Assalaamu alaykum brother. I was just wondering, I saw a hadith what says that Adam came 7000 thousand years before muhammed, sallallaahu ʻalayhi wa sallam, so that would mean that Adam came 7000 BC, but how is that possible considering that we know that humans have been here for at least 40 thousand years. It would be great if you could explain that. May Allaah reward you.

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ʻalayhi wa sallam, is His slave and Messenger.

We did not find any trace of this hadeeth to which you have referred in the question in any of the available books and references. There is a hadeeth, though, that indicates that the age of the worldly life is seven thousand years. At-Tabaraani cited a prolonged hadeeth, part of it reads, “...This world is seven thousand years, and I have been sent in the last one thousand.”

Ibn Al-Qayyim said in the context of explaining the signs of a fabricated hadeeth:

“One of those signs is being in contradiction with the explicit verses of the Quran; for example, the hadeeth suggesting that the age of the world is seven thousand years and that we are now in the seventh thousand! Verily, this is a plain lie because had the report been authentic, all people would have realized that it is only two hundred and fifty one years to the Day of Judgment, whereas Allaah, The Exalted, says (what means): {They ask you [O Muhammad] about the Hour: When is its arrival? Say, “Its knowledge is only with my Lord. None will reveal its time except Him. It lays heavily upon the heavens and the earth. It will not come upon you except unexpectedly.” They ask you as if you are familiar with it. Say, “Its knowledge is only with Allaah, but most of the people do not know."} [Quran 7:187].” [Al-Manaar Al-Muneef]

Ibn Katheer said, “There are no authentic reports attributed to the Prophet, sallallaahu ʻalayhi wa sallam, identifying the exact date of the Day of Judgment or underlining a specified time frame; but he, sallallaahu ʻalayhi wa sallam, foretold the signs of the Last Hour only.” [An-Nihaayah fi Al-Fitan wal-Malaahim]

At any rate, talking about the first appearance of humankind on the earth is based on mere guessing and is not based on solid grounds. One opinion suggests that humankind first emerged about two million and five hundred years ago. This cannot be accurately verified, and it does not lead to any action on part of the Muslim and, therefore, one should not preoccupy himself with it.

Allaah Knows best.