What is Prehistory? Before we can learn history, first we have to understand Man only learned to write years ago When stuff started to get written down, that s the start of Humans, and their ancestors, lived for hundreds of of years before anything was written down The period of time before people started writing things down is called Who studies history? Historians o Historians study, write, and about the past o Learn about the past from o Artifacts = o Coin, art, tombstones, newspapers, o Try to figure out stuff happened Anthropologists Anthropologists study the and the they live in Some study how people live today, and some study how they lived in the Anthropologists study (beliefs, values, practices) Archaeologists Archaeologists are a type of They too study the culture and societies of people, only they study people Since they can t observe their subjects or interview them, study the artifacts they ve left behind Artifacts like: WHY? Let s Talk about Dating! How do archaeologists know how old the artifacts they dig up are? is a scientific process scientists use to figure out how old organic material is. Everything that s alive absorbs a type of from the sun in the form of an isotope called Carbon 14 When something dies, the begins to break down We know it takes years for Carbon 14 to breakdown, so by measuring how much is left in an artifact, we can figure out how old it is. A Brief Look At How We Got Here Human beings, as we are today, are the product of millions of years of development and evolution Our technical name is, and we first emerged in eastern Africa sometime between 100,000 and 400,000 years ago There were others before us though, and they helped us become what we are today.
Hominids Humans, or homo sapiens, are from a class of animals called Hominids are creatures that on two feet as their way of transportation There used to be many kinds of on Earth, but now humans are the last and only The first hominid, or the first animal to walk on two- feet all the time was Australopithecus was the first hominid Emerged in Eastern Africa in an area called the, between 3 and 4 million years ago Homo habilis Type of hominid that lived Name means Made and used basic tools for cutting, scraping, and chopping materials From
Homo erectus Lived 1.6 million years ago Walked Was able to use More advanced tools like the ax Africa,, Neanderthal Discovered in near the Neander River From 100,000 to years ago Found in Europe and (country of Turkey today) Lived in, adapted with shelters and animals skins Physically - Buried their dead = 30,000 years ago Homo sapiens Emerges in 100,000 to 400,0000 years ago migrated from Africa to Eurasia, Australia, and the Americas Name means = early form of Homo sapiens Lived alongside until Neanderthals mysteriously vanished 30,000 years ago Only remaining hominid on Earth
How to Survive on Earth Big Idea: o Early humans were (hunters and gatherers whose survival depended on the availability of wild plants and animals) o Follow the as they move and keep looking for fresh and wild plants Breaking Down Prehistory, the time before man began to write stuff down, is divided into two different eras or Old Stone Age (2 million BCE to 10,000 BCE) or New Stone Age (10,000 BCE to 3,000 BCE)
Paleolithic Era/Old Stone Age people, migrating to hunt and gather food, water, and shelter Invented the first, including simple weapons Learned how to make and use Lived in (20-30 people) Developed Created Began to travel around the world years ago began to bury their dead- sign of religion or belief in the afterlife Many may have practices - belief that spirits inhabit animals and objects Evidence - Neolithic Era/New Stone Age The Neolithic Era begins with the, when man begins to farm No longer a, man can stay in one place and build permanent villages plants and animals Used Made pottery Developed All this change is a revolution the NEOLITHIC REVOLUTION! Domestication During the Neolithic Era, man begins to plants and animals Domesticate = Dogs are the first animal to be domesticated by man Others include the
Also Known As Time Period Characteristics Paleolithic Era Neolithic Era Two Ancient Civilizations Being Studied Today Two of the earliest cities created by man are still being studied by today Both are located in an area called the Their names are and Jericho One of the first human settlements Located in the Fertile Crescent Built between and 10,000 BCE Size of a few fields Surrounded by a huge Site of
Aleppo One of the oldest cities in the world still by people dates back to BCE Located in present day Raised hill in center of city for Walled city Central local of civil war in Syria Catal Huyuk settlement found in an area called Anatolia (today - ) 32 acres enclosed, holding ~ people houses Stonehenge Prehistoric archaeological site in Started in the Neolithic Era and finished during the Age Not completely understood but gives us an idea of ancient England??