LUCY


Meaning of LUCY in English

n.

Nickname for a remarkably complete (40% intact) hominid skeleton found by Donald Johanson at Hadar, Eth.

, in 1974 and dated to 3.2 million years ago. The specimen is usually classified as Australopithecus afarensis (see Australopithecus ) and suggests

by virtue of its having long arms, short legs, an apelike chest and jaw, and a small brain but a relatively humanlike pelvis

that bipedal locomotion preceded the development of a larger (more humanlike) brain in hominid evolution. Lucy stood about 3 ft 7 in. (109 cm) and weighed about 60 lbs (27 kg). See also Hadar remains ; Laetoli footprints ; Sterkfontein .

Britannica Concise Encyclopedia.      Краткая энциклопедия Британика.