Princess Louise de Merode (''

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

'' Leakey, born 21 March 1972) is a Kenyan

paleontologist Paleontology, also spelled as palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of the life of the past, mainly but not exclusively through the study of fossils. Paleontologists use fossils as a means to classify organisms, measure geolo ...

and

anthropologist An anthropologist is a scientist engaged in the practice of anthropology. Anthropologists study aspects of humans within past and present societies. Social anthropology, cultural anthropology and philosophical anthropology study the norms, values ...

. She conducts research and field work on human

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserve ...

s in Eastern Africa.

Early life and education

Louise Leakey was born in

Nairobi Nairobi is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kenya. The city lies in the south-central part of Kenya, at an elevation of . The name is derived from the Maasai language, Maasai phrase , which translates to 'place of cool waters', a ...

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

, to Kenyan paleoanthropologist, conservationist and

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

Richard Leakey Richard Erskine Frere Leakey (19 December 1944 – 2 January 2022) was a Kenyan paleoanthropologist, conservationist and politician. Leakey held a number of official positions in Kenya, mostly in institutions of archaeology and wildlife cons ...

and British

paleoanthropologist Paleoanthropology or paleo-anthropology is a branch of paleontology and biological anthropology, anthropology which seeks to understand the early development of anatomically modern humans, a process known as wikt:hominization, hominization, throug ...

Meave Leakey in 1972, the same year that her paleoanthropologist grandfather,

Louis Leakey Louis Seymour Bazett Leakey (7 August 1903 – 1 October 1972) was a Kenyan-British palaeoanthropologist and archaeologist whose work was important in demonstrating that humans evolved in Africa, particularly through discoveries made at Olduvai ...

, died. She first became actively involved in fossil discoveries in 1977, when at the age of five she became the youngest documented person to find a

hominoid Apes (collectively Hominoidea ) are a Family (biology), superfamily of Old World simians native to sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia (though they were more widespread in Africa, most of Asia, and Europe in prehistory, and counting humans ...

fossil. Leakey earned her

International Baccalaureate The International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO), more commonly known as the International Baccalaureate (IB), is a nonprofit foundation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and founded in 1968. It offers four educational programmes: the I ...

from United World College of the Atlantic and a Bachelor of Science degree in geology and biology from the

University of Bristol The University of Bristol is a public university, public research university in Bristol, England. It received its royal charter in 1909, although it can trace its roots to a Merchant Venturers' school founded in 1595 and University College, Br ...

. She earned a

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

from

University College, London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

in 2001.

Career

In 1993, Leakey joined her mother as a co-leader of paleontological expeditions in northern Kenya. The

Koobi Fora Koobi Fora refers primarily to a region around Koobi Fora Ridge, located on the eastern shore of Lake Turkana in the territory of the nomadic Gabbra people. According to the National Museums of Kenya, the name comes from the Gabbra language ...

research project has been the main program behind some of the most notable hominid fossil discoveries of the past two decades, the most recent being '' Kenyanthropus platyops''. Leakey has promoted an initiative to place digital models of fossil collections in a virtual laboratory,
African Fossils
'' where models can be downloaded, 3D printed or cut in cardboard for reassembly.

Personal life

In 2003, Leakey married Prince Emmanuel de Merode, a Belgian primatologist. She is styled ''princesse de Merode'' by marriage. The couple have two daughters.Bowman-Kruhm, Mary (2005). ''The Leakeys: A Biography''.

References

External links

Leakey Foundation

African Fossils

Koobi Fora Research Project
* **
"A dig for humanity's origins" (TED2008)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Leakey, Louise 1972 births Living people Alumni of the University of Bristol Alumni of the University of London Kenyan archaeologists Kenyan paleontologists Kenyan people of British descent Kenyan people of English descent Kenyan scientists Louise Louise Paleoanthropologists People educated at Atlantic College White Kenyan people Women paleontologists

Early life and education

Career

Personal life

See also

References

External links