Outcome: Human Migration & Beginning of Agriculture The Earliest Humans Outcome: Human Migration & Beginning of Agriculture

Human Migration & Beginning of Agriculture  Setting the Stage: Who are we? Evidence suggests humans could be much older than originally thought Scientists use artifacts to search for answers Artifact: human made objects like tools and jewelry Unfortunately, prehistory can leave more questions than answers Prehistory: time before the invention of writing

Human Migration & Beginning of Agriculture Important: The story is not complete and there are many questions left to answer Two prevailing ideas (you will not be forced to pick a side): Creation: Idea that a higher power put humans on earth Evolution: Theory that humans evolved from another being

Human Migration & Beginning of Agriculture Interesting Evidence Found in Africa Anthropologists (people who study culture) and paleontologists (people who study fossils) attempt to use artifacts and fossils to understand early human’s culture Culture: a people’s unique way of life

Lucy

Human Migration & Beginning of Agriculture Lucy Unusually complete skeleton of female hominid Hominid: being that walks upright on two legs Discovered by Donald Johanson in 1974 in Africa Named after Beatles song “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” Dated to be 3.5 million years old

Laetoli Footprints

Human Migration & Beginning of Agriculture Laetoli Footprints Two hominid footprints preserved in volcanic ash in Africa Found by anthropologist Mary Leaky in 1978 Dated to be 3.6 million years old

Human Migration & Beginning of Agriculture Neither Lucy nor the Laetoli footprints were made by actual humans Other beings such as Cro-Magnons, homo erectus, & Neatherthals walked the earth before we did No link to these beings has been made; “missing link”

Migration out of Africa

Human Migration & Beginning of Agriculture Humans Migrate Humans are known as homo sapiens which means “wise men” due to brain size Eventually homo erectus & homo sapiens migrated out of Africa Early humans were nomads or highly mobile people who move from place to place foraging, or searching for new sources of food All early humans were also hunter-gatherers Hunter-gatherers: those whose food supply depended on hunting animals and collecting plant foods Estimates show they started leaving Africa around 125,000 years ago

Human Migration & Beginning of Agriculture Settled in Europe 33,000 years ago, China 67,000 years ago, Australia 38,000 years ago, North America 12,000 years ago, and South America 12- 33,000 years ago We know this due to similar stone tool artifacts found in different regions that date to roughly the same time period Shows that early humans used technology: applying knowledge, tools, and inventions to meet their needs

Human Migration & Beginning of Agriculture Why did they leave Africa? Competition with other humans Following animal herds Human curiosity

Human Migration & Beginning of Agriculture Agriculture Changes Everything! Early nomadic humans lived in bands of 25-70 people Around 10,000 years ago, the Neolithic Revolution began: the beginning of farming It started accidentally when some women scattered seeds near a campsite and noticed crops growing there when they came back next season Rising temperatures worldwide provided longer growing seasons Farming produces more food than hunting or gathering

Human Migration & Beginning of Agriculture More food means a higher population, thus more labor Due to labor and farming methods, permanent settlements developed Permanent settlements turn into villages, villages turn into cities, cities turn into civilizations Once you reach a certain population, you can begin specialization Specialization: the development of skills in a specific kind of work (other than farming)

Human Migration & Beginning of Agriculture Slash & burn farming was used (cut a field and burn it for nutrients) Domestication or taming of animals began as well

Coming Up Next…! Eventually all of this led to the creation of the first civilization on Earth in Mesopotamia called Sumer

Characteristics of Civilizations Organized governments Religion Jobs Social Classes Art and Architecture Public Works Writing