Jebel Irhoud
Adrar n Iɣud / ⴰⴷⵔⴰⵔ ⵏ ⵉⵖⵓⴷ | |
Jean-Jacques Hublin at Jebel Irhoud (Morocco), pointing to the crushed human skull (Irhoud 10), whose orbits are visible just beyond his finger tip | |
Jebel Irhoud Location in Morocco | |
| Alternative name | جبل إيغود |
|---|---|
| Location | East of Safi / northwest from Marakech |
| Region | Morocco |
| Coordinates | 31°51′18″N 8°52′21″W / 31.85500°N 8.87250°W |
| Height | 592 m |
| History | |
| Periods | Lower Paleolithic |
| Associated with | Homo sapiens |
| Site notes | |
| Excavation dates | 1961, 1967 & 1969; (JT & dBdH), 1991 |
Jebel Irhoud (Arabic: جبل إيغود, Moroccan Arabic: žbəl iġud) or Adrar n Ighoud (Standard Moroccan Tamazight: ⴰⴷⵔⴰⵔ ⵏ ⵉⵖⵓⴷ, romanized: Adrar n Iɣud), is an archaeological site in Morocco located just north of the town of Tlet Ighoud in Youssoufia Province, approximately 50 km (30 mi) south-east of the city of Safi.
It is noted for the hominin fossils that have been found there since the discovery of the site in 1961. Originally thought to be Neanderthals, the specimens have since been assigned to Homo sapiens and, as reported in 2017, have been dated to a "weighted average age" of 315,000 years ago. This makes the remains by far the earliest known examples of Homo sapiens, and suggests that rather than arising in East Africa approximately 200,000 years ago, modern humans have been present across the length of Africa 100,000 years earlier.