A Short History of Humanity – How Migration Made Us Who We Are by Johannes Krause and Thomas Trappe

I'm a sucker for history, especially human prehistory, since there's still so much to be learnt about our past – most of which has been dug out of all manner of locations all over the world. But a science that is fairly new, and is delivering some truly fascinating insights into our social, physiological, and even geological history is that of archaeogenetics. The two authors of A Short History of Humanity – How Migration Made Us Who We Are, Johannes Krause and Thomas Trappe, are both experts in their field, and this little book packs a lot of punch in only 272 pages.

You might be forgiven if you worry that A Short History of Humanity will be above the average reader's pay grade, but this is so not the case. This work has been wonderfully translated into English by Caroline Waight, and is accessible even to readers who have little prior experience on the subjects that are covered.

Who would have thought that the analysis of a small pile of bone dust would lead to the mapping of not only the Neanderthal but the Denisovan genome – there you have it. Not only have the authors untangled the complex web of our relationships with our extinct cousins, but through their work, and others', they've created a timeline that illustrates the gradual expansion of Homo sapiens across Africa, Asia, and Europe, while exploring a complex interrelationship between the different populations of hunter-gatherers and early agriculturalists. The work these archaeogeneticists have done also challenges such tricky subjects such as race and species. How different were our ancestors truly from the Neanderthals if we could interbreed with them and produce fertile offspring? What of those whose heritage mingled the Neanderthal and Denisovan lines? 

Yet a history of humanity is incomplete if we don't discuss the looming spectre that follows in our wake – that of the diseases caused by pathogens. The Black Death has stalked among our communities for centuries, and the scientists have uncovered evidence that shows how pandemics played a huge role in human migration, too. A glance at how society has changed in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic is yet another example of how we are shaped by pathogens and how we, as a species, are engaged in a constant arms race with our microscopic nemeses.

What it all boils down to, is that our preconceived notions of race and culture are, to a large extent, social constructs – and we would do well to look past all this to the fact that we share an amazing kinship that stretches through the millennia. Whether we are refugees or travellers, we as a species are not static, and we would do well to remember this and think in terms of a global community, and perhaps one day if we venture forth into the galaxy.