This article examines the emergence of Homo sapiens sapiens or anatomically modern humans (AMH) primarily from the archaeological perspective. It analyses the emergence of anatomical and behavioural modernity of humans based on evidence from Africa, Europe, and the Near East. It explains that the trait lists of behavioural modernity have commonly emphasized the importance of symbolic behaviour and the use of complex spoken language in the ultimate success of our species and suggests that the spatio-temporal coherence of the regional archaeological records should be used to encourage caution...

This article examines the emergence of Homo sapiens sapiens or anatomically modern humans (AMH) primarily from the archaeological perspective. It analyses the emergence of anatomical and behavioural modernity of humans based on evidence from Africa, Europe, and the Near East. It explains that the trait lists of behavioural modernity have commonly emphasized the importance of symbolic behaviour and the use of complex spoken language in the ultimate success of our species and suggests that the spatio-temporal coherence of the regional archaeological records should be used to encourage caution or confidence in our pronouncements on the development of behavioural modernity.