PRE-HISTORY

WARNING!!!! This lecture contains brief nudity and is not suitable for children under 13 unless accompanied by a parent or guardian!!

The purpose of this lesson is to answer our Essential Question… What is civilization?

To start… We have to start, well, at the beginning with Pre-history What does “pre” mean? So, pre-history means what?

Events in human development that occurred before writing.

By the way, did you write down that bit about pre-history? You should have!

Pre-history is based on archaeological and anthropological theories

The Paleolithic Period Called the Old Stone Age 2,000,000-8,000 B.C.E. Introductions Hatchet Controlled use of fire Able to sew skins together And something curious…

…very curious! Burial customs indicate primitive religion!

The Neolithic Period New Stone Age 6,000-3,000 B.C.E. Introductions Farming and herding Agriculture - the deliberate cultivation of crops and the raising of livestock.

The development of agriculture is the most important advancement made by humans since the dawn of time. Why???? Agriculture meant that humans could now produce their own food rather than rely on luck. That’s why!

Agriculture made the survival of the human species more secure. It gave humans a greater capacity to change their environment to suit their needs. The most visible signs of agriculture were: Cultivated fields Settled towns

There was no simple progression from settled foraging (staying in one place and eating whatever you were able to find) to genuine farming. Human groups experimented with different strategies for survival. What influenced the strategy? 4 things.

Availability of water

Dietary preferences

NUDITY WARNING!!!!!!

Procreation patterns

Domestication of other animals begins…cattle, sheep, goats, pigs. Crops are raised seasonally and irrigation begins. The focus on agriculture and civilization in the beginning of our studies must not overshadow other forms of organization.

Questions and Answers Haven’t many societies remained, even to this day, nomadic herders? Yes. Haven’t hunting and gathering economies persisted?

Pastoralism ( a nomadic herding way of life and a better name than nomadic herders) is still practiced in central Asia, the south Sahara and the savanna zone of east and south Africa.

Pastoralists are organized in bands…

But seriously… Band – A level of social organization normally consisting of 20-30 people. Bands are usually nomadic hunters. Labor is divided on gender basis.

The advances made by prehistoric man in the Neolithic Period is sometimes referred to as the Neolithic or Agricultural Revolution. So, this is civilization? Well, no. But…

Only groups involved in crop and animal domestication have proved capable of producing civilizations. Why? Food surpluses allow for specialization of labor; people doing specific jobs.

The status of women probably begins to decline during the development of agriculture.

Why isn’t that civilization??? Civilization has been erroneously defined as the advanced stage of human society in which people have: Cities and organized government Specialization of labor System of organized writing and counting Permanent structures such as palaces, temples, and walls. Why isn’t that civilization???

Those things are symbols of culture, not civilization. (I bet you think there is another definition coming, huh?) Right you are!!!!

Culture The combination of the ideas, objects and patterns of behavior that result from human social interaction. Culture can also be determined by social practice. Examples:

Marriage and Inheritance Patterns Patrilocal - Living in the house of the husband’s father. Patrilineal – Inheritance follows the father’s line of descent; eldest son on down, skipping all females.

Matrilocal - Living in the house of the wife’s mother. Matrilineal – Inheritance follows the mother’s line of descent; eldest daughter on down, skipping all males.

Civilization is one of several human approaches to social organization. It is best not to define it by the identity of specific kinds of cultural achievement like writing, cities and monumental buildings. But, there are similarities Yes, there are.

Societies All people live in societies. Society is defined as an organized group of people living together for a specific purpose or purposes. All societies produce cultures.

But not all societies and cultures produce the kind of surplus food production that permits the levels of specialization, size, and complexity that separate civilizations from other types of social organizations.

At last… the answer to our Essential Question!!! Societies that rely on sedentary (that means staying put) agriculture to produce food surpluses. This surplus allows for the existence of non-farming elites and the eventual creation of merchant and manufacturing groups.