The Last Neanderthal: Why Our Cousins Disappeared

40,000 years ago, the Neanderthals vanished from Europe after surviving ice ages for hundreds of thousands of years. They were strong, smart, and cared for one another. So why did they disappear while we survived? And what if they never fully disappeared at all? In this video we look at who the Neanderthals really were, what happened when Homo sapiens arrived in Europe, and the five main theories scientists use to explain their extinction. Then comes the twist hidden in our own DNA. Chapters 0:00 The last of their kind 0:33 Who were the Neanderthals? 1:38 The newcomers arrive 2:25 Five suspects 2:35 Theory 1: Competition 3:02 Theory 2: A brutal climate 3:22 Theory 3: Too few of them 3:45 Theory 4: Disease 4:01 Theory 5: They joined us 4:19 The twist: they live on in us 5:09 The last fire Which theory do you think explains it? Tell us in the comments. Subscribe to Untold Tales of History for more forgotten stories from the past. Key facts in this video Neanderthals lived across Europe and western Asia for roughly 400,000 years. Their bones were first identified in Germany's Neander Valley in 1856. Homo sapiens reached Europe around 50,000 to 45,000 years ago; Neanderthals vanished across most of their range by around 40,000 years ago. Most people with ancestry outside Africa carry about 1 to 2 percent Neanderthal DNA. Svante Pääbo received the 2022 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for sequencing the Neanderthal genome. Animated visuals. Narration uses an AI voice. #Neanderthals #HumanHistory #UntoldTalesOfHistory #Animation