Let’s begin the DEFINITION OF atavism by stating its etymological origin. In this case, it must be stated that it derives from Latin, exactly from “atavus” and this from “avus”, which can be translated as “grandfather”.
The word came to our language as atavism. The concept is used, in the field of biology, to name the phenomenon that implies the return in a living being of characteristics typical of its distant ancestors.
According to Digopaul, atavism is produced through a gene that is expressed after being inactive in the evolutionary history of the species in question. The teeth of chickens and the fins of the animals that make up the order of cetaceans are examples of atavism.
Atavism is, in short, the reappearance of features of the ancestors in an organism of the present. These characters are typical of a previous evolutionary instance and, for some reason, they had been lost throughout history until their return.
Among the examples of atavism that can be mentioned in order to understand it more deeply, we find the extra fingers in horses, the reappearance of teeth in hens and roosters or the appearance of hair in humans in places where they do not appear as would be the case. Of the face.
It is important not to confuse atavism with the appearance of vestigial organs. These structures persisted with evolution although they lost their original function, remaining as a testament to an existing structure in a close ancestor. In atavism, on the other hand, the features refer to distant ancestors.
In humans, atavism can also be detected since, in the embryo, there is a tail like our remote ancestors had. However, with the formation of the fetus, this tail is absorbed by the developing organism. Only in a few isolated cases, people are born with a tail made up of nerves, muscles and blood vessels.
Beyond biology, atavism is the behavior that leads to reliving thoughts or actions that are typical of the ancestors. For example: “The atavism of this political party is evident: its policies belong to the past. ”
Starting from this meaning we find, for example, what is known as atavism of violence. It is used to refer to certain violent behaviors that appear in society and that come to remind the ways of acting of certain groups in the past. Hence the authorities try to do everything possible to end them in favor of coexistence and freedom.
In the same way, we cannot ignore that Atavismo is the name of a music group. It is an Andalusian band, specifically from Algeciras (Cádiz). It has become a benchmark within the Andalusian progressive rock psychedelic hard genre.
It manages to unite very well what is the tradition of that music with innovation and it is made up of three components: Sandra, Mateo and Poti. In 2015 they released their first album and achieved great success inside and outside of Spain. Drink this band from other formations such as Triana, Wolf People or Black Mountain.
