1. Chapter 1 Foundations of Civilization Prehistory-300 B.C.
World History 1
Chapter 1
Foundations of Civilization
Prehistory-300 B.C.

2. Section 1 Understanding Our Past
Objectives
Learn how scholars study the historical past.
Find out how anthropologists investigate the period of prehistory.
Understand how discoveries in Africa and beyond have influenced anthropologists’ views about early humans and their ancestors.

3. The Study of History Importance of authenticity
Personal bias of the historian
Historians use:
Documents
Tax records
Letters
Interviews
Journals/Diaries
Art

4. Investigating Prehistory
What do you do when you do not have any written records to study?
About 150 years ago, scholars became interested in this period of history
Anthropology- study the origins and development of people and their societies
Archaeology
Archaeologist study human material remains. They often have to revise their theories in the light of new evidence.

5. Relative vs. Absolute Dating Methods
Grouping similar artifacts
Chronology of artifacts
Age of geological features
Absolute
Dating bones
Tree rings
Carbon-14 dating

6. Discoveries in Africa and Beyond
Olduvai Gorge
Located in Tanzania
Louis Leakey and Mary Leaky
1959 Mary found skull of early hominid
Hominids include humans and their closest relatives, all walk upright on 2 feet
Bottom of gorge million years old

7. Early Hominid Groups Australopithecines Lived in Africa
7 million years ago
Included “Lucy”, the skeleton found by archaeologist Donald Johnson in 1974

8. Homo habilis- means “handy man”
First to use stone tools

9. Homo erectus “upright man” Larger brains Smaller teeth Fire? Hand ax
Remains found in Asia and Europe

10. Homo sapiens
Between 250,000 and 100,000 years ago, Homo erectus disappeared
Homo sapiens emerged
Groups to which modern humans belong
Neanderthals and the earliest modern humans come from this group
Around 50,000 or 30,000 years ago the Neanderthals disappeared

11. Section 2- Neolithic Revolution
Objectives
Describe the skills and beliefs that early modern humans developed during the Old Stone Age
Analyze why the beginning of farming is considered the start of the New Stone Age and Neolithic Revolution
Explain how the Neolithic Revolution dramatically changed the why people lived

12. 2 Periods of Prehistory - Old Stone Age/Paleolithic Period
2 million B.C.- 10,000 B.C.
New Stone Age/Neolithic Period
10,000 B.C.- until the end of prehistory

13. Humans During Old Stone Age
Nomads
20-30 people per group
Hunter/Gatherers
Made tools and weapons out of stone, bone, or wood
Used fire for heat and cooking
Wore animal skins

14. Developed spoken language
Learned to travel over water
Buried their dead
Animism- a belief that the world is full of spirits and forces that might reside in animals, objects, or dreams

15. Neolithic Revolution = Farming

16. Effects of Farming on Early Humans
Nomadic lifestyle changed
Produced own food supply
No longer had to follow herds and food supplies
Settlement in permanent villages
Changes were dramatic

17. Domesticated animals and plants
Domesticated means to raise plants and animals in a controlled way that makes them best suited to human use
Not all people around the world started domesticating at the same time and they did not all domesticate the same types of plants and animals

18. Other Effects
No greater change occurred until the Industrial Revolution in the late 1700s
Early villages
Catalhuyuk (Turkey)
Jericho (Israel)

19. Other Changes Family Life
Men started to dominate family, economic, and political life
Council of Elders
Differences in wealth emerge
more private property

20. New Technologies Calendars Animals to plow fields
Clay for storage and cooking
Weaving
Knowledge traveled slowly

21. Section 3- The Rise of Civilization
River Valleys Popular
Transportation
Water supply
Fertile lands
Sumer, Egypt, Indus, Shang China
Surpluses means more food for more people
People able to do something other than farming

22. Civilization- a complex, highly organized social order

23. Major features of Civilizations
1. Organized Governments
2. Complex religions
3. Job specialization
4. Social classes
5. Arts and architecture
6. Public works
7. Writing

24. Government
Need to oversee major projects that benefited all the people
As governments grew more complex, royal officials helped to govern, collect taxes, and defend the city
Priests and warrior kings had the most power
Leaders would claim divine sovereignty, or rule from the gods, and pass their position from father to son

25. Complex Religions Polytheistic- belief in many gods
Gained favor with the gods through special ceremonies, offerings, or sacrifices
Full time priesthood needed

26. Job Specialization Urban dwellers Artisans- skilled craftspeople
Metal workers, bricklayers, merchants, soldiers, entertainers

27. Social Classes People ranked according to their jobs
1. Nobles and priests
2. Merchants
3. Artisans
4. Peasant farmers
5. Slaves

28. Art and Architecture
Temples and palaces would have dominated the landscape
Good reminder of the power held by the government and the religion/priesthood

29. Public Works Irrigations systems Roads Bridges Defensive walls
Monuments

30. Writing Not all early civilization developed writing
No contact between the civilizations about writing
Varied in appearance, structure, and purpose

31. First used in temples
Monuments
Pictographs
Scribes- specially trained people who kept records for priests, rulers, and merchants