Chs. 1 & 2: Early Man to Early Civilizations

Prehistory to 450 B.C.

Early Man Key Terms

Culture – people’s unique way of life Hominid – early upright beings Artifact – man made object from previous cultures Mary Leakey – discoveries in E. Africa that led to a better

understanding of early man. Donald Johanson – found “Lucy in Ethiopia 3.5 millions years

old Paleolithic – Old Stone Age – Hunter and Gatherer Neolithic – New Stone Age – Faming (also called Agricultural

Revolution) Technology – ways of applying knowledge to meet needs

Homo habilis – earliest man, used primitive tools Homo erectus – walked upright (not the first) and used fire Homo sapiens – modern humans, means “wise man”

Neanderthals – not ancestors of modern man, tried to explain and control their world, practiced religious beliefs, used stone scrappers and other tools to survive. They vanished about 30,000 years ago.

Cro-Magnon – physically identical to modern man, superior hunting strategy helped them survive. They developed a spoken language

Early Man Key Terms

Slash and Burn – cutting and burning fields to clear and fertilize

Domestication – taming of animals Artisans – skilled workers who make goods by hand Scribes – professional record keepers Cuneiform – Mesopotamian wedge shaped writing Civilization – a complex culture with the following

Advanced Cities of Trade Specialized Workers Complex Institutions Record Keeping Advanced Technology

Early Man Key Words

Bronze Age – use of bronze rather than copper and stone for tools and weapons.

Barter – exchange of goods/services without the exchange of money

Ziggurat – pyramid shaped monument housing the temple of the city

Early Man Overview

Prehistory is the period before written records. The earliest people’s history is based on evidence compiled and studied by a variety of scientists such as

archaeologists – study artifacts

anthropologists – study culture

paleontologists – study fossils

Together these scientists have determined, based on the evidence available, how early man lived.

Timeline of History

Early Man Overview

Paleolithic Age (Old Stone Age)

Nomadic Hunter-gatherer Primitive tools Cave art

Early Man Art

Early Art Gives Clues To

Nature Environment Human Living

Early Man Overview

Neolithic Age (New Stone Age)

Began about 10,000 years ago

From hunter-gatherer to farming

Agricultural Revolution Permanent dwellings Villages→Cities→Civilizations

Civilization Brings Change

Economic

– irrigation→crop surplus→trade

Social– Complex economy required cooperation and labor

of many people– Social class system developed– Religion became organized

→

CH 2: RIVER VALLEY CIVILIZATIONS

EARLY RIVER VALLEY CIVILIZATIONS

MESOPOTAMIA – Sumerians on the Tigris/Euphrates

NILE – Egyptians on the NileINDUS- Indians on the Indus & Ganges

RiversCHINESE-Yellow (Huang He) /Yangtze

MESOPOTAMIAN CIVILIZATION

MESOPOTAMIA

The Fertile Crescent was the arch of land that provided some of the best farming in southwest Asia.

Silt from flooding provided rich new soil which brought surplus harvests, with enormous quantities of wheat and barley. Problem: the flooding was unpredictable!

Sumerians – first civilization– Irrigation – more crop production= more trade– Establishment of city-states – Trade = cultural diffusion – Polytheistic (worshipped many gods)– Advanced –number system, bricks, columns, ramps

CITY - STATES

Each city and the surrounding land it controlled formed a city-state.

A city-state functioned much as an independent country does today.

Sumerian city-states included Uruk, Kish, Lagash, Umma, and Ur.

The center of all Sumerian cities had a ziggurat

MESOPOTAMIA

SARGON ofAkkad, defeated the city-states of Sumer.

– Created the first empire– Brought together various groups & cultures– Last about 200 years, declined due to infighting,

invasions & famine. Hammurabi – ruler of Babylonian Empire.

- first written code of laws to unify the diverse people- the code applied to all people, but not all people equally (282 specific laws compiled from common law)

MESOPOTAMIA

Known for cuneiform writing

NILE RIVER CIVILIZATION

Nile

River

Valley

NILE

Est. about 3,000 years ago Along the Nile River in Egypt Flooding provided fertile soil for abundant crops Lower Nile – from the area where the Nile splits and

fans out to Mediterranean Sea Upper Nile – from 1st cataracts to the area where the

river splits Transportation and trade between the Upper & Lower

Nile to the cataracts

NILE Ruled by pharaohs Theocracy- government & religious leaders the same Pyramid builders Upper & Lower kingdoms united by Menes Written language – hieroglyphics Social classes not locked Invaded and conquered by Hyksos

INDUS RIVER VALLEY CIVILIZATION

INDUS Located on the Indian subcontinent Supported by the Indus and

Ganges Protected by Hindu Kush &

Himalaya Mountains Climate dominated by monsoons River flooding supported abundant

crop yields

INDUS Built planned cities Indoor plumbing- Houses alike indicated few class distinctions Toys – leisure time Few weapons Uncertain – the fall of the Indus River Civilization

could have been disaster, invasions or a combination

CHINESE Supported by the Yellow and Yangtze Rivers Silt of China – loess produced abundant crops Because of geography – less trading than other river

valley civilizations Early leaders (Shang dynasty) built palaces and had

written language Society divided between ruling nobles and peasant

farmers Family closely linked to religion

CHINESE CIVILIZATION

Supported by the Yellow & Yangtze Rivers

CHINESE Belief in the spirit of ancestor’s power to determine

events in life Use of oracle bones Writing system had no connection to the spoken

language Specialized in weapons, jewelry and bronze. Also

known for silk work. Rulers worked under Mandate of Heaven which

became central to the Chinese view of government.