Hominidae (Great Apes and Humans)

Abstract

Extant members of the family Hominidae (great apes and humans, hereafter hominids) are characterized by large brains (relative to body size), protracted life-history phases, and varied patterns of complex social relationships that extend beyond biological kin, beyond reproductive relationships, and beyond the immediate social group. The potential for the innovation, spread, and inheritance of behavioral patterns and social traditions is much higher in the hominids than in other anthropoid primates. Human grouping patterns, sociality, and the relationships within and between groups might be reflective of shared patterns in the broader taxonomic group. As such, an understanding of these patterns of variation among the nonhuman hominids can provide a comparative evolutionary perspective into the nature and structure of social variation in the human lineage.