ORIGINS 2.5 MILLION ~ 1000BCE FROM HUMAN PREHISTORY TO EARLY CIVILIZATIONS HUMAN LIFE IN THE ERA OF HUNTERS AND GATHERERS - - - Oldest human - 2.5~2 million years old o 1/4000 of time earth existed o Less than 5% of time mammals existed Human Disadvantages o Unusually aggressive o Babies dependent for long periods o Erect Stature – back ailments o Awareness of death Human Advantages o Manipulate objects w/ hands o Sex drive – reproduction o Omnivore – adaptation to climates & settings o Facial expression aid communication o Brain – elaborate speech HUMAN LIFE BEFORE AGRICULTURE - - - Paleolithic Age (Old Stone Age) o 2.5 million BCE Human-like species in East Africa (Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda) o 750,000~500,000 BCE Fire Homo Erectus – Spread to Asia, Europe, Africa Erect stature Brain capacity & body size increase o 240,000~100,000 Homo Sapiens Sapiens (our ancestor) Sexual Equality Kinship based tribes – small populations o 14,000 End of great ice age Simple tool use Inhabitants by Area o 600,000~350,000 BCE – China & Southeast Asia (Java Man, Peking Man) o 250,000 BCE – Britain o 60,000 BCE – Australia o 30,000 BCE – Land bridge from Siberia to Alaska migration (eliminated 8000 BCE) Mesolithic Age (Middle Stone Age – 12,000 BCE ~8000 BCE) o Better stone tools 1 ORIGINS 2.5 MILLION ~ 1000BCE o o o FROM HUMAN PREHISTORY TO EARLY CIVILIZATIONS Domestication of animals Basket weaving, fishing, rafts Population acceleration – more wars NEOLITHIC REVOLUTION - - - - Agriculture o Increased population – 6-8 million to 100 million o Took 1000 years to spread o Conversion from hunting/gathering to farming Nomads driven out or forced to convert Nomads didn’t develop immunity to diseases as farmers did o Triggered by end of ice age Population increase due to better climate – need for more sources of food Retreat of big game animals (i.e. mastodons) Spread of Agriculture o Middle East (10,000 BCE) – 1st place of development o India o North Africa o Europe o Americas (5000 BC) – Central & Northern South America o Africa (2000 BCE) Agricultural Impact o Greater wealth & large populations – specialization o Rapid new inventions enabled by specialization o Basket & potter for storing 6000 BCE first potter’s wheel Science – irrigation o Metal tools 1st Copper - (Middle East – 4000 BCE) 2nd Bronze 3rd Iron (1500 BCE) – by herding people who invaded Middle East Farming tools & weapons The Bronze Age CIVILIZATION - Civilization started in many agricultural societies but not all Mesopotamia (3500 BCE) Indus River Valley Egypt China 2 ORIGINS 2.5 MILLION ~ 1000BCE - - - - - FROM HUMAN PREHISTORY TO EARLY CIVILIZATIONS Slash & Burn Agriculture o Burn off trees - farm intensively for few years - deplete soil - move Permanent Settlement Advantages o Houses built to last o Wells for water o Expensive improvements last generations Catal Huyuk (7,000 BCE) o Neolithic village in southern Turkey o Unusually large – 32 acres o House with wooden frame and mud bricks o Religious images – fertility goddesses o Ruled over smaller villages o Specialization in politics o 3000 BCE – became civilization Civilization Characteristics (Latin word city) o Enough economic surplus to form divisions of labor and social hierarchy of inequalities o Formal political organization opposed to dependence on kinship bands/tribes o Political units capable of ruling large regions (cities) o Cities amass wealth & power Rapid exchange of ideas Intellectual thought Artistic expression Promote specialization in manufacturing & trade Writing Organize more elaborate political structures Send messages & keep records Tax efficiently Make contracts & treaties Intellectual life Disadvantages of Civilization o Slavery – although variable o Greater separation between ruler and people o Warlike o Sexual inequality Nomadic Cultures o More regulations – word of mouth o Many repress anger & aggression o Respect or elders o Vital in world trade TIGRIS / EUPHRATES CIVILIZATION (3500 BCE) 3 ORIGINS 2.5 MILLION ~ 1000BCE - - FROM HUMAN PREHISTORY TO EARLY CIVILIZATIONS Achievements of Early Civilizations o Writing o Codes of law o City planning & architecture o Institutions for trade Use of money Mesopotamia (3500 BCE) o Tigris & Euphrates River o Developed independently o 4000 BCE Familiar with bronze & copper Pottery & artistic forms o Farming required civilization because of complex irrigation system o Prone to invasion o Sumerians 3500 BCE – invaded Mesopotamia Cuneiform (3500 BCE) - 1st system of wiiting – Middle East 2000 characters to 300 Scribes Few literate Astronomy – movement of sun & stars Numbers – 10, 60, 360 – for calculating circles & hours Religion Ziggurats – massive towers o Professional priests o Nature gods o Polytheistic o Creationism & divine punishment & afterlife Influenced Jewish, Christian, Muslim City-States King’s divine authority – military leaders Defined boundaries Regulate religion and enforce duties Court system & justice Kings, nobles, priests – control most of land Slavery – prisoners of war – variable Economy Wheeled carts Fertilizers Silver exchange 4 ORIGINS 2.5 MILLION ~ 1000BCE - - FROM HUMAN PREHISTORY TO EARLY CIVILIZATIONS Independent business class vs. govt. control Akkadians o Invaded Sumerians and continued culture Babylonians o Extended empire o Hammurabi Hammurabi’s Code Indo-European Invasion (2100 BCE) Semitic Invasion Assyrians Persians EGYPTIAN CIVILIZATION (3000 BCE) - Less prone to invasion Pharaoh Economy o Fully government-directed – complexity of irrigation of Nile Pyramids (2700 BCE) o Tombs for pharaohs Kush o Invaded Egypt at one point INDUS RIVER VALLEY CIVILIZATION (2500 BC) - - Indus River supported large cities o Harappa Writing still undeciphered o Mohenjo Daro Indo-European invasion hinder knowledge CHINESE RIVER VALLEY CIVILIZATION - Huanghe (Yellow) River P’an Ku o Mythic Ancestor Advanced technology Rode Horses Bronze use – 1000 BCE Pottery Ideographic Symbols o Writing system 5 ORIGINS 2.5 MILLION ~ 1000BCE FROM HUMAN PREHISTORY TO EARLY CIVILIZATIONS HERITAGE OF RIVER VALLEY CIVILIZATIONS - - - - Most declined about 1200~1000 BCE Achievements o Monuments Pyramids o Invention of the wheel o Taming of the horse o Alphabet Almost all alphabet derived from this o Mathematical concepts Square root o Monarchies & bureaucracies o Calendar & divisions of time Legacy o God-like king o Strong city-states o Mathematics o Science o Mesopotamians Stress gap between humans & nature Art – influence Greeks o Egypt Architecture – influence Greeks o Chinese Stress harmony between humans & nature Phoenicians o 1300 BCE - Simplified alphabet to 22 letters o Improved Egyptian numbering system o Great traders Lydians o First introduce coined money Jews o 1200 BCE – Semitic people settled in Mediterranean o 772-63 BCE – Suffered domination o Monotheism God becomes more abstract Orderly and just 6