An analysis of an ancient jaw containing teeth has confirmed that humans reached Western Europe well over a million years ago, far earlier than previously thought. The prehistoric fossil was excavated last June at Atapuerca in northern Spain, along with a previously reported tooth and stone tools used for butchering meat.

The new study of the jaw confirms that the 'first Europeans' arrived well over a million years ago, reports the archaeological team — led by Eudald Carbonell of the Rovira i Virgili University in Tarragona, Spain — in the latest issue of the journal Nature.

The research opens an interesting new chapter in the story of European colonization, the study authors say. The earliest known human fossils found outside of Africa are from Dmanisi in the modern-day Republic of Georgia. The Georgian hominins lived some 1.7 million years ago and represent an early expansion of humans outside Africa.