WHI.2 Development of Humankind through the Agricultural Revolution

What is Prehistory? ● Before we can learn history, first we have to understand Prehistory ● Man only learned to write 5,000 years ago ● When stuff started to get written down, that's the start of Recorded History ● Humans, and their ancestors, lived for hundreds of thousands of years before anything was written down ● The period of time before people started writing things down is called Prehistory

Who Studies History? ● Historians – Historians study, write, and teach about the past – Learn about the past from artifacts – Artifacts = stuff made by man – Coin, art, tombstones, newspapers, written records – Try to figure out why stuff happened

Artifacts

Anthropologists ● Anthropologists study people and the societies they live in ● Some study how people live today, and some study how they lived in the past ● Anthropologists study culture (beliefs, values, practices)

Archaeologists ● Archaeologists are a type of anthropologist ● They too study the culture and societies of people, only they study people no longer around ● Since they can't observe their subjects or interview them, archaeologists study the artifacts they've left behind ● Artifacts like: tools, weapons, pottery, clothing and jewelry ● Better understand how ancient people lived, and what they believed

Archaeological Finds

Let's Talk About Dating! ● How do archaeologists know how old the artifacts they dig up are? ● Radio Carbon Dating is a scientific process scientists use to figure out how old organic material is. ● Everything that's alive absorbs a type of radiation from the Sun in the form of an isotope called Carbon 14. ● When something dies, the Carbon 14 begins to break down ● We know it takes 5,000 years for Carbon 14 to breakdown, so by measuring how much Carbon 14 is left in an artifact, we can figure out how old it is.

A Brief Look At How We Got Here ● Human beings, mankind as we are today, are the product of millions of years of development and evolution ● Our technical name is Homo sapiens sapiens, and we first emerged in eastern Africa sometime between 100,000 and 400,000 years ago. ● There were others before us though, and they helped us become what we are today.

Hominids ● Humans, or Homo sapiens, are from a class of animals called Hominids ● Hominids are creatures that walk upright on two feet as their way of transportation ● There used to be many kinds of hominids on Earth, but now humans are the last and only ● The first hominid, or the first animal to walk on two-feet all the time, was Australopithecus

Australopithecus ● Australopithecus was the first hominid ● Emerged in Eastern Africa in an area called the Great Rift Valley, between 3 and 4 million years ago.

Homo habilis ● Type of hominid that lived 2 million years ago ● Name means “Handy Man” ● Made and used basic tools for cutting, scraping, and chopping materials ● From Eastern Africa

Homo erectus ● Lived 1.6 million years ago ● Walked fully upright ● Was able to use fire ● More advanced tools like the ax ● Africa, Asia, Europe

Neanderthal ● Discovered in Germany near the Neander River ● From 100,000 to 30,000 years ago. ● Found in Europe and Southwest Asia (country of Turkey today) ● Lived in cold climates, adapted with shelters and animal skins ● Physically, large muscles and bones ● Buried their dead = religion ● Vanished 30,000 years ago

Homo sapiens ● Emerges in East Africa 100,000 to 400,000 years ago ● Homo sapiens migrated from Africa to Eurasia (Europe and Asia), Australia, and the Americas. ● Name means, “wise man” ● Cave Paintings ● Cro-Magnons = early form of Homo sapiens ● Homo sapiens sapiens = us today ● Lived alongside Neanderthals until Neanderthals mysteriously vanished 30,000 years ago ● Only remaining hominid on Earth

Path Out of Africa

How to Survive the Earth ● Big Idea: Early humans were hunters and gatherers whose survival depended on the availability of wild plants and animals. Follow the herds as they move and keep looking for fresh water and wild plants

Breaking Down Prehistory ● Prehistory, the time before man began to write stuff down, is divided into two different eras ● Paleolithic Era or Old Stone Age (2 million B.C. To 10,000 B.C.) ● Neolithic Era or New Stone Age (10,000 B.C. To 3,000 B.C.)

Paleolithic Era / Old Stone Age ● Nomadic people, migrating to hunt and gather food, water, and shelter ● Invented the first tools, including simple weapons ● Learned how to make and use fire ● Lived in clans (20-30 people) ● Developed oral language ● Created “Cave Art”

Paleolithic Era / Old Stone Age ● Began to travel around the world ● 100,000 years ago began to bury their dead- sign of religion or a belief in the afterlife ● Many may have practiced animism- belief that spirits inhabit animals and objects ● Cave paintings

Neolithic Era / New Stone Age ● The Neolithic Era begins once man begins to farm ● No longer a nomad, man can stay in one place and build permanent villages ● Domesticate plants and animals ● Used advanced tools ● Made pottery ● Developed weaving skills ● All this change is a revolution- Neolithic Revolution!

Domestication ● During the Neolithic man begins to domesticate plants and animals ● Domesticate = raise something (plant or animal) in a controlled way to suit human uses ● Dog is the first animal to be domesticated by man ● Others include the goat

Man's Best Friend

Man's Best Friend Part 2

Two Ancient Civilizations Being Studied Today Two of the earliest cities created by man are still being studied by archaeologists today Both are located in an area called the Fertile Crescent Their names are Jericho and Aleppo

Jericho One of the first permanent human settlements Located in the Fertile Crescent Built between 8,000 and 10,000 B.C. Size of a few football fields Surrounded by a huge wall Site of biblical events

Aleppo One of the oldest cities in the world still inhabited by people- dates back to 6000 B.C. Located in present day Syria Raised hill in center of city for temple Walled city Central location of civil war in Syria

Catal Huyuk Neolithic settlement found in area called Anatolia (today Turkey) 32 acres enclosed, holding 6000 people Mud-brick houses

Stonehenge Prehistoric archeological site in England Started in the Neolithic Era, finished during the Bronze Age Not completely understood, but gives us an idea of ancient England Religious? Astronomical? /