dicksbro,

Actually, Neanderthal isn’t as bad as one might think. The term was originally a bit of an honor, being given to a lesser light among German composers, Joachim Neander. The valley where he would wander in search of his muse was named Neanderthal. The bones of an early Hominid were discovered there in 1856.

There is a continuing debate as to what amount of, if any, interbreeding occurred between Homo sapiens neanderthalensis and Homo sapiens sapiens.

Due to early attempts at the reconstruction of Neanderthal skeletons and due to the portrayal of Neanderthals in film, there is a common misconception that Neanderthals were far more primitive and ape like than is currently thought.

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Eudaimonia