Neanderthal Children Had Strong Emotional Bond with Social Group

Archaeologists have found evidence that the Neanderthal's did not have difficult and short-lived childhood.

Dismissing the traditional view of Neanderthals' short and dangerous childhood, archaeologists at the University of York claim that Neanderthal children maintained a strong emotional attachment with their immediate social group. They played a key role in their society and interacted well with the group to develop skills.

The previous claims of difficult Neanderthal childhood were mainly based on biological evidence.  But the current study, led by Dr Penny Spikins, focused on the cultural and social evidence to get a deep insight into their childhood experience.

In the Neanderthal group, a lot of emphasis was given on social relationships within the group.  Analysis of the burial sites of the Neanderthals suggests that children played a key role in society, especially in symbolic expression.

 The team also consisted of archaeologists Gail Hitchens, Andy Needham and Holly Rutherford, who argue that Neanderthals cared for the sick and injured children for months and years. They have sufficient evidence to back this claim.

The team noticed that the young received special attention at the time of death with more elaborate graves than adults. 

Researchers believe that the Neanderthals lived in small and isolated groups along rocky regions. 

Dr Spikins said, "The traditional view sees Neanderthal childhood as unusually harsh, difficult and dangerous. This accords with preconceptions about Neanderthal inferiority and an inability to protect children epitomising Neanderthal decline. Our research found that a close attachment and particular attention to children is a more plausible interpretation of the archaeological evidence, explaining an unusual focus on infants and children in burial, and setting Neanderthal symbolism within a context which is likely to have included children."

He explains that the perception of a harsh upbringing was based on false interpretations of high activity levels and continuous periods of scarcity. But these challenges in childhood are no different from the normal experiences of the early Paleolithic human children or those of the hunter-gathers living in cold regions.

The finding was documented in the Oxford Journal of Archaeology.