MANDIBULAR MORPHOLOGICAL VARIATION IN HOMO GEORGICUS FROM DMANISI: IMPLICATIONS FOR EARLY HOMO EVOLUTION

Abstract

This review article examines the distinctive characteristics of the mandible (Lat. mandibula) of Homo Georgicus specimens discovered at the Early Pleistocene site of Dmanisi, Georgia. The Dmanisi mandibular remains represent a temporally and geographically restricted sample that provides a unique opportunity to assess morphological variability in early Homo. Through comparative morphometric analysis of mandibular body dimensions, the variability in size and shape of the Dmanisi fossils is evaluated relative to modern hominoids and other fossil hominins. The results show that the Dmanisi mandibles display significantly greater size variability than that observed in modern humans and greater shape variability of the mandibular body than in any extant species of great apes. The specimens share several diagnostic features, including a prominent torus mandibularis, a forward-projecting tuberculum marginale anterius, consistent patterns of foramina mentale positioning, and a characteristic dental arch shape. These findings contribute to our understanding of early Homo diversity and suggest a need to reconsider assumptions about sexual dimorphism in early members of our genus. The study underscores the taxonomic significance of mandibular variation in the Dmanisi sample and its implications for Hominin evolution and dispersal beyond Africa. Additionally, examination of evolutionary changes in jaw morphology has relevance not only in anthropology but also in modern dentistry, due to significant morpho-anatomical transformations over a relatively short evolutionary timespan.