 |
||
 |
PreHistory |
 |
 |
||
Contents: |
|
|
||||||||
How do we know about history? Prehistory is the name given to the time before written records were kept. At this time, there were no permanent settlements or governments. To find out information about the past, scientists called archaeologists, dig up and examine physical remain left by people and artifacts which are things made by humans like tools and pottery. Archeology is a branch of Anthropology, which is the study of humans and the societies they create. Through their studies, archeologists saw how technology developed. Scientists also mapped all the places on the site where artifacts were found. This way, they can recreate a town or village of the past. Scientists use modern day technology to study the past. Computers stored information, radioactivity helped determine the age of things, and aerial photography showed land patterns. Historians use this information, as well as written documents to try and see how life was like. By studying what happened in history and why it happened, we can try to understand what is happening now.
Geography is the study of people, their environments, and the resources available to them. Basically, it is the stage on which history takes place. There are 5 parts of geography: Location, Place, Human-environment interaction, Movement, and Region.
Location- where the place is on the Earth�s surface, measured in Longitude and Latitude. It also is where one place is in relationship to another.
Place- physical features of a place including bodies of water, and landforms, as well as human characteristics like economy, religious beliefs, and language.
Human-environment interaction- how people used the land, and waters, and changed it to fit their needs.
Movement- the movement of people, goods, and their ideas. People migrate to cities for jobs, or follow herds of animals for food. Traders are also an example.
Region- an area of land based on physical features. Ex. Middle East, Gulf States etc.
1. The earliest period of human history is called the Old Stone Age, or Paleolithic Age. This period begins with the first stone toolmaker at about 10,000BCE. Evidence of early human life was found in East Africa. Later, their descendants migrated into Asia and Europe. People in the Old Stone Age were Nomads, or wanderers. They followed groups of animals for food. They were usually in groups of about 25 people. Everyone contributed to the group. Men hunted, while women picked berries and shellfish. They depended on their environment. These people faced severe changes in their environment, like glaciers, or large sheets of ice that stretched across Asia, Europe, and North America. They made clothing by wrapping themselves in animal skins. About 30,000 years ago, people left evidence of beliefs in spirits. They made cave paintings to express their beliefs. Toward the end of the Paleolithic age, people began burying the dead. This shows that they believed in life after death. They probably believed that it was similar to their lives on this world, and buried weapons they will need in the afterlife.
2. About 11,000 years ago, nomadic bands began settling in permanent villages and became farmers. This change marked the beginning of the Neolithic, or New Stone Age. There are many theories about how planting began. Women may have noticed that where seeds were, new plants grew the next year. In this age, people learned to tame the animals that they used to hunt. Instead of following, or waiting for animals, they herded them. It led to growth in population, and interaction between groups.
3. Changes between the New and Old Stone ages: Work was probably still split up but the status of women lessened as the males dominated the families. Heads of Families made a council and made big decisions about the village. Since they stayed in one place, the people accumulated more possessions. People also developed new technology about farming. They learned to use animals to plow the fields. It took time for technology to spread from place to place.
Organized Governments- The settlers needed a government to oversee food production and irrigation systems. The City�s government was far more powerful than the council of elders of the villages. At first priests were in charge, but later the warriors replaced them. As the government became ore complex, they formed a bureaucracy, which was a way of governing with different departments for different things.
Complex Religions- Most ancient people were polytheistic, or having more than one god. In ancient religion, Priests and worshipers looked to get favor of their gods through ceremonies and prayers.
Job Specialization- People began to specialize in a certain job. An example is an artisan, or craftsman, who made pottery of finely made goods.
Social Classes- People were usually ranked by jobs, which led to the growth of social classes. At the top were the priests and nobles, then the merchants and artisans, and then the peasant farmers and slaves.
Arts, Architecture and Public Works- The arts and architecture allowed people to express themselves. Skilled worshipers made temples and shrines for the gods. The city also had to do public works like irrigation and city walls.
Writing- Writing was invented probably to keep records. Early civilizations used pictograms, or simple drawings that represented words. As writing became more complex, only specially trained people called scribes were able to read and write.
Return to Freshman Review Sheets
Review Sheets Central 2001
www.reviewsheetscentral.com