原人(げんじん)

げんじん
noun
early human; archaic human (Homo erectus stage)
1. early human; archaic human (Homo erectus stage)
In the study of human evolution, an early human of the Homo erectus stage, more advanced than the ape-like 猿人(えんじん) but earlier than 旧人(きゅうじん) and modern humans. Often appears in the names of specific finds, such as 北京原人(ぺきんげんじん) (Peking Man).
原人(げんじん)は火(ひ)を使(つか)っていた。
Early humans used fire.
北京原人(ぺきんげんじん)の化石(かせき)が発見(はっけん)された。
Fossils of Peking Man were discovered.
原人(げんじん)は猿人(えんじん)より進化(しんか)した段階(だんかい)に位置(いち)づけられる。
Archaic humans are placed at a more evolved stage than the ape-men.

Compound of 原(げん) (original, primitive) + 人(じん) (person). A term from paleoanthropology denoting one stage in human evolution.

COMMON COLLOCATIONS:

  • 北京原人(ぺきんげんじん): Peking Man
  • ジャワ原人(ジャワげんじん): Java Man
  • 原人(げんじん)の化石(かせき): fossils of early humans

SIMILAR WORDS:

  • 猿人(えんじん): ape-man — an earlier, more primitive stage
  • 旧人(きゅうじん): archaic Homo (e.g. Neanderthals) — a later stage
  • 新人(しんじん): anatomically modern humans (in this paleoanthropology sense)
general
Added 2026.6.25 6:18
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