Early Humans &Early Civilizations

Unit 1: 8000-600 BCE

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Eras to Know:

Paleolithic Age Neolithic Age

1 million - 8,000 BCE 8,000 - 3,000 BCE

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First Humans

Australopithecus

Homo habilis

Homo erectus

Homo sapiens:

Neanderthals

Homo sapiens sapiens

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First Migrations

Out of Africa

Eurasia

Australia

The Americas

The Pacific

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First SocietiesBands of 25-50 people

Nomadic with little to no food surplus

Egalitarian

Gender-based division of labor

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First Societies

Economy & Environment

More leisure time

Low life expectancy

Slash & burn agriculture

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First SocietiesSpiritual life

Rock art

Some monotheistic

Levels of supernatural beings

Cyclical view of time

Patterns

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Settling Down

Improved living conditions

More permanent villages

Societies became larger & more complex

Store & accumulate goods

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Beginnings of AgricultureNeolithic Revolution

Deliberate cultivation of plants & taming of animals

Replaced hunting & gathering

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Beginnings of Agriculture

Common Patterns

Improved conditions

New knowledge & technology

Disappearance of many large mammals

Growing populations

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Beginnings of AgricultureVariations

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Agriculture Goes GlobalDiffusion vs. displacement

Bantu Migrations

3,000 BCE

Paleo people were absorbed, killed, or driven away

10,000 years to go global

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Agriculture Goes Global

Population increase

Environmental transformations

Health deterioration

Technological innovations

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Social VariationPastoral Societies Agricultural Villages Chiefdoms

•Relied on animals•Herders, pastoralists, or nomads•Central Asia, Arabian Peninsula, Sahara•Moved seasonally•Relative gender equality

•Horticultural farmers•Banpo or Jericho•Social & gender equality•Catal Huyuk•Kinship groups•Some economic inequality

•Inherited positions of power•Relied on generosity not the use of force•Mesopotamia, Pacific Islands, North America•Patrilineal descent•Many jobs for chiefs

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The First Civilizations

Mesopotamia

Egypt

Indus

Aryans

Shang & Zhou

Mesoamerica & South America

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What makes a civilization?

Food Surplus

Cities

Specialization

Trade

Social Stratification

Organized government

Complex religions

Written language

Arts/architecture

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