Heidelberg jaw

[ hahyd-l-burg jaw ]

noun

1. a nearly complete primitive human mandible of the middle Pleistocene Epoch found in 1907 near Heidelberg, Germany: before this specimen was discovered and classified as Homo heidelbergensis, all early human fossils with traits shared by Homo erectus and modern humans were collectively called archaic Homo sapiens .

Word History and Origins

Origin of Heidelberg jaw¹

First recorded in 1905–10