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Toward Civilization

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Understanding Our Past How Do We Know Prehistory- The long period of time before people invented systems of writing. 5,000 years ago some people in different parts of the world began to keep written records The beginning of recorded history

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Evidence From the Past Archaeologists- Scientists who find and analyze the physical remains left by early people Bone Fragments Artifacts- tools and weapons, pottery, clothing or jewelry Archaeology- Is a branch of Anthropology- The study of humans and the societies they created Draw conclusions about beliefs, values, & activities of our ancestors.

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Archeologists at work Devised many useful techniques Digging Further down they dig, the older the remains Discovered how early people developed technology- skills and tools people use to meet their basic needs Made detailed maps, locating every artifact they find

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Technology and the Past Modern technology helps interpret findings Computers used to sort data Aerial photography can reveal patterns of how people used the land Radioactivity can determine the age of objects

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Historians Reconstruct The Past Historians- study how people lived in the past, but rely more on written evidence, ie, letters & tax records Historical detection Historians look for evidence to determine how reliable information is. They often write about specific people from the past

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Geography and History Geography is the study of people, their environments and the resources available to them Five themes of Geography Location Place Human-Environment Interaction Movement Region

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Location- Tells where a place is on the surface of the earth Latitude- Measures distance North and South of the Equator Longitude - Measures distance East and West of the Prime Medidian (imaginary line that runs North and South of Greenwich, England). i.e. City of Seoul, South Korea is at 37N latitude & 127 E longitude..These numbers are the exact location

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Relative Location- Where one place is located in relation to another. i.e. Ancient Athens, was located on the Eastern Mediterranean Sea, near Egypt. Place- Physical features and human characteristics Physical Features- Land forms, body of water, climate, soil quality, resources, plant and animal life Characteristics- Where most people live, economic activities, religious beliefs and languages

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Human Enviornment Interaction-People are shaped by the place where they live i.e. Early farmers used water from rivers to irrigate their crops Movement- of people goods and ideas. Key link between geography and history Nomads followed herds of deer, moved because of climate changes, traders carried goods

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Region- geographers divide the world into many types of regions. Some regions are based on physical features Regions can also be defined by political, economic, or cultural features

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Dawn of History Hunters and Gathers- Historians call the earliest period of human history the Old Stone Age or Paleolithic Age First tool makers, 10,000 BC African Beginnings- 1959, Mary and Louis Leakey found pieces of bone embedded in Ancient rock at Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania Found the bone belonged to early human

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1974, Donald Johanson found part of humanlike skeleton in Ethiopia. Named his find Lucy after a Beatles song Evidence shows the earliest humans came from East Africa Their descendents later migrated east to Europe.

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Nomads on the Move- Paleolithic people lived in small hunting and food gathering bands, about 20 to 30 people Everyone contributed to feeding the group Men hunted and fished Women cared for children, gathered fruit, nuts, shellfish Nomads-People moved from place to place as they followed animals and ripened fruit People depended on the environment Made simple tools and weapons At some point developed a spoken language

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Environmental Changes People faced severe challenges from the weather During several ice ages the earth cooled Thick glaciers -Sheets of ice that spread across parts of Asia, Europe, and North America Paleolithic people invented clothing Early Religion and Art 30,000 years ago people began to leave evidence of their beliefs in the spiritual world World was full of spirits especially those of the animals they hunted Painted pictures were in the caves they lived in Began to make statues

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Belief in the Afterlife- People began to bury their dead with great care Left dead with tools, weapons and other needed goods First Farmers 11,000 yrs, ago nomadic herds learned to farm Change from nomadic to settled farming began New Stone Age or Neolithic Age

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Planting Seeds- Neolithic Agricultural Revolution- the transition from hunting and gathering to agriculture and settlement Domesticating Animals People learned to domesticate or tame animals that they once hunted. People became food producers for the first time

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Skara Brae, Neolithic Village 5000 yrs, ago village in Scotland Entire area was equal to the size of three classrooms Each house was similar, people were equal in social class People planted barley in fielded and tended animals Farmers had workshops and developed specific jobs

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Changing Ways of Life Village leaders People owned more possessions New Technology Learned to harvest at proper times Civilizations emerged

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Beginnings of Civilization Eight Features of Civilization Cities Well-Organized Central Governments Complex Religions Job Specifications Social Classes Arts and Architecture Public Works Writing

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Rise of Cities Farmers began cultivating fertile lands along river valleys and producing a surplus of goods More food More people village became a city River valley Civilizations City Rose in: Tigris and Euphrates, Middle East Nile River, Egypt Indus River, India Yellow River, China

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Floods spread silt across the valley, renewing the soil, keeping it fertile Rivers gave regular water supply and a means for travel and trade Challenges Farmers had to control the floods Early farmers worked together to build dykes, canals, and carve irrigation ditches Civilizations in Americas Aztecs and Incas emerged in the highlands of Mexico and Peru (Not near rivers) Began as religious centers

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Organized Governments As cities grew they needed to maintain a steady food supply At first priests had greatest power, warrior kings eventually became hereditary leaders, father son Right to rule came from the Gods Rulers issued laws, collected taxes, organized defense Royal officials enforced laws Bureaucracies- system of managing government through departments run by appointed officials

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Complex Religions Polytheistic- Belief in many gods Sun gods, river gods Developed complex rituals, ceremonies for gods Job Specifications and Social Classes Urban people made new crafts, one person couldnt be skilled at everything Skilled artisans- (skilled craft workers) made pottery, metal working, weaponry, bricklayers

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Social Ranking- People ranked according to jobs Arts, Architecture & Public Works Expressed beliefs of the people Statues of gods and goddesses, temple wall paintings Government projects to make roads, irrigation systems, defense walls Priests and Nobles Wealthy Merchants Artisans and Soldiers Peasants Slaves

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Writing Began in temples Pictograms- Words represented by pictures Became more complex, only specially trained people, scribes, learned to read and write Spread of Civilizations Rulers gained more power, conquered cities City-states- A political unit that included a city and its surrounding lands and villages

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First Empires rulers conquered many city and villages, creating empires- group of cities or states controlled by one ruler Interactions with Nomadic people Nomads tended cattle on steppes- less fertile, sparse dry grasslands Had to keep moving heard because of poor water City people got along with nomads for political, economic or military matters At times had conflicts Cultural Diffusion- The spread of ideas, customs and technologies from one people to another