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How are Neanderthals classified within the genus Homo?
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Neanderthal
Artist's rendering of Homo neanderthalensis, who ranged from western Europe to Central Asia for some 100,000 years before dying out approximately 30,000 years ago.
Neanderthals are typically classified within the genus Homo as either a distinct species, Homo neanderthalensis, or as a subspecies of modern humans, Homo sapiens neanderthalensis.12
While many scientific classifications treat them as a separate biological species based on morphological differences, this distinction is a subject of ongoing debate. Genetic research has revealed that Eurasians generally carry approximately 2 percent Neanderthal nuclear DNA, indicating that modern humans and Neanderthals interbred. This evidence suggests they were not entirely distinct biological species, challenging the traditional view that they were genetically and morphologically isolated from early modern human populations.12