noah Harari",
                "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": "Yuval Noah Harari",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“The truth is that from about...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/the-truth-is-that-from-about-2-million-years-ago-until-around-10-000-2/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/the-truth-is-that-from-about-2-million-years-ago-until-around-10-000-2/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
