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.” |
