What do you think?
Origins: What New Discoveries Reveal About The Emergence Of Our Species And Its Possible Future
Libro usado en buenas condiciones, por su antiguedad podria contener señales normales de uso
Hardcover
First published January 1, 1977
About the author
Richard E. Leakey
67 books75 followersRichard Erskine Frere Leakey was a paleoanthropologist and conservationist. He was the second born of three sons of the archaeologists Louis Leakey and Mary Leakey, and was the younger brother of Colin Leakey.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
March 25, 2012
What ages would I recommend it too? – Twelve and up.
Length? – Several days read.
Characters? – Human kind throughout history.
Setting? – Earth.
Written approximately? – 1977.
Does the story leave questions in the readers mind? – Ready to read more.
Any issues the author (or a more recent publisher) should cover? No.
Short storyline: A history of human kind and archeology as known in the 1970's.
Notes for the reader: While there have been more finds, and few changes in notions, this book covers the past, present, and future in an exciting way. It is amazing how many estimates of the the late 1900's to early 2000's the author guessed correctly.
Length? – Several days read.
Characters? – Human kind throughout history.
Setting? – Earth.
Written approximately? – 1977.
Does the story leave questions in the readers mind? – Ready to read more.
Any issues the author (or a more recent publisher) should cover? No.
Short storyline: A history of human kind and archeology as known in the 1970's.
Notes for the reader: While there have been more finds, and few changes in notions, this book covers the past, present, and future in an exciting way. It is amazing how many estimates of the the late 1900's to early 2000's the author guessed correctly.
October 2, 2008
This book, and his "People of the Lake" led me to a lifelong study of Anthropology. He is a fascinating man, and I was lucky enough to hear him speak (and then talk with him) after a speech he gave at UNM in the 1990s. Whether discussing human culture, hominid evolution, or the fate of the elephants of Kenya, Leakey personifies dignified grace and curious intellect. A hero of mine. Read this book and he may be a hero of yours, as well.
October 19, 2008
Excellently written! This book held my attention from beginning to end.
March 16, 2022
Reading Origins by Richard Leakey was an exciting experience, despite much of the book now feeling dated. It’s clear why this work inspired so many in the field of anthropology. The book contains timeless and invaluable insights, particularly in its documentation of native tribes. As these groups increasingly blend into modern populations, their distinct behaviors and cultures are fading. Soon, the chance to study them directly will be lost forever. However, through the meticulous records of last century’s fieldworkers—like those captured in Origins—this knowledge remains preserved. This primary research offers a window into understanding not just these tribes, but also more ancient cultures, making it more engaging and informative than many modern bestsellers.
That said, I didn’t enjoy the book’s ending. The speculative predictions about what the world would look like in 2020 felt so far off the mark that they came across as preachy rather than insightful. This has left me hesitant about diving into Leakey’s The Sixth Extinction, though I’m still willing to give it a try. My reaction to the ending is just a matter of personal taste—futurology can be a tricky tightrope, and here it stumbled.
That said, I didn’t enjoy the book’s ending. The speculative predictions about what the world would look like in 2020 felt so far off the mark that they came across as preachy rather than insightful. This has left me hesitant about diving into Leakey’s The Sixth Extinction, though I’m still willing to give it a try. My reaction to the ending is just a matter of personal taste—futurology can be a tricky tightrope, and here it stumbled.
March 6, 2019
Fascinating! I loved this book. My appreciation for all living beings was enhanced exponentially.
November 21, 2019
A well written examination of the development of humans from the fossil record.
December 24, 2022
Revolutionary when it was first published
An excellent book on the emergence of our species. Of course, I assume that the person reading this review is of the same species. For anyone who has not read this book it still holds some interesting ideas that should not be missed. It is packed with pictures and graphs and as Alice of Alice in Wonderland fame said: “What good are books without pictures and conversations?”
This book makes a great addition to your library and is worth rereading about once every 10 years to see how things are changed (or haven’t.)
Be sure to read Richard E. Leakey’s other books on the subject.
An excellent book on the emergence of our species. Of course, I assume that the person reading this review is of the same species. For anyone who has not read this book it still holds some interesting ideas that should not be missed. It is packed with pictures and graphs and as Alice of Alice in Wonderland fame said: “What good are books without pictures and conversations?”
This book makes a great addition to your library and is worth rereading about once every 10 years to see how things are changed (or haven’t.)
Be sure to read Richard E. Leakey’s other books on the subject.
September 16, 2026
Despite being nearly 50 years old, "Origins" is a wonderful compendium of archaeology and anthropology performed largely by the Leakeys. It's informative and illustrated, making it accessible to the general population. Highly recommended.
March 28, 2019
the ending is remarkable
Read
April 27, 2019i have the german edition: Wie der Mensch...
and the english edition
and the english edition
February 8, 2023
This is an older book but I still learned quite a lot. There was a bit of repetitiveness and some political statements towards the end.
May 6, 2023
Read this as a young adult in South Africa. One of the best books on the topic I have read!
September 27, 2024
AN EXCELLENT "OVERVIEW" OF HUMAN EVOLUTION (CIRCA 1977)
Richard Leakey has written/cowritten other books such as 'People of the Lake,' 'The Making of Mankind,' 'Origins Reconsidered: In Search of What Makes Us Human,' 'Wildlife Wars: My Fight to Save Africa's Natural Treasures,' etc. This book was published in 1977.
They note, "For the higher primates, with their ability to see that world in color and in three dimensions, and, also to pick up and manipulate objects, the world becomes more than just a three-dimensional color pattern. It is also a world full of identifiable objects. Monkeys, apes, and human beings are almost the only creatures that fiddle with things, picking them up, turning them over, inspecting them visually, by smell and by touch...
"The implications of this new mental dimension are vast... The opportunities for learning about the world, rather than simply reacting to particular shapes in a pre-programmed fashion, are enhanced enormously. And, ultimately, the ability to view objects as separate entities is an absolute prerequisite for the evolution of language, which is possibly the one unique human attribute. In a very real sense, we owe our capacity for speech to the higher primates' reaching out to analyse their three-dimensional world." (Pg. 45)
The observe, "At least part of the reason for a lengthy childhood in humans is the crown of evolutionary achievement we carry in our heads---the human brain. An uneasy compromise has been evolved, balancing the protection necessary for the delicate, developing brain, especially in its early stages, against the safe delivery of the baby's head through its mother's pelvis. A brain that was fully developed at birth would escape the potential hazards of environmental damage before its development had been completed. But such a brain would make impossible demands on the engineering of the birth canal in the mother's pelvis... The path taken by the evolving human structure was a middle one: an infant with a relatively well-developed brain is delivered through a canal that has caused the pelvis to widen... but not so much as to severely impede walking." (Pg. 149-150)
They argue, "It used to be said that many animals KNOW, but only humans KNOW THEY KNOW. For chimpanzees at least, this is probably an injustice. To know in the 'human' sense is to be self-aware... to be aware of oneself as an individual among others... But just as humans are able, through self-awareness, to put themselves in someone else's position, it is a fair guess that to some extent at least, chimpanzees can do the very same thing with one another." (Pg. 189)
One might have hoped in this book for more details about the fossils Leakey and his famous parents had been involved in discovering; but the book is a well-illustrated and photographed introduction to human evolution, and is well worth reading for anyone interested in that subject.
Richard Leakey has written/cowritten other books such as 'People of the Lake,' 'The Making of Mankind,' 'Origins Reconsidered: In Search of What Makes Us Human,' 'Wildlife Wars: My Fight to Save Africa's Natural Treasures,' etc. This book was published in 1977.
They note, "For the higher primates, with their ability to see that world in color and in three dimensions, and, also to pick up and manipulate objects, the world becomes more than just a three-dimensional color pattern. It is also a world full of identifiable objects. Monkeys, apes, and human beings are almost the only creatures that fiddle with things, picking them up, turning them over, inspecting them visually, by smell and by touch...
"The implications of this new mental dimension are vast... The opportunities for learning about the world, rather than simply reacting to particular shapes in a pre-programmed fashion, are enhanced enormously. And, ultimately, the ability to view objects as separate entities is an absolute prerequisite for the evolution of language, which is possibly the one unique human attribute. In a very real sense, we owe our capacity for speech to the higher primates' reaching out to analyse their three-dimensional world." (Pg. 45)
The observe, "At least part of the reason for a lengthy childhood in humans is the crown of evolutionary achievement we carry in our heads---the human brain. An uneasy compromise has been evolved, balancing the protection necessary for the delicate, developing brain, especially in its early stages, against the safe delivery of the baby's head through its mother's pelvis. A brain that was fully developed at birth would escape the potential hazards of environmental damage before its development had been completed. But such a brain would make impossible demands on the engineering of the birth canal in the mother's pelvis... The path taken by the evolving human structure was a middle one: an infant with a relatively well-developed brain is delivered through a canal that has caused the pelvis to widen... but not so much as to severely impede walking." (Pg. 149-150)
They argue, "It used to be said that many animals KNOW, but only humans KNOW THEY KNOW. For chimpanzees at least, this is probably an injustice. To know in the 'human' sense is to be self-aware... to be aware of oneself as an individual among others... But just as humans are able, through self-awareness, to put themselves in someone else's position, it is a fair guess that to some extent at least, chimpanzees can do the very same thing with one another." (Pg. 189)
One might have hoped in this book for more details about the fossils Leakey and his famous parents had been involved in discovering; but the book is a well-illustrated and photographed introduction to human evolution, and is well worth reading for anyone interested in that subject.
September 7, 2023
Revolutionary when it was first published
An excellent book on the emergence of our species. Of course, I assume that the person reading this review is of the same species. For anyone who has not read this book it still holds some interesting ideas that should not be missed. It is packed with pictures and graphs and as Alice of Alice in Wonderland fame said: “What good are books without pictures and conversations?”
This book makes a great addition to your library and is worth rereading about once every 10 years to see how things have changed (or haven’t.)
Be sure to read Richard E. Leakey’s other books on the subject.
An excellent book on the emergence of our species. Of course, I assume that the person reading this review is of the same species. For anyone who has not read this book it still holds some interesting ideas that should not be missed. It is packed with pictures and graphs and as Alice of Alice in Wonderland fame said: “What good are books without pictures and conversations?”
This book makes a great addition to your library and is worth rereading about once every 10 years to see how things have changed (or haven’t.)
Be sure to read Richard E. Leakey’s other books on the subject.
Read
May 22, 2010I should probably get the update. I saw a televised version of this, and the book form is more than a transcript--but I'd recommend both. If you don't actually SEE Richard Leakey pontificating, you lose something. I knew a lot of this already, but there were parts I'd never considered--like Leakey's point that warfare is not a matter of agression, but a cooperative act. This informed my reading of such things as The Left Hand of Darkness.
May 16, 2012
I fould this book in my library one day and started reading it. It did a great job explaining how little we know about where we come from. All of what we know about our ancestors comes from samples of recovered bones that would hardly fill a kitchen cabinet. Things like this make this book a great read.
October 14, 2015
This book was amazing. Richard Leakey does an amazing job describing evolution, specifically our origins, in such a way that makes you feel like you yourself are undergoing evolution as you read. I found myself in the scenes Leakey describes, walking among our ancestors. I will never view humanity the same again.
March 29, 2009
Really good. Dated by now but really helped clarify my thinking at the time on human origins, and was well written in addition.
January 31, 2012
I finally made it to Olduvai Gorge in 2011! It only took 40 years!
September 8, 2012
While this book may be a little outdated compared to what we know today, it still does a good job of explaining where mankind comes from. Definitely a good read for anyone interested in archeology.
April 21, 2015
A Classic.
June 30, 2012
Not an easy read, but well worth the investment.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews