Early Human Societies

World History AP

Developments of Paleolithic Age

12,000 BCEhumans evolved physically and mentally to the level of today
Opposable thumbs & a developed brain

Paleolithic Achievements
Invention of tools & weapons Language Control of fire Art (sculpture, jewelry, and cave paintings)

Humans lived in small bands of hunter-gatherers

Hunter-Forager Societies
Men hunt and/or fish; women gather fruits, etc. Lived in kinship groups of 2030 people Follow migratory patterns of animals Need large portions of land to support themselves Life expectancy was 20 years or less
Lascaux Cave, France

Hunter-Forager Societies
Groups were not always selfsufficient
Trade with neighboring groups was often necessary

Developed tools suitable for their environment Practiced animism

Migration of Humans

 Started moving 200,000 years ago.

Neanderthals lived throughout Europe and western Asia.
Used tools and scrapers for animal skins.
Allowed for survival during the Ice Age

Built free standing houses. Buried their dead with tools, animal bones, and flowers
Shows the they understood significance of death.

Focus Question

What causes people to migrate?

Bantu Migrations
(1500 BCE-500 CE)

Bantu people originated in central Africa (Cameroon) Migration triggered by the drying of the Sahara
Reach South Africa by 300 CE

Introduced agriculture, cattle herding, and iron (?) to SubSaharan Africa Become dominant ethnic and language group of SubSaharan Africa

African Language Distribution

Bantu words borrowed by Western culture Banjo Bongos Gumbo

Jumbo
Safari Conga Rumba Zombie Kwanzaa

Australia and New Guinea

Used simple rafts to reach Australia and other near by islands by 50,000 years ago.

Polynesian Migrations
(3000 BCE -500 CE)

Climate change
Ice Age allowed for the Bering Strait Land Bridge.

Discussion Question

What causes technological change?

Focus Question

What were the effects of the Neolithic Revolution?

Neolithic Revolution
Around 10000 BCE, two discoveries revolutionized human society
Farming (1st crops were wheat & barley) Herding (1st domesticated animals were goats, pigs, & cattle)
Domesticated animals produced a new type of society called Pastoralists

Farming & herding allowed for urban development

1st cities emerged in Middle East (Turkey & Jordan) Jericho and Catal Huyuk

Origins of Agriculture

Pastoral Societies
Nomadic peoples who herd domesticated animals Move in search of food for their animals
Traditionally more stable than hunter-gatherer societies

Develop on marginal land apart from areas suitable for agriculture, often semi-arid regions
Interact with agricultural societies

Pastoral Societies
Many pastoral nomads lived in kin-related bands numbering up to 100 Tribal membership was defined by recognizing a common ancestry among kinship groups Often called Courage Cultures
Warlike males bound to each other by ties of personal loyalty tended to dominate these societies Violence between kinship groups limited the ability of clans and tribes to cooperate

Most practice a form of animism or shamanism

Early Villages
Earliest villages located in the Middle East Population of early villages evolved from the hundreds to the thousands Probably declined due to environmental degradation
Top: Artist rendering of the early village of Catal Huyuk; Bottom: statue of a goddess from Catal Huyuk

Life in Early Villages

Full-time political and religious figures emerge as community leaders Specialized workers such as toolmakers, miners, and merchants Despite specialization, well-defined social stratification did not exist Farming & specialization of labor led to a decline in the role of women Farming & specialized labor led to increase in technology
Pottery, the plow, irrigation, woven textiles, wheeled vehicles

World Population Growth

Intensive agriculture caused human population to jump from 5-8 million to 60 to 70 million in 5,000 years

What are the potential effects of population pressure?

World Population Growth

Negative Effects of Population Growth

Rise of Civilization
4th Millennium BCE

New discoveries transformed permanent settlements into civilizations

Bronze Writing

First civilization emerged in Mesopotamia (modern day Iraq) c. 3500 BCE

ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS
Mr. Millhouse AP World History Hebron High School

Review Question

How did the Neolithic Revolution change the nature of human society?

Focus Question

What components must a society have in order to be considered a civilization?

Location of Ancient Culture Hearths

What environmental conditions were needed to develop the first civilizations?

Ancient Mesopotamia

Government
Initially, priest-kings rule citystates Sumerians (c. 3500 BCE) City-states evolve into empires Akkadians (c. 2334-2218 BCE) Land owning aristocracy dominated Develop a formal legal codes Hammurabis Code (c. 1800 BCE)

Religion
Believed in 3,000 gods Goal: Appease gods to control nature Art and literature focus on gods and religion
Epic of Gilgamesh
Contains a story of an epic flood

Built ziggurats

Society
Social stratification Slavery was common
Nobles

One could become a slave through war, crime, or debt Slaves were used in temples, public buildings, or private homes

Patriarchal
Freemen Slaves

Women could hold most occupations

Economy

Science & Technology

Inventions: wheel, sail, and plow Bronze metallurgy 1st system of writing
Cuneiform

1st number system

Based on units of 10, 60, & 360

Astronomy

Ancient Egypt
Relatively isolated Nile flooded regularly, predictably
Provided rich soil, easy soil to farm Civilization regulated flooding, surveying

Control the Nile; control society

Government
Formed by 3000 BCE Unified for most of history
Early Kingdom Middle Kingdom Late Kingdom

Theocracy
Pharaoh was a god-king Women could be pharaohs
Hatshepsut (1473-1458 BCE)
Ramses II

Religion
Thousands of gods
Gods have animal and human qualities Gods & goddesses

Relatively egalitarian Believe in afterlife

Heaven & Hell Mummification Pyramids & Temples

Society

Social Stratification
Limited opportunity for social mobility

Slavery common Women have more rights

Could own property, propose marriage, and demand a divorce

Culture
Hieroglyphic writing on papyrus Mathematics
Geometry

Calendar system
365 days (off by 6 hours)

Medicine Architecture

Ancient India & China

Indus River Valley

Cities emerge around 2500 BCE Culturally unified city-states
Harappa and MohenjoDaro

Mysterious ending
Environmental degradation vs. Aryan invasion

Indus River Valley

Polytheistic religion
Influenced Hinduism

Planned cities with large temples Undecipherable writing system Advanced technology
Plumbing systems

Ancient China
Developed in isolation along the Huang He (Yellow) River Shang dynasty emerged c. 1500 BCE
Warlike kings & landed aristocracy dominate Cities surrounded by massive earthen walls

Ancient China
Chinese Society
Family at center of society
Extended-family structure

Women were subordinate

Chinese Culture
Believed spirits of family ancestors could bring good fortune or disaster Oracle bones (right) Bronze & silk

Dynastic Cycle

Mandate of HeavenRulers are chose to rule by heaven and will continue to rule as long as heaven is pleased; if heaven is not pleased, heaven will pass the mandate to another family

The Olmec
Olmec emerge in Mesoamerica c.1400-400 BCE Olmec zone is dense tropical forest
High rainfall - over 300 cm/year

Olmec Government & Society

Several city-states with common culture Social Hierarchy
Highest rank is that of the chief Dominated by landed aristocracy Laborers forced to build temples, palaces, and drainage canals

Olmec Religion
Polytheistic
Deities blended male & female, animal & human characteristics
Feathered-serpent god (right)

Shamans organized religious life

Religion led to development of writing system and calendar

Olmec Art
Building of clay pyramids and temple mounds Particular sculptural style
Jaguars Fine jade carving Colossal heads

Norte Chico
3000-1800 BCE in Peru Polytheistic Famous for monumental architecture and weaving
No evidence of any art or ceramics

Used quipu for record keeping

Legacy of Ancient Civilizations

Writing systems, religions, and technology was influenced the development of new civilizations and cultures Ancient civilizations decline by 1000 BCE
Subject to nomadic invasions

Political and cultural centers shift to new geographical areas (except China)