How did our ancestors settle in Asia and Europe?
Scientists believe that after leaving Africa, a group of humans must have lived in one place, which is called the hub population. Two different groups emerged from this group: East Eurasian Core (EEC) and West Eurasian Core (WEC).
The east Eurasian core group spread to east Asia and Oceania (Australia and nearby islands). The West Eurasian core group spread to Western Asia and Europe. The EEC group did not last long in Western Eurasia and became extinct about 38 thousand years ago. The WEC group continued to spread in Western Eurasia and most of today's Western Eurasians are descendants of this group.
Apart from this, there was another group called 'Basal Eurasian'. This group separated from other humans shortly after leaving Africa. This group lived in the Middle east and later spread to Western Eurasia.
Early humans migrated out of Africa to Asia and europe in multiple waves over millions of years:
Homo erectus: Around 1.8 million years ago, Homo erectus migrated out of Africa through the Horn of Africa and the Levantine corridor to Eurasia. They dispersed throughout the Old World, reaching as far as Southeast Asia.
Modern humans: Modern humans left Africa tens of thousands of years ago and first settled in Western Asia. They may have mated with the Neanderthals in the region before moving on.
Humans in India: Humans arrived in the indian subcontinent around 70,000 years ago.
Humans in east Asia: Humans arrived in southern east Asia around 60,000 years ago and then moved north to occupy northern east Asia and Japan.
Humans in Europe: Humans entered europe between 1.5 million and 1 million years.
The migration of early humans was likely aided by a land bridge that connected Africa to Yemen, which was exposed by a decline in sea level.
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