Who were the Neanderthals—and why did they go extinct?
Neanderthals were our closest known relatives and walked the Earth between at least 400,000 and 40,000 years ago. But since their fossilized bones were discovered more than 160 years ago, there are still many questions about what they were like.
The bones were uncovered by limestone quarry workers digging in Germany's Neander Valley in 1856. At first, they thought they'd uncovered the remains of a bear. In fact, they'd stumbled upon something that would change history: evidence of an extinct species of ancient human predecessors.
Researchers soon realized they had already encountered these human relatives in earlier fossils that had been misidentified throughout the early 19th century.
The discovery galvanized scientists eager to explore new theories of human evolution, sparking a worldwide Neanderthal fossil hunt and tantalizing the public with the possibility of a mysterious sister species that once dominated Europe.
Who exactly were these ancient humans, how did they live, and why did they die out? Here's what to know about them. The skull of a female Neanderthal rests alongside other Neanderthal remains discovered in Gorham's Cave. Located on the eastern side of the Rock of Gibraltor, this archaeological site has yielded important insights into Neanderthal life. Photograph by KENNETH GARRETT, Nat Geo Image Collection
Homo neanderthalensis, were named by geologist William King, who based the name on his findings near La Chapelle Aux Saints, in France.
At first glance, fossilized bones suggested that Neanderthals were human-like. But a closer look reveals the characteristics that differentiate our ancient ancestors from modern Homo sapiens.
They looked similar to humans but had a more prominent brow ridge, protruding faces, and rib cages that were shorter, deeper, and wider. In addition, their eye sockets were much larger, which may have enabled them to see better than modern humans.
Researchers believe that their brains were roughly the same size as ours, although they were more elongated. Though debates on the size and structures still rage today, researchers agree that the average male was about 5 foot 4 inches tall, while females stood at about 5 feet.
(You may have more Neanderthal DNA than you think.)
These hominids once lived throughout Eurasia. Researchers believe that due to the species' adaptation to the region's cold climates, they had compact, massive musculature and would have required up to 4,480 calories a day to survive.
Megafauna like mammoths, elephants, and woolly rhinoceros made hunting an important facet of their life. Living and traveling in small groups, they used tools like spears to satiate their meat-heavy diet.
They also ate plants, which MIT geobiologist Ainara Sistiaga has said is evidence that Neanderthals 'probably ate what was available in different situations, seasons, and climates.'
Sometimes, this included eating their own. In 2016, scientists studying remains of Neanderthal skeletons from a cave in what is now Belgium found 'unambiguous evidence of Neanderthal cannibalism in Northern Europe.' How intelligent were Neanderthals and what did their lives look like?
Researchers initially assumed Neanderthals were brutish, hairy thugs capable only of crude thought and bloody hunting.
But some scientists have changed their tune as evidence has accumulated of some surprisingly human-like characteristics among these human ancestors.
Neanderthals used tools in domestic and hunting contexts, flaking rocks to create weapons, scrapers, and axes. Woodworking was also common. They cut and whittled sticks they used to dig or form spears. Neanderthals used materials such as flint to make tools that they used as weapons, axes, and more. This specimen is from the Pinilla del Valle site, in the Lozoya Valley, near Madrid, Spain. Several Neanderthal fossils have been found here since excavations begin in the early 2000s. Photograph by MARCO ANSALONI, SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY (Top) (Left) and Photograph by ROBBIE SHONE, Nat Geo Image Collection (Bottom) (Right)
Despite their assumed ability to withstand the cold, they are also thought to have processed animal hides and crafted clothing that could cover up to 80 percent of their bodies.
Like humans, they are thought to have covered their feet and other sensitive body parts. But since the clothing has long since disintegrated, researchers can only infer how they may have dressed.
(Take a fascinating look inside the world of Neanderthals)
Another breakthrough was the discovery that Neanderthals may have been capable of symbolic thought. A few archaeological Neanderthal sites have yielded decorated eagle talons and objects thought to have been used in burial rituals—evidence, some say, of advanced thought and tradition.
Then, in 2018, researchers announced they'd discovered evidence of cave paintings from 65,000 years ago—the oldest artworks of their kind. But the abstract nature of this art continues to fuel debates among scientists about how complex their mental capacities truly were. Why Neanderthals went extinct 40,000 years ago
Whatever their cognitive abilities, Neanderthals were ultimately doomed. However, their extinction is just as contentious as other facets of their lives. Scientists still debate what caused them to disappear around 40,000 years ago at the end of the ice age.
Researchers know that in at least some cases, Neanderthals coexisted and even mated with Homo sapiens, which emerged in Africa about 300,000 years ago. But Homo sapiens eventually won out genetically, and the vast majority of modern humans' genes come from our African ancestors.
Some surmise that competition from early modern humans for food and shelter, or evolution that selected for more successful human traits, contributed to the Neanderthals' extinction. Others think that because Neanderthals lived in such small groups, they simply became outnumbered by humans.
(Go inside the last days of Neanderthals)
Another hypothesis involves climate change: Scientists have documented a thousand-year-long cold snap in central Europe that coincided with the Neanderthals' extinction about 40,000 years ago and that could have depopulated the species.
Cooling is thought to have been less severe in areas populated by Homo sapiens. Those who embrace this theory believe that once Neanderthal populations declined, humans moved in and eventually became the dominant species worldwide. Neanderthal cave paintings created some 65,000 years ago inside the Andalusian cave of Ardales. Researchers have found such paintings in three caves in Spain, including this one. Photograph by JORGE GUERRERO, AFP/Getty Images
Despite their species' demise, fascinating remnants of Neanderthal genomes can be found in some modern humans. Up to 4 percent of the DNA of human populations outside of Africa, the cradle of Homo sapiens, can be traced back to Neanderthals. That overlap shows that Neanderthals did interbreed with humans.
(How do Neanderthal genes affect your health?)
'Ironically, with a current world population of about 8 billion people, this means that there has never been more Neanderthal DNA on Earth,' write prehistory experts Peter C. Kjærgaard, Mark Maslin, and Trine Kellberg Nielsen.
Given how long it's been since Neanderthals roamed Eurasia, it's impossible to truly reconstruct how they lived and died. But the mystery of these human ancestors—and tantalizing hints that Neanderthals were much like us—continues to drive research, and controversy, to this day. Editor's note: This article has been updated to clarify how Neanderthal faces and bodies differed from modern humans. A reference to Neanderthal DNA in modern humans has also been revised to specify that the DNA was found in humans living outside of Africa. This story originally published on March 6, 2023. It was updated on July 24, 2025.
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