Early Humans

Chapter 1, Section 1, page 8

Chapter 1, Section 1 Objectives

• After this lesson, students will be able to:– describe how Paleolithic people adapted to their

environment and invented many tools to help them survive.

– explain how people in the Neolithic age began farming, building communities, producing goods, and trading.

What is History? – page 8

History - noun (plural histories) 1. the study of past events.

2. the past considered as a whole. 3. the past events connected with someone or

something. 4. a continuous record of past events or trends.

Who studies the past? – page 8

• Historians are people who study and write about the past.

• We are all historians to some extent.

Why do we study History? – page 8

• History helps us to:– understand people and

societies– understand change– develop skills

• History helps us to understand the present and plan for the future.

How do we study History? – page 8

• Measuring Time– calendars

• Western calendar– based on the birth of Jesus

• other calendars

• Dating Events– B.C. – A.D.– B.C.E.– C.E.

“before Christ”

“Anno Domini”

“Before Common Era”“Common Era”

How do we study History? – page 8

• Periodization– the business of identifying and recognizing patterns of

change and continuity through time– imprecise dating

Our Course!

Early Humans – page 9

• Prehistory – the time before people developed writing (before c. 3000 B.C.)

 

Tools of Discovery – page 9

• Archaeology – study of ancient cultures through remains (archaeologists)– artifact – an object made by a human, like a weapon,

pottery, or tool– fossils – traces of plants and animals preserved in

rock

Tools of Discovery – page 9

Tools of Discovery – page 9

• Anthropology – the study of humankind, especially culture and development

Who Were the Hunter-Gatherers? – page 10

• Stone Age– Paleolithic → “Old Stone Age” (2.5 million ago to

c. 8000 B.C.)– nomads – people who regularly move from place to

place– life centers on the search for resources (food)– advances like the development of spoken language,

technology, art, religion (?)

Who Were the Hunter-Gatherers? – page 10

• Chauvet Cave, present-day France

Adapting to the Environment – page 10

• “Where you live affects how you live.”• Ice Age (c. 100,000 to 8,000 B.C.)

– fire is the key to survival– technology – tools an methods that help humans

perform tasks (stone, wood, and bone)

Neolithic Times – page 13

• Neolithic → “New Stone Age” (8,000 to 4,000 B.C.)

Why Was Farming Important? – page 13

• Agricultural Revolution (a.k.a. Neolithic Revolution)– domestication of plants and animals (domesticate

means “tame”)– begins in different places at different times– happens gradually over time– hunting/gathering → a settled, agrarian lifestyle– most important event in human history?

Why Was Farming Important? – page 13

Why Was Farming Important? – page 13

The Benefits of a Settled Life – page 15

• specialization – the development of different jobs– only possible because of the steady supply of food

provided by agriculture

• Bronze Age – c. 3000 to 1200 B.C.– copper + tin = bronze

Ötzi the Iceman – page 12

Comparing the Neolithic and Paleolithic Ages – page 14

Paleolithic Neolithic

Description of Art and Crafts

Cave paintings, usually of animals

Pottery and carved objects out of wood; shelters and

tombs

How Food Was Obtained Hunting and gathering Farming and herding

Adaptations Use of fire; language; simple tools and shelter

More advanced houses and places of worship; specialization; use of copper and bronze

Work of Women and Men Women gathered food and cared for children; men

hunted

Women cared for children and took care of the

household; men herded, farmed, and protected the

village

Chapter 1, Section 1 Questions

1. Who are archaeologists and what do they study?2. Why were Paleolithic people nomads?3. Give two examples of jobs that came about

because of specialization.4. Why do some historians consider the agricultural

revolution to be the most important event in human history? (Explain what came about because of the agricultural revolution.)

Mesopotamian Civilization

Chapter 1, Section 2, page 16

Chapter 1, Section 2 Objectives

• After this lesson, students will be able to:– identify the important contributions that the people of

Sumer made to later peoples.– explain how the Sumerian city-states gave way to later

empires, such as the Babylonian Empire.

Mesopotamian Civilization – page 17

• Civilizations are complex societies.– characteristics:

• cities• organized government• art• religion• class division• writing system

Mesopotamian Civilization – page 17

• Why did the characteristics of civilization develop?– cities → populations on the rise; safety/security; trade

centers– art → result of specialization and food adequacies – government → decision makers to keep order and make

plans for food supplies and building projects– religion → keeps things running smoothly– class divisions → result of wealth and positions of power– writing systems → developed to keep records and pass

on ideas

Why Were River Valleys Important? – page 17

• Early civilizations are centered near rivers.– Why?

• food (irrigation for agriculture and fishing/hunting)• water supply• transportation • trade

Why Were River Valleys Important? – page 17

The Rise of Sumer – page 18

• Mesopotamia – Greek for “the land between the rivers” – the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers– a.k.a.: the “cradle of civilization”– in an area referred to as the Fertile Crescent

The Rise of Sumer – page 18

The Rise of Sumer – page 18

The Rise of Sumer – page 18

• physical characteristics – – hot, dry climate– desert, rocky mountains

• limited resources (building materials)

– no natural borders– rivers flooded unpredictably → a blessing and a curse

• flooding left behind fertile soil• unpredictability could be dangerous (RELIGION!)• solution: build dams, channels, and walls as irrigation systems

(a system meant to bring water to crops)

The Rise of Sumer – page 18

What Were City States? – page 19

• Sumer – early civilization in southern Mesopotamia that became prosperous around 3000 B.C.– made up of city-states – independently governed

cities and the territory they control– prominent city-states – Ur, Uruk, Lagash, Umma

Gods and Rulers – page 19

• polytheistic – more than one god, in the case of Mesopotamia, thousands of gods– deities over parts of the universe (e.g. sky or earth), natural

phenomena (e.g. flooding), & human activities (e.g. metal working or basket weaving)

– multitude of good and bad demons

• Priests were very powerful.• Concept of afterlife was not very pleasant.• ziggurat (“mountain of god”) – grand temple with a

shrine at the top, like a giant square wedding cake

Gods and Rulers – page 19

What Was Life Like in Sumer? – page 20

• Class Divisions– upper class (kings, priests,

government officials, landholders)

– middle class (artisans [skilled workers who made metal products, cloth, or pottery], merchants, farmers, & fishers)

– lower class (slaves)

• Generalities– Small mud-brick houses– women had some rights

– most were farmers

Why Was Writing Important? – page 20

• cuneiform – (means “wedge-shaped”) Sumerian system of writing made up of wedge shaped markings– wedge shaped marks cut

into damp clay tablets with a sharpened reed

– scribes – record keepers, often went on to become government officials

Sumerian Literature – page 20

• Epic of Gilgamesh – – world’s oldest known

story (c. 2100 B.C.)– follows Gilgamesh, a hero

who travels around the world performing great deeds

Advances in Science and Math – page 21

• Other important Sumerian inventions include:– the wagon wheel– the plow– the sailboat– they were among the first to use bronze– mathematical concepts (geometry)– number system based on 60 (time and 360° circle)

Sargon and Hammurabi – page 23

• Sargon of Akkad– – king who conquered all of

Mesopotamia – set up the first empire (a

group of many different lands under one ruler)

• Babylonian Empire– Amorites invaded

Mesopotamia (2000 B.C.)– capital at Babylon

Sargon and Hammurabi – page 23

• Hammurabi– Babylonian king– best known for creating a

legal code – the Code of Hammurabi

– covered many aspects of daily life

– “eye for an eye…” – some of the time (no equality before the law)

• The Code of Hammurabi21. If any one break a hole into a house (break in to steal), he shall be put to death before that hole and be buried.22. If any one is committing a robbery and is caught, then he shall be put to death.195. If a son strike his father, his hands shall be [cut] off.

Sargon and Hammurabi – page 23

Sargon and Hammurabi – page 23

• The Code of Hammurabi 196. If a [noble-]man put out the eye of another [noble-]man, his eye shall be put out.198. If he put out the eye of a freed man, or break the bone of a freed man, he shall pay one gold mina.199. If he put out the eye of a slave, or break the bone of a man’s slave, he shall pay one-half of its value.

Chapter 1, Section 2 Questions

1. What is a civilization? What factors does it include?

2. What is a city-state?3. What is cuneiform? What were the record keepers

trained to use it called?4. What did Hammurabi do that was noteworthy?

The First Empires

Chapter 1, Section 3, page 26

Chapter 1, Section 3 Objectives

• After this lesson, students will be able to:– describe how Assyria’s military power and well-

organized government allowed it to build a vast empire in Mesopotamia.

– discuss the important landmarks built in Babylon by the Chaldean Empire and the development of the first calendar with a seven day week.

The Assyrians – page 27

• created a military empire in Mesopotamia and Egypt

• Sennacherib moved capital to Nineveh– Library of Nineveh

• glorified military strength

The Assyrians – page 27

• Why were they able to conquer?– large, well organized army

(including cavalry and chariots)– iron weapons

• How did they manage their territory?– strong-arm rule– use of provinces, or political

districts– roads

The Chaldeans – page 29

• 612 B.C. – Medes and Chaldeans burn Assyrian capital at Nineveh

• rebuilt capital at Babylon • King Nebuchadnezzar

– built the Hanging Gardens, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, to please his wife (Herodotus?)

• replaced by the Persians

• Babylon– extremely rich city

• caravans – groups of traveling merchants

• walls so thick “a four horse chariot could drive on them”

– science• astronomy – study of the

stars (astronomers)• sundials

The City of Babylon – page 30

Chapter 1, Section 3 Questions

1. Why was the Assyrian army a powerful fighting force? (two reasons)

2. What is a province?3. Who most likely built the Hanging Gardens? Why

did he build them?