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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.
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
→
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
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)
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 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 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.