History of the World Core Concepts - Review

HISTORY Historians are people who study events in the past The past can be organized in two parts: history and prehistory Prehistory: is the time before humans invented writing (around 5,200 years ago) History: written records.

Using a Timeline A timeline is a tool used by historians in which a line is marked off with a series of events and dates A timeline puts events in chronological order, the order in which they occurred. A period is a length of time important because a specific event or development that occurred during that time. It can also be called an era or epoch. Ex. The LeBron James Era in Miami.

How do we organize history? Today, much of the world uses the believed birth date of Jesus. Events that happened before his birth date: B.C. for “before Christ” Or also called B.C.E. for “Before Common Era” (in our class) Events that happened after his birth date: A.D. for Anno Domini, “Year of Our Lord” Or C.E. for “Common Era” (in our class)

How do we measure the passage of time? Cultures use different calendars Our culture, and many others around the world, use a Gregorian calendar, which has 365 days per year. It is based on the movement of Earth around the sun.

Historical Sources Primary Sources: information that comes directly from a person who experienced an event. It is what the person writes, says, or creates about the event. Examples: Letters Diaries Speeches Photographs Artifacts: object made by a human being, such as a tool, or a weapon.

Secondary Sources Secondary Sources: information about an event that does not come from a person who experienced that event. These are sources that describe or make sense of the past. Examples: Some books, movies, or articles can be secondary sources.

Evaluating Your Sources Primary and Secondary sources can be misleading Interpretation of sources can be wrong. Ask yourself: Who created the source material? Is the information fact or opinion? Does the information have a bias? Bias: an unfair preference for or dislike for something. Material with bias leaves out info that does not support the author’s point of view.

Who helps historians? Archaeology: the scientific study of ancient cultures through the examination of artifacts and other evidence They search for artifacts, such as tools, weapons, and pottery They search for fossils: remains of living things (plants, bones, etc.) They help us when we study prehistory

Who helps historians? Anthropology: study of humankind in all aspects, especially development and culture. Seek to understand origins of humans They research oral tradition, which is a community’s cultural and historical background, passed down in spoken stories and songs

Who helps Historians? Geology: study the physical materials of Earth, like soil and rocks Object found in lower layers are generally older Geologists also examine the amount of radioactive material on living things They also use DNA and genetic evidence to find more info.