Archeology

The history of Ethiopia begins with Lucy. Lucy was a female hominoid who lived in what is now called the Awash Valley in Hadar some 3.2 million years ago. The skeleton was discovered in 1974.

Lucy’s scientific name is Australopithecus afarensis. The first word means “Southern Ape” and the second word signifies she was discovered in the Afar region. Ethiopians refer to her as “Dinqnesh” which means Wonderful. She is also classified in Hadar as AL 288-1. When she was discovered only a little over half of her skeletons were found.

She probably did not live more than 20 years and weighed around 60 pounds and stood three and a half feet.

Lucy is kept fully preserved at the national Museum in Addis Ababa; an exact plaster replica is also displayed.

But why was she called Lucy? Donald Johansson, the anthropologist from Chicago University who discovered her, tells us why: "Surely such a noble little fossil lady deserved a name.

"As we [his expedition crew] sat around one evening listening to Beatles' songs, someone said, ‘Why don't we call her Lucy? You know, after “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds. “’ So she became Lucy.”