Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) are our closest living relatives, sharing a common ancestor with humans less than five million years ago. They are unique among primates for their consistent and habitual use of tools, meeting the criteria for cultural behavior as defined in socio-cultural anthropology. Chimpanzees exhibit sex differences in tool use for obtaining and processing various plant and animal foods. The technological gap between chimpanzees and foraging human societies is surprisingly narrow, particularly in food acquisition. Different chimpanzee communities have distinct toolkits, and not all regional and local variations can be explained by environmental factors. Some differences are based on non-functionally derived, symbolically encoded traditions. Chimpanzees serve as heuristic models for understanding cultural evolution in apes and humans from an ancestral hominoid perspective. However, chimpanzees are not humans, and key differences exist, though many contrasts remain to be explored empirically and theoretically. The thesis explores chimpanzee culture, tool use, and their implications for human evolution. It includes a detailed analysis of six key sites where chimpanzees interact with oil palms, highlighting variations in tool use and dietary habits. The study also examines the cultural significance of chimpanzee behavior, including the use of tools, social learning, and the transmission of traditions. The research emphasizes the importance of comparative studies between chimpanzees and human foragers, noting similarities in food acquisition and processing. The thesis also discusses the challenges of studying chimpanzee culture, including methodological issues and the need for rigorous data collection. The findings suggest that chimpanzees possess cultural traits that are relevant to understanding human evolution, though key differences remain. The study concludes that chimpanzees are important models for exploring cultural evolution, but further research is needed to fully understand the implications of their behavior for human history.Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) are our closest living relatives, sharing a common ancestor with humans less than five million years ago. They are unique among primates for their consistent and habitual use of tools, meeting the criteria for cultural behavior as defined in socio-cultural anthropology. Chimpanzees exhibit sex differences in tool use for obtaining and processing various plant and animal foods. The technological gap between chimpanzees and foraging human societies is surprisingly narrow, particularly in food acquisition. Different chimpanzee communities have distinct toolkits, and not all regional and local variations can be explained by environmental factors. Some differences are based on non-functionally derived, symbolically encoded traditions. Chimpanzees serve as heuristic models for understanding cultural evolution in apes and humans from an ancestral hominoid perspective. However, chimpanzees are not humans, and key differences exist, though many contrasts remain to be explored empirically and theoretically. The thesis explores chimpanzee culture, tool use, and their implications for human evolution. It includes a detailed analysis of six key sites where chimpanzees interact with oil palms, highlighting variations in tool use and dietary habits. The study also examines the cultural significance of chimpanzee behavior, including the use of tools, social learning, and the transmission of traditions. The research emphasizes the importance of comparative studies between chimpanzees and human foragers, noting similarities in food acquisition and processing. The thesis also discusses the challenges of studying chimpanzee culture, including methodological issues and the need for rigorous data collection. The findings suggest that chimpanzees possess cultural traits that are relevant to understanding human evolution, though key differences remain. The study concludes that chimpanzees are important models for exploring cultural evolution, but further research is needed to fully understand the implications of their behavior for human history.