Samu is the nickname given to a prehistoric man whose remains were found near Vértesszőlős, Hungary. Only a part of the occipital bone was found. The discovery was made on 21 August 1964 during a dig led by László Vértes, and the fossil was named Sámuel, 21 August being the name day of biblical judge Samuel. It has since become widely known as Samu, a Hungarian short form of the name.
Hungarian anthropologist Andor Thoma (1928 - 2003) initially[year needed] described it as Homo erectus seu sapiens paleohungaricus. It has since been dated to about 350,000 years old, consistent with either late Homo heidelbergensis or early Homo neanderthalensis.
The archaeological site itself had been discovered by Márton Pécsi]] in 1962. Also found at the site were two child teeth, stone tools and a fireplace.
A replica of the Samu occipital bone is on exhibit Vértesszőlős Museum (the original is kept in the Hungarian National Museum[1]). Also on display are some of the associated stone and bone tools, and a prehistoric footprint.[citation needed]
"Samu" has become a common name for plastic skeletons shown in biology classes in Hungarian student slang.[2]
Sources
- ^ Samunak kutya baja. fn.hu, February 9, 2009
- ^ Hogyan beszél ma az ifjúság? (paper on student slang)