History › Human origins › Out of Africa migration
Settlement of Australia
by c. 50,000 years ago (possibly 65,000)· Event· Americas & Oceania
DebatedHistorians or scientists disagree about what happened, when, or why.
Modern humans reached Australia by about 50,000 years ago, crossing open sea, possibly as early as 65,000 years ago.
See it on the History map →What happened
Low Ice Age seas joined Australia, New Guinea and Tasmania into one landmass called Sahul, but reaching it from Southeast Asia still meant several sea crossings, the longest perhaps 70–90 km (45–55 miles). These are among the earliest known deliberate sea voyages. Lake Mungo in New South Wales holds burials about 42,000 years old. The ancestors of Aboriginal Australians and Papuans founded cultures that continue today.
Why it matters
It required planned voyages with boats and enough people to found a population, proof of advanced planning long before farming. Aboriginal cultures are among the oldest continuous cultures on Earth.
How we know
Dated sites such as Lake Mungo and Madjedbebe, plus DNA from living Aboriginal Australians and Papuans showing a deep, separate ancestry going back about 50,000 years.
Still debated
The 65,000-year date from Madjedbebe in northern Australia is disputed. Whether people, climate or both wiped out Australia's giant animals soon after is also debated.
Connections (2)
▸Out of Africa migration led to Settlement of AustraliaMostly agreed
The connection
The migrants followed coasts across southern Asia toward Southeast Asia. With low sea levels, Indonesia's islands were closer together, but reaching Sahul, the joined landmass of Australia and New Guinea, still took several sea crossings. Arrival by 50,000 years ago makes Australia one of the dispersal's earliest destinations.
When and how
From Southeast Asia through the islands of eastern Indonesia, by about 50,000 years ago, possibly 65,000.
How sure are we?
Dated archaeological sites in Australia, and DNA showing Aboriginal Australians and Papuans descend from the same out-of-Africa population as other non-Africans.
Debates and open questions
Whether people took a northern route via Sulawesi or a southern one via Timor, and whether there was one founding group or many, is unknown.
▸Settlement of Australia was an early sea crossing, long before Polynesian settlement of the PacificMostly agreed
The connection
Reaching Australia required crossing at least 70 km (45 miles) of open sea from Southeast Asia, humanity's earliest known long sea voyage. Polynesians made far longer crossings tens of thousands of years later. They were largely a different people: mainly descendants of Austronesians who left Taiwan about 5,000 years ago, though they mixed with Papuans along the way.
When and how
Island Southeast Asia and New Guinea: first crossings by about 50,000 years ago; the Austronesian expansion through the same islands from about 3000 BC.
How sure are we?
Sites in Australia and New Guinea dated to 50,000 or more years ago; DNA showing Polynesians carry mostly Austronesian and some Papuan ancestry.
Debates and open questions
The link is one of seafaring ability, not direct descent. How the first Australians crossed, by raft or canoe, and whether on purpose, is unknown.