World History I (0-1500)Virginia SOL Curriculum

Chris Anderson

Randolph-Henry High School

AD v. BC BC=before Christ

Dates go in reverse (ie. 255, 254, 253, etc) AD=Anno Domini (in the year of our lord)

Dates go normally

200 100 0 200100

BC AD

Pre-history—the time before writing

History—study of written records

Vocabulary—early HumansArchaeologist

Study “stuff” (artifacts) left behind by early humans—ie. Pottery, tools, buildings, etc.

Anthropologist Attempt to discover the origins of humanity

Hominid Human like creature

Dating Artifacts (“stuff”) “Stratography”

Artifacts location can tell relative age Older artifacts are located deeper in the

soil

Dating Artifacts (“stuff”)Radio-carbon Dating

Can only be used for organic (once living) material

Measures the amount of Carbon 14 left in the material

The First HumansThe First HumansNovember 30, 1974—Dr. Donald

Johanson discovered “Lucy”—a nearly complete skeleton of a pre-historic female She was bipedal—walked on 2 legs Her discovery helped scientists in their

studies for the origins of humans

Australopithecus “Southern Ape”—not really human Lived in humid forests of Africa about 4

million years ago 31/2 to 4 feet tall Bipedal Small brain Flat nose Large teeth

AustralopithecusAfrica’s climate changed about 3 million

yea The climate became cooler and drier Tropical rainforests disappeared and were

replaced by grassy plainsAustralopithecus had to adapt or die out

Larger brained individuals survived

Large Brained HominidsLarge Brained HominidsClassified by the Latin prefix Homo

Homo habilis “Person with ability”

Homo erectus “Person who walks upright”

Homo sapiens “Person who thinks” All people today are in this group

Homo habilis Hunter-gatherers Probably lived in

trees Developed very little

speech

Homo erectus Lived on the ground

Groups of 25-30 High death rates Life expectancy 20

years

Nomadic hunter-gatherers Followed their food

supply

Females gathered fruits, nuts, and seeds

Males looked for dead animals to scavenge—eww!!

Homo erectusHarnessed fire

Cooking heat

Moved into cavesDeveloped clothing from animal skins

Allowed Homo erectus to move to cooler places such as Europe and Asia

Began using real speech

Homo sapiensThe ultimate advancement of humanity

—usTwo different groups of Homo sapiens

developed Neanderthal Cro-Magnon

Homo sapiens--NeanderthalDeveloped in Africa100,000 years ago spread to Eurpe and

Asia 5.5 feet tall Large brains Stocky bodies Thick bones Muscular necks and shoulders

Homo sapiens--Neanderthal Hunter-gatherers Used fire Lived in caves Learned to build

shelters From wood and

animal skins

Buried their dead with tools and flowers

Homo sapiens—Cro-MagnonCro-Magnon

First existed ca. 40,000 years agoLooked like USAppeared 1st in Asia35,000 Cro-Magnon replaced

Neanderthal

Homo sapiens—Cro-MagnonCro-Magnon Known as “tool makers”—excellent tool

making skills Knife Chisel Bone fish hooks Bone needles Stone axe Canoe—allowed for transportation and trade Spear thrower Bow and arrow

Homo sapiens—Cro-MagnonCro-Magnon

N ew Too ls

In c re a se in P op u la ton

M o re fo od

D e ve lop m e n t o f Le ad e rs

O rga n ize d h u n ting

B o w a nd A rrowS p e ar th ro w er

Homo sapiens—Cro-MagnonCro-Magnon Created elaborate

cave art Created sculptures

from ivory, stone, and jade

Migration PatternsHomo sapiens’ larger brains allowed

them to adapt and migrate all over the world

The major factor allowing for migration was the Ice Ages

Migration Patterns Ice Ages

Earth has experience 4 ice ages between 2 million and 10,000 years ago

Earth’s temps. Fell, causing the polar ice caps to expand

Lots of water was need to create the ice—resulted in ocean levels dropping by 300 feet!

Falling ocean levels exposed land bridges between continents and other land masses

Between Japan and Korea Between Great Britain and Western Europe Between Asia and North America

Migration Patterns Ice Ages

Land bridges allowed people to migrate into unoccupied lands

Moving to warmer places Followed herds of animals

Neolithic RevolutionDefinition—a 5,000 year period when

people began to produce their own food through the domestication of crops and animals

The development of farming has been humanity’s most important accomplishment

Farming allowed humans to settle down and create civilizations

Neolithic RevolutionBefore raising crops, nomadic humans

began domesticated animals Dogs—to aid in hunting Goat—milk, meat, hides

Nomadic humans created new tools to help harvest (gather) wild crops Sickle—to cut grasses and wild grains Pottery—to carry harvested foliage

Neolithic Revolution Crop domestication soon followed Early agricultural villages developed near

rivers or in river valleys Different areas of the world grew different

crops Asia—rice North/Central America—corn (maize) Africa—bananas South America—potatoes Middle East—wheat and barley

Neolithic RevolutionEarly farmers began domesticating

more animals Cattle Pigs Sheep Chickens

Neolithic Revolution

Villages tow ns cities

Farming allowed early humans to produce more food, resulting in an increase in population

Neolithic RevolutionEarly farmers created new tools and

techniques to help produce more food Plow—pulled by oxen Fertilizers

Ashes Fish manure

Irrigation

Neolithic Revolution Specialization of labor and technological

advancements developed when early humans produced a stable food supply Loom invented—weaving of cloth Wheel invented—transportation Brick—better building material Metal work—weapons, tools, jewelry Calendars—planting and harvesting times Religion

Neolithic RevolutionArtisans—craftsworkers—were needed

to produce tools for farmers Early man began to use bronze (alloy of

copper and tin) for tools and weapons Bronze was very expensive

Merchants were used to trade agricultural goods for copper or tin

Development of Cities Early cities were structured in a way to

protect the most important individuals In the center—government and religious buildings

The priest lived in the religious building—he was the most important person

The government officials (ruling class) lived just outside the center

Outside the government officials lived the merchants

Outside the merchant lived the artisans City outskirts—farmers, fishermen, and sailors

Creation of WritingHistory begins when early humans

developed ways to record their ideas—writing

Writing was invented by the early priests—to keep track of offerings to the gods Started as marks and pictures for tangible

items Symbols were eventually created for

sounds and abstract ideas