Peking man
- noun
- /ˈpiːkɪŋ mæn/
- Specialized
:
hombre de Pekín
- In the Zhoukoudian caves of China, the remains of Peking man offer insights into the early human species that lived during the Pleistocene epoch.
Examples
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The study of Peking man helps scientists understand human evolution and the characteristics of early hominids.
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There, in 1929, a team of Chinese and Western scientists discovered the first of a series of Homo erectus skulls that became world famous as "Peking man."
Academic text (1991) -
Homo sapiens originated in Africa at a time when Homo erectus was widespread throughout Europe and Asia (Peking man, Java man).
Blog text (1) -
The original fossils of Peking man disappeared during the confusion of World War II—fortunately, after they were described and cast by anatomist Franz Weidenreich.
Academic text (1991) -
The discovery of Peking man in the 1920s marked a significant milestone in the field of anthropology and paleontology.
Synonyms
An extinct early human from long ago now called Homo erectus
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase is compositionally built from the place name 'Peking' and 'man', so a learner can infer a literal reading like 'a man from Peking'. However, its conventional encyclopedic meaning — a specific early hominid/fossil taxon discovered near Beijing — is specialized knowledge not deducible from the constituents alone. This partial compositionality but requirement for background knowledge makes it only partially transparent to B1 learners.
Etymology
Peking man was named after the old name Peking for Beijing, where early human bones were found. People used the word man for early humans, so Peking man now means 'early human fossil'.
