1. Human Origins and Early Human Societies: Paleolithic to Neolithic Era
4.5 Million Years Ago – 3000 BCE

2. Human Origins Important Considerations :
Creation Stories Vs. Evolution
Religious Foundations of Creation
Darwinism

3. Timeline of Human Development
4.5 Million: Emergence of Bipedalism
2 Million: Bipedalism perfected (Homo erectus), hunter-gather cultures, production of stone tools
500,000: Rapid brain development
200,000: 1st forms of homo sapiens early speech, human migration
40,000: Emergence of homo sapiens sapiens, fully developed brains and speech, complex tools
25,000: Cave art in Europe, migration from Asia to America

4. Global Migration

5. Hunter-Gatherer Societies
Groups consisted of people
Lived in areas suitable for hunting and gathering
80 square miles of unproductive land for survival
8 square miles of productive land for survival
Societies were egalitarian
1. Men hunted and fished
2. Women gathered

6. The Neolithic Era
Background
Seen as a dramatic change in people’s lifestyles as DOMESTIC AGRICULTURE became the norm
Was a shift away from hunting & gathering societies in many areas of the world – shift to more sedentary lifestyle
Not really a “revolution” in that the process was a slow one – more of a gradual transition
Rendition of a Neolithic Era Village – represents the first time humans gathered & settled permanently in large numbers

7. The Neolithic Era
Background
Settlements emerged out of agricultural practices designed to give a more stable food supply
The practice of sustained agriculture (growing crops over multiple seasons in the same area) was likely discovered by females – experimentation w/ seeds & knowledge of the life-cycle of plants gained as “gatherers” during the Paleolithic Era

8. The Agricultural Revolution
The Neolithic Era
The Agricultural Revolution
Began approximately 9000 BCE in Southwest Asia (present-day Iraq & Syria) but emerged in other global regions at different time-frames
Also was a gradual process evolving over several thousand years in different regions
“Agriculture” includes BOTH the process of cultivating crops AND domesticating animals
The ability to create surpluses of food and control animals provided a radical transformation of all aspects of human life across global regions
Many of the practices developed in the Neolithic Era are still in existence today

9. The Spread of Neolithic Farming Techniques – SW Asia to Europe

10. Neolithic Agricultural Techniques
As civilizations settled they began to undertake systematic agricultural practices – the main technique for agriculture was Slash & Burn Cultivation – stripping trees of their bark, then burning the dead trees to create a fertile patch of land
Problem = the fields were only fertile for a few seasons thus forcing migration of the community and/or expansion of the civilization to new areas
Result = agriculture and its practices spread throughout the eastern & western hemispheres
Above – Slash Below - Burn

11. Global Agricultural Revolutions
Approx 9000 BCE – Southwest Asia (Iraq, Turkey, Syria) began growing wheat & barley as well as domesticating sheep, goats, pigs, cattle
Approx 7000 BCE – Regions in Africa (Sudan – Sahara, Nigeria – Sub-Saharan Africa) began growing sorghum & domesticating goats & sheep
Approx BCE – East Asia (China) began growing Rice along the Yangzi River; along the Yellow River civilizations cultivated millet & soybeans; both areas began domesticating chickens, pigs & buffalo

12. Global Agricultural Revolutions
Approx BCE – Mesoamerica (Mexico & Central America) began to cultivate corn, beans, pepper & squash – they domesticated far fewer animals due to the lack of large mammals – most were killed off during the Paleolithic Era
Approx BCE – Andean Region (Western South America) began cultivating potatoes, maize, beans – domesticated llamas & alpacas – fewer animals than other regions for same reasons
Approx BCE – Southeast Asia began cultivating coconuts, bananas & citrus fruits along w/ chickens & buffalos

13. Origins of Agriculture

14. Spread of Agriculture – Neolithic Era
Merchants, traders, migrants & other travelers also brought knowledge of new foods & techniques to various regions
Wheat – originated in SW Asia & spread to Iran & N. India after 5000 BCE & to China by 3000 BCE
Rice – originated in China & spread to SE Asia by 3000 BCE & to the Ganges River Valley in India by 1500 BCE
African sorghum reached India by 2000 BCE

15. Review: Paleolithic Age 2 million to 8,000 BCE

16. Neolithic Revolution
Around BCE, two discoveries revolutionized human society
Farming (1st crops were wheat & barley)
Herding (1st domesticated animals were goats, pigs, & cattle)
Domesticated animals produced a new type of society called Pastoralists
Farming & herding allowed for urban development
1st cities emerged in Middle East (Turkey & Jordan)
Jericho and Catal Huyuk

17. Pastoral Societies Nomadic peoples who herd domesticated animals
Move in search of food for their animals
Traditionally more stable than hunter-gatherer societies
Develop on marginal land apart from areas suitable for agriculture, often semi-arid regions
Interact with agricultural societies

18. Pastoral Societies
Many pastoral nomads lived in kin-related bands numbering up to 100
Tribal membership was defined by recognizing a common ancestry among kinship groups
Often called Courage Cultures
Warlike males bound to each other by ties of personal loyalty tended to dominate these societies
Violence between kinship groups limited the ability of clans and tribes to cooperate
Most practice a form of animism or shamanism

19. Early Villages Earliest villages located in the Middle East
Population of early villages evolved from the hundreds to the thousands
Probably declined due to environmental degradation
Top: Artist rendering of the early village of Catal Huyuk; Bottom: statue of a goddess from Catal Huyuk

20. Life in Early Villages
Full-time political and religious figures emerge as community leaders
Specialized workers such as toolmakers, miners, and merchants
Despite specialization, well-defined social stratification did not exist
Farming & specialization of labor led to a decline in the role of women
Farming & specialized labor led to increase in technology
Pottery, the plow, irrigation, woven textiles, wheeled vehicles

21. World Population Growth
Intensive agriculture caused human population to jump from 5-8 million to 60 to 70 million in 5,000 years

22. Social & Cultural effects of
agriculture

23. Social & Cultural Effects of Agriculture
The major global effect was a dramatic rise in population
Village/City life provided greater overall stability, decreased danger (increased security), less need for rapid mobility and a steady food supply
Approx BCE the world’s population was approx. 5 million people, by 1000 BCE it was approx. 50 million

24. Social & Cultural Effects of Agriculture
Specialization of Labor – development of a SURPLUS of food allowed some people to concentrate on activities other than farming – examples include: blacksmiths, manufacture of pottery, baskets & textiles, brewers, traders, priests, metallurgy
Specialized labor allowed some to provide goods & services in exchange for foodstuffs provided by famers
Specialization also began the creation of SOCIAL CLASSES & DIVISIONS between the rich & poor – due to the ability to trade surplus foods or manufactures
Agriculture also brought about the private ownership of land – though the date this practice began is unknown

25. Social & Cultural Results of Agriculture
Private ownership of land created wealthy & poor classes and would define “wealth” into the 17thCentury CE
Land ownership established lineal ownership patterns (goods passed on across generations)
Ownership also had a dominant role in create “gender roles” as specific tasks & rights of ownership became increasingly dependent upon gender – most societies developed patriarchal patterns of ownership
Wealth rapidly developed into political status & power

26. Social & Cultural Results of Agriculture
Gender Roles also developed during the Neolithic Era & the Agricultural Revolution
Men – worked fields & animals, which required them to be outside the home most of the day
Women – undertook more domestic tasks of taking care of the home & the children; weaving cloth, making cheese from milk and other tasks inside the home
Eventually work outside the home was seen as “more important” and solidified a patriarchal society in most parts of the world

27. Neolithic Tools Made from Copper
Neolithic Inventions
Pottery was one of the first non-agricultural inventions of the Neolithic Era
Metallurgy followed soon thereafter – copper was turned into jewelry & simple tools
By 6000 BCE humans had learned to heat copper to make it more manageable – turned into knives, swords, armor, shields
This provided the means by which later metals would be utilized – bronze, gold, iron
Neolithic Tools Made from Copper

28. Neolithic Inventions
The Wheel – its exact origins are unknown – but it likely developed with the domestication of large animals (“beasts of burden”) capable of pulling carts w/ large loads
The Sumerians are seen as one of the first civilizations to utilize the wheel sometime around 3200 BCE
The wheeled cart & use of the wheel spread rapidly & quickly became the standard mode of transport
Mesoamerican & South American civilizations never utilized the wheel due to the lack of large “beasts of burden” capable of hauling large loads

29. Other Lifestyles in the Neolithic Era
Pastoral Nomadism –
civilizations which depended on large herds of animals rather than sedentary farming – used for food &/or trade
had to find steppe or grasslands for their herds to graze (steppe = tall grasses which required little water)
Lifestyle was largely determined by geography – areas w/ little rainfall incapable of supporting large-scale agriculture (many along the fringes of the Sahara Desert or mountainous highlands)
There was often interaction between pastoral nomads & settled civilizations which shaped the era

30. Rise of Civilization 4th Millennium BCE
New discoveries transformed permanent settlements into civilizations
Bronze
Writing
First civilization emerged in Mesopotamia (modern day Iraq) c BCE