Human–chimpanzee last common ancestor

The ancestral population from which the human lineage and the lineage leading to chimpanzees and bonobos diverged. It is known from evolutionary evidence, not from identified fossils.

Human–chimpanzee divergence: The evolutionary separation of the lineage leading to humans from the lineage leading to chimpanzees and bonobos. This divergence marks the split associated with the ancestral population.
Speciation: The evolutionary process by which populations become distinct species. The ancestral population's divergence belongs to the broader process of lineage separation.
Sahelanthropus: An extinct hominin genus known from fossils in Chad, including material dated to roughly seven million years ago. Its age and anatomy have made it relevant to debates about early human-lineage evolution near the divergence.
Hominin fossil record: The collection of fossil evidence documenting humans and their extinct close relatives. Sparse fossils near the divergence leave the ancestor's anatomy difficult to reconstruct.
Last common ancestor: The most recent ancestral population shared by two or more descendant lineages. The human–chimpanzee ancestor is one specific instance of this broader evolutionary concept.
Population genetics: The study of genetic variation and evolutionary change within and between populations. Population-level variation shaped the lineages on either side of the split.
Ardipithecus: An extinct hominin genus that includes fossils from roughly 5.8 to 4.4 million years ago. Its fossils document early human-lineage evolution after the inferred separation.
Pan–Homo split: The evolutionary separation between the lineages leading to Pan and Homo. Its timing is estimated differently across studies and datasets.
Ancestral population: A population from which later populations or lineages descend. The ancestor is best understood as a population, not necessarily one individual.
Gene flow: The transfer of genetic variants between populations through interbreeding. Gene flow can complicate the picture of a clean, instantaneous divergence.

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