The Rise of Civilization
Chapter 1
Prehistory – 2300 B.C.
Lesson 1: Early Humans
Lesson 2: The Neolithic Revolution
Lesson 3: Mesopotamia
Bellringer Question
• What do archaeology and anthropology, and
history teach us about prehistoric humans?
Archaeology
• Archaeology is the study of past societies
through analysis of what people left behind.
• Archaeologists dig up and examine artifacts.
• Artifacts: objects made by humans.
• Can you think of examples of artifacts?
• Tools, weapons, art, buildings, etc.
What might these artifacts reveal
about the humans who made them?
Archaeologists at Work
Anthropology
• Anthropology is the study of human life and
culture.
• Culture includes what people wear, how they
organize their society, and what they value.
• Anthropologists use artifacts and human
fossils to create a picture of people’s everyday
lives.
• Fossils are rocklike remains of organisms
Methods
• Archaeologists and anthropologists have
developed scientific methods in their work
• They excavate sites, or carefully dig up land,
to uncover fossil remains of early humans,
burial grounds, and other objects.
• By examining artifacts, these scientists learn
many important things about an ancient
society.
Dating Artifacts and Fossils
• One of the most difficult jobs for these scientists
is dating their finds.
• One method used to determine age is carbon
dating.
• All living things absorb a small amount of
radioactive carbon, or C-14, from the
atmosphere.
• After a living thing dies, it loses carbon. By
measuring the amount left in an object, scientists
can figure out its age.
• Works for objects no more than about 50,000
years old.
Thermoluminescence
• For objects dating back to 200,000 years ago,
scientists can make precise measurements by
using thermoluminescence.
• The measures of light given off by electrons
trapped in the soil surrounding fossils and
artifacts.
Chlorophane
Chlorophane exhibiting
thermoluminescence when heated.
Bellringer
• Make a list of three historical artifacts that
provide clues about how humans lived in the
past. Describe what these clues are.
• Artifacts can be from any period in history
• You will share your list with the class.
History
• Like archaeologists and anthropologists,
historians also study how people lived in the
past.
• Historians study artifacts, but rely even more on
written evidence.
• About 5,000 years ago, people in different parts
of the world began to keep written records.
• That even marked the beginning of recorded
history.
Theories on prehistory and early
man constantly change as new
evidence comes to light.
- Louis Leakey, British
paleoanthropologist
Hominids to Homo Sapiens
• What is a Hominid?
• A hominid is a humanlike creature that walked
upright.
Stage 1
(4,000,000 BC)
• The earliest hominid, the Australopithecus
lived in Africa 4 million years ago.
• Opposable thumb
• Small body and brain size.
Australopithecus
Early Hominid
Discoveries in
Africa
Stage 2
(2,500,000 – 1,600,000 BC)
• A more advanced hominid developed with a
somewhat larger brain.
• Homo Habilis, “man of skills” or “handy
human”
• Created and used stone tools
• Lived in caves
• Remained in Africa
Stage 3
(1,500,000-250,000 BC)
• Homo Erectus, or “upright human”
• Had arms and legs in modern human
proportion.
• First hominid to use fire.
• Probably the first hominid to leave Africa
Discovery of Fire
Stage 4
(250,000-30,000 BC)
• Homo Sapiens “Wise human”
• Showed rapid brain growth and mastered fire.
• Spread out of Africa and to other parts of the
world about 100,000 years ago
• Replaced populations of other early hominids
in Europe and Asia called Neanderthals.
Stage 5
(30,000 B.C. to present)
• Homo Sapiens Sapiens or “wise wise human”
• The spread of these early humans was a slow
process.
• Over many thousands of years, Homo Sapiens
Sapiens spread over the globe as they searched
for food.
• In a whole generation, they may have moved only
two or three miles.
• Over tens of thousands of years, this was enough
to populate the world.
Bering Land Bridge
Homework Review – Page 8
• Question 1: Apply the “out of Africa” theory to
explain the connection between early
hominids such as Neanderthals and Homo
sapiens sapiens.
• Answer: The “out-of-Africa” theory says that
Homo sapiens sapiens probably spread out of
Africa to other parts of the world. Homo
sapiens sapiens replaced populations of
earlier hominids in Europe and Asia.
• Question 2:
• Use your notes and other ideas to describe
early humans and their lives during the
Paleolithic Age.
• Answer: During the Paleolithic Age, early
humans used simple stone tools and lived a
nomadic life based on hunting and gathering.
They lived in small groups.
• Question 3:
• How do we define and learn about prehistory?
• Answer: Prehistory is the time before writing
was developed. To learn about this time,
archaeologists examine artifacts and human
fossils. These objects help reveal information
about early societies.
• Question 4:
• How did hominids develop?
• Answer: Hominids developed from
Australopithecus, found in eastern and
southern Africa. From these “southern apes,”
other hominids developed: homo habilis, and
homo erectus.
Bellringer
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You will be creating a timeline in your notebook.
Label your timeline “Evolution of Early Hominids”
Include earliest dates for the following:
1. Australopithecus
2. Homo Habilis
3. Homo Erectus
4. Homo Sapien
5. Homo Sapien Sapien
6. Discovery of fire
7. Migration out of Africa
The Paleolithic Age
• Paleolithic Age – 2,500,000 BC – 10,000 BC
• Also known as the “Old Stone Age”.
• Early humans were survived through the use
of simple stone tools.
• Over the years, Paleolithic hunters developed
better tools.
• Bow and arrow, fishhooks, harpoons, made
hunting easier.
Nomads
• For hundreds of thousands of years, humans
relied on hunting and gathering for daily food.
• People were nomadic – moved from place to
place to survive.
• Travelled in small groups of 20 to 30 people.
• Followed animal migration and vegetation
cycles.
The Ice Ages
• Most recent Ice Age began around 100,000 BC.
and ended about 8,000 BC.
• During this time, thick sheets of ice covered large
parts of Europe, Asia, and North America.
• Sea levels went down and people migrated across
land bridges that had not existed before.
• Having fire as a source of heat was important in
Ice Age conditions.
Paleolithic Art
• Paleolithic peoples did more than just survive
• Cave paintings of large animals were found at
Lascaux in France and in Altamira in Spain.
• Reveals cultural activity of Paleolithic peoples.
Chauvet Cave
• The Chauvet cave discovered in France in
1994 contained more than 300 paintings of
lions, oxen, owls, panthers, and other animals.
• Through carbon dating, archaeologists date
the Chauvet cave art at about 32,000 years
old.
Purpose?
• Most of these were animals they did not hunt,
which indicates they were painted for religious
or decorative purposes.
Lesson 2
The Neolithic Revolution
8,000 B.C. – 4,000 B.C
Agricultural Revolution
• Objective: How did developments in the
Neolithic period impact early human history?
Agricultural Revolution
• Some historians believe this revolution was
the single most important development in
human history.
• Neolithic Revolution: shift from hunting of
animals and gathering of food to the keeping
of animals and growing of food.
• Systematic Agriculture: keeping of animals
and growing of food on a regular basis.
Shift away from Nomadic Life
• Agriculture requires nomadic peoples to live in
permanent settlements.
• Populations begin to rise in areas where plant
and animal domestication occurred.
• When the first plow is invented, crop
production increases rapidly
• by 4000 BC. World population grows from 5-8
million to 60-70 million.
Surplus
• Definition: More than what is needed or
required.
• With the agricultural revolution, food surplus
came as a result.
• What were some of the effects of food surplus?
•People didn’t have to worry about
finding food all the time
•People had food stored for winter
season
•Increased leisure time
•Freedom to pursue other interests
Use of Animals
• Domestication of animals: adapting animals
for human use
• Reliable source of meat, milk, wool
• Could be used to do work
Farming Villages
• Growing crops regularly gave rise to permanent
settlements, called Neolithic farming villages.
• Appeared in Europe, India, Egypt, China, and
Mesoamerica.
• Oldest villages were in Middle East
• Turn to MAP Pg 10
First Villages Develop
Jericho
Modern Israel
Catalhuyuk
Modern Turkey
First settled:
8000BCE
First settled:
7000BCE
Between 8,000 BC and 5,000 BC, agriculture developed
in various parts of the world. What do you notice
about the core areas?
Middle East
11,000 BCE
India
7,000 BCE
Meso/South America
6,000 BCE
China
Southeast Asia
6,000 BCE
5,000 BCE
Advantages & Costs of Agriculture
Advantages
Costs
•Steady food supplies
•Surplus
•Greater populations
•Leads to organized
societies capable of
supporting job
specialization (soldiers,
weavers, scribes, etc.)
•Heavily dependant on
certain food crops
(failure = starvation)
•Disease from close
contact with animals,
humans, & waste
•Can’t easily leave sites
Effects of Farming
Why do you think the
development of agriculture
occurred around the same time
in several different places?
Why do some
archaeologists believe that
women were the first
farmers?
Advanced
Art
Cities
Government
Writing
Religion
Social Structure
6 Features of Civilization
1. Advanced cities- large populations that rely on
farming and TRADE
2. Government – organization and regulation of
human activity, providing for smooth
interactions between individuals and groups.
3. Religion – developed to explain forces of
nature and their role in the world. Rituals grew,
and were aimed at pleasing the gods.
4. Social Structure – Rulers, priests, government
officials, and warriors dominated society. Below were
farmers, artisans, craftspeople, and at the bottom were
slaves. based on economic power.
5. Writing – upper classes used writing to keep
records as well as for creative expression.
Produced world’s first works of literature.
6. Art/Architecture – Architects built temples and
pyramids as places for worship and burial of
kings. Painters and sculptors portrayed stories of
nature and depicted gods and rulers they
worshipped.
Which aspects of Civilization do these images depict?