Morgan. H.L. (1974). Ancient Society or researches in the lines of human process from savagery
through barbarism to civilization (Chapter I, pp.3-87).

Objective of the article:
Study of gradual evolution of mental and moral powers of mankind from savagery to
civilization through experimental knowledge and their long struggle with opposing
obstacles while winning their way to civilization.

To study the principle stages of human development, chiefly in the domestic institution, it
is important to investigate :
1. Inventions and Discoveries
2. Institution
Apart from these, others are:

3. Subsistence
4. Government
5. Language
6. Family
7. Religion
8. House life and Architecture
9. Property
Government can be reduced to two general group: (Iroquios Gens)
Societas (society/ social organization)
Civitas (state)
 Gentile organization
National domain
 Most oldest org and most widely
and territories
prevalent institutions of mankind
 Furnished in universal plan of
Country/ province
government of ancient society:
Asiatic, European, African and
ward
Australian
 Founded upon persons and
 Founded upon territory and
relations purely personal
property
 Gens is unit of organization which
 Unit: township or ward within
constitutes people of nation/
border with its property(resources,
populous
population)
 Commenced in savagery and
continued in 3 sub periods of
barbarians and remained until
establishment of political society.
 Wherever found is the same in the
structural organization and in
principles of action; but changing
from lower to higher forms with


the progressive advancement of
people.
After prolonged periods- universal
and ancient society established
like Greek and Romans
Divisions of Human Development:
Savagery
Older period of Savagery
Middle Period of Savagery
Lower Status of Savagery
Middle Status of Savagery
 Restricted habitat
 Fish subsistence
 Subsistence upon
 Knowledge of use
fruits and nuts
of fire
 Articulate speech
 Spread of original
habitat
Latter period of Savagery
Upper status of Savagery
 Inventions of bows
and arrows
Art of Pottery, phonetic alphabets and use of writing
Barbarians
Older period of barbarians Middle Period of
Latter period of barbarians
Lower Status of barbarians barbarians
Upper status of barbarians
Middle Status of barbarians
 Invention and
 Eastern
 Manufacture of
practice of art of
Hemisphereiron
pottery
Domestication of
animals
 Tribes not obtaining
this still considered
 Western
savage
Hemispherecultivation by
 Indian Tribes of US
irrigation, use of
adobe bricks and
stones in
architecture
Use of phonetic alphabet, production of literary records division into ancient
and modern
Status of Civilization



Gens: a body of consanguinei descended from the same common ancestor, distinguished
by gentile name and bound together by affinities of blood.
Descent used to be in female line in archaic period; with appearance of property it started
to be in male line.
Changes in successive stages of development:
1. Changing descent from female line
2. Changing the inheritance of property from deceased members of gen from his
gentile (from father to children)



Case Study:
1. American Indian Gens:
 American ethnography – in place of gens- tribes and clans
 Plan of government – started from gens of American aborigines and ended
with confederacy (union of political organization)
 Organic series:
 Gens- body of consanguine having common gentile name
 Phartry- assemblage of related gentes united in higher association
for certain common reasons
 Tribe- assemblage of gentes, usually organized in phartries
speaking same dialect
 Confederacy of tribe- Members of which respectively spoke dialect
of the same stock language
 This resulted in gentile society
 Similar society found in Grecian tribes, Athenians, Dorian Tribes and
Roman Plan
Common Characteristics of gentile institutions:
1. No state
2. Essentially democratic- principles on which genes, phartry and tribes organized
were democratic
Archaic Forms of Gens:
o Founded upon kins, does not include descendants of common ancestors,
o Maternal descent because it was only the certain fact. Two gens descent: male and
female. Maternity afforded only certain criterion of descents because paternity of
children was not certainly ascertainable.
o With property in middle state of barbarism, descent was changed to male line;
ascribing female another gentes; to respective father.