Social Studies
Stone age/early civilizations
Stone Age Technology
• Extinction happens every day, what makes you
think humans are any different?
• Why was stone age technology so important?
• What needs did most technology meet??
Stone Age Tools
Hunting Tools
Manufacturing Tools
Grinding Tools
Stone Age Tools
• What was one of the hardest, yet one of the
most important technologies of the Stone
Age?
Listen Link
Uses Of Fire
Summary
The Stone Age
• The period of time when people used
simple stone tools is called the Old
Stone Age or Paleolithic Era.
• During the Old Stone Age, people also
learned to make fire.
Use of Fire
Early man learned to use fire to adapt to his environment.
It was probably discovered from friction, lightning, or accidental hitting two rocks
together.
Ice Ages
Fire was very important during the ice ages. Without fire man would not have been
able to survive.
Cave Art
Man has created art for a very long time. There is some argument as to what this art
was for. Was it art as art, or art as a form of religion?
“Neo” means new
“Lithic” means stone
Neolithic means new stone age.
The Neolithic Agricultural Revolution was the change from the Paleolithic period to the Neolithic
Period.
The thing that allowed for this change was the discovery of agriculture.
It is thought that women discovered agriculture.
Systematic Agriculture was the consistent growing of crops on a continuing basis.
Domestication of Animals: In addition to growing crops Neolithic man also tamed animals for
hunting (dogs) and other animals for their food such as sheep, cows, etc. . .
Developed Agriculture
Domesticated Animals
Used Advanced Stone Tools
Developed Weaving (better clothing)
Made Pottery (for food storage)
Summary
The New Stone Age
• The period of time when people began to settle
permanently in one location is called the Neolithic Era, or
the New Stone Age.
• In the Paleolithic age, men were hunters and gathers. In the
Neolithic age, people became scavengers, herders, farmers,
or producers.
Summary
The New Stone Age
• People were able to live in larger groups.
• They learned to domesticate plants and
animals.
• This meant they also learned which plants
provided a higher yield and how to breed
animals to better suit their needs.
PURPOSE
To learn what happened to humanity after the Ice
Age
To see how technology and urban areas developed
Why is this important?
How might I check to make sure you understand?
3
The Fertile Crescent
The Fertile Crescent is the fertile land between the
Tigris and Euphrates rivers.
The first civilization in the Fertile Crescent was
discovered in Mesopotamia, which means land
between the rivers
The first Sumerian cities emerged in southern
Mesopotamia around 3200 B.C.
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Sumerian Civilization
GOVERNMENT
City-states with hereditary
rulers.
Ruler led army in war and
enforced laws.
Complex government with
scribes to collect taxes
and keep records.
SOCIAL
STRUCTURE
Each state had distinct
social hierarchy, or
system of ranks.
Most people were peasant
farmers.
Women had legal rights;
some engaged in trade
and owned property.
RELIGION
Worshiped many gods.
Believed gods controlled
every aspect of life.
Saw afterlife as a grim
place. Everybody would go
into darkness and eat dust.
To keep the gods happy,
each city built a
ziggurat, or pyramid
temple.
Artifacts of Ancient Mesopotamia
Ziggurats
The People of the Mesopotamia
(start 52:24)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RpspR7Kd9A
(end 1:03:26)
4
Invaders, Traders, and Empire Builders
A series of strong rulers united the lands of the Fertile Crescent into
well organized empires.
Again and again, nomadic warriors invaded the rich cities of the
Fertile Crescent. Some looted and burned the cities. Others stayed to
rule them.
2300 B.C. –Sargon, the ruler of Akkad, conquered Sumer
and built the first known empire.
1790 B.C.–Hammurabi, King of Babylon, united the
Babylonian empire.
Laws
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDALXORbt
R4
(Watch from beginning, and stop at 1:56)
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The Code of Hammurabi
Hammurabi’s code was the first attempt by a ruler to codify, or
arrange and set down in writing, all of the laws that would govern a
state.
One section codified criminal law, the branch of law that
deals with offenses against others, such as robbery and
murder.
Another section codified civil law, the branch that deals with
private rights and matters, such as business contracts,
taxes, and property inheritance.
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Warfare and the Spread of Ideas
• Conquerors brought ideas and technologies to the conquered region.
For example, when the Hittites conquered Mesopotamia, they brought
the skill of ironworking to that region.
• When the conquerors were in turn conquered, they moved
elsewhere, spreading their ideas and technologies.
For example, when the Hittite empire was itself conquered, Hittite
ironworkers migrated to other regions and spread the secret of
iron making across Asia, Africa, and Europe.
4
The Persian Empire
Cyrus the Great and his successors conquered the largest empire yet seen, from Asia
Minor to India.
Emperor Darius unified the Persian empire.
Drew up single code of laws for empire.
Had hundreds of miles of roads built or repaired to aid communication and encourage
unity.
Introduced a uniform system of coinage and encouraged a money economy.
Before it was a Barter economy-exchanging one set of goods or services for another.
4
The Phoenicians
Occupied string of cities along the eastern Mediterranean coast.
Made glass from sand and
purple dye from a tiny sea
snail.
Called “carriers of
civilization” because they
spread Middle Eastern
civilization around the
Mediterranean.
Most important contribution:
Invented the alphabet. An
alphabet contains letters
that represent spoken
sounds.
Cuneiform