Toba Eruption
74000 BCE
Supervolcanic eruption causing a human population bottleneck.
Historical Context
74,000 years ago, groups of archaic humans and Homo sapiens coexisted in Africa and Asia. Lithic technology was slowly perfecting in the Middle Paleolithic.
The Event
The Toba supervolcano (Indonesia) erupted in the most massive explosion of the Quaternary (VEI-8). It ejected 2800 km³ of magma and ash, blocking the Sun for years and plunging Earth into a decadal volcanic winter.
Key Figures
Stanley H. Ambrose (anthropologist who formulated the Toba bottleneck theory in 1998).
Aftermath
Drastic drop in global temperatures. Forests died. According to theory, the global human population was reduced to a critical bottleneck of only 3,000 to 10,000 breeding individuals.
Legacy & Culture
This genetic bottleneck explains why current humanity exhibits such low genetic diversity. All modern humans descend from these few survivors.
Historiography
The severity of the 'bottleneck' is one of anthropology's fiercest debates. Recent excavations in India suggest some local populations survived the ash remarkably well.
Sources and References
Cendres (Youngest Toba Tuff) retrouvées jusqu'en Inde
Études sur le goulot d'étranglement génétique humain (ADNmt)
Stanley H. Ambrose, Volcanism and Human Evolution