# Most distantly related people on earth? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 26, 2007, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-distantly-related-people-on-earth/424095 "2007-10-26T13:03:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2007, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-distantly-related-people-on-earth/424095/21 "2007-10-27T11:43:54Z")
Were there no migrations from the Algeria region to Spain? ---
**Author:** ![Dunderman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecb155/32.png) [@Dunderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunderman)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2007, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-distantly-related-people-on-earth/424095/22 "2007-10-27T16:31:49Z")
I’ve got nothing to add except that this is an incredibly interesting and informative thread. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2007, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-distantly-related-people-on-earth/424095/23 "2007-10-27T17:07:09Z")
[QUOTE=Quartz] Were there no migrations from the Algeria region to Spain? [/QUOTE] I don’t understand why you ask. Of course there have been migrations. Keep in mind that when we say: “X” genetic trait does not occur in region “Y”, we are talking about people who are indigenous to region “Y”. Currently you can find all kinds of genetic variants in the US in people who have immigrated here over the last few hundred years. But that doesn’t mean those genetic traits evolved here. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2007, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-distantly-related-people-on-earth/424095/24 "2007-10-27T17:32:08Z")
[QUOTE=John Mace] I don’t understand why you ask. Of course there have been migrations. [/QUOTE] Because earlier it was noted that there were migrations across the Sinai. Given that there’s often been a land bridge between Algeria and Spain, I’m wondering if there were similar migrations of early humans across that land bridge which might affect answers to the OP. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2007, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-distantly-related-people-on-earth/424095/25 "2007-10-27T17:45:54Z")
[QUOTE=Quartz] Because earlier it was noted that there were migrations across the Sinai. Given that there’s often been a land bridge between Algeria and Spain, I’m wondering if there were similar migrations of early humans across that land bridge which might affect answers to the OP. [/QUOTE] Modern Humans? I don’t think so. Has there been a land bridge existent in the last 200k years? We do see earlier forms of humans in Spain as long ago as 800K years, and these may be the ancestors of Neanderthals. But we do have evidence of members of the Genus \*Homo \*in Europe as far back as 1.8M years ago. Skeletal remains have been found in (the former Soviet Republic of) Georgia that are either _Homo erectus_, or some closely related species. Modern humans and our ancestor have been streaming out of Africa for about 2M years, but all the evidence we have tells us that the existing non-African populations around the world are all descended from the migrations that started only 50 or 60k years ago. The earlier migrations turned out to be dead ends. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-distantly-related-people-on-earth/424095.md?page=1)