The document is about the development of early human societies from prehistory through the Neolithic era. It discusses the evolution of hominids like Australopithecus and Homo erectus. During the Paleolithic era, humans lived nomadic lifestyles as hunter-gatherers in small groups. The Neolithic era saw the rise of agriculture, population growth, and the emergence of villages and surplus food production leading to specialized labor and social classes. Some of the earliest urban settlements developed around this time at places like Çatal Hüyük and Jericho.

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PowerPoint Presentation Materials
For Instructor’s Online Learning Center
Traditions and Encounters
A Global Perspective on the Past
3rd
Edition
Jerry H. Bentley
Herbert F. Ziegler
PowerPoint Presentations Prepared by Henry Abramson

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Chapter 1
Before History

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Forming the Complex Society
 Basic development:
 Hunting and Foraging
 Agriculture
 Complex Society
 Key issue: surplus capital
 Major development of first complex societies
3500 BCE – 500 BCE

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Prehistory
 What is “history”?
 Documentation
 Written records
 Archaeological discovery
 Requisite human presence (or “natural” history)

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Development of Hominids
 Animals adapt themselves to environment
 Hominids adapt environment to themselves
 Use of tools
 Language
 Complex cooperative social structures

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Australopithecus
 Discovery of skeleton AL-288-1, north of Addis Ababa,
Ethiopia
 Nicknamed “Lucy”
 40% of SWF, 4’6”, 55lb., bipedal Brain 500 cc (modern
human: 1400 cc), limited speech but opposable digit
 Estimated date of death: 3.5 million years ago

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Later Hominids
 Homo Erectus, “upright man”
 Larger brain capacity (1000 cc), improved tool use,
control of fire
 Homo Sapiens, “wise man” Homo Sapiens Sapiens, “very
wise man” (most of us)
 Largest brain, esp. frontal regions
 most sophisticated tools and social organization
 Migrations of Homo Erectus and Homo Sapiens

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Global spread of hominids and Homo Sapiens

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The Natural Environment
 By 13,000 BCE Homo sapiens in every
inhabitable part of the world
 Archaeological finds:
 Sophisticated tools
 Choppers, scrapers, axes, knives, bows, arrows
 Cave and hutlike dwellings
 Use of fire, animal skins
 Hunted several mammal species to extinction
 Climactic change may have accelerated process

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Paleolithic Era (“Old Stone Age”)
 Evidence:
 Archaeological finds
 Extrapolation from modern hunter-gatherer societies
 Nomadic existence precludes advanced
civilization
 Groups of 30-50
 Division of labor along gender lines

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Relative Social Equality
 Nomadic culture precludes accumulation of land-
based wealth
 More likely determinants of status: age, hunting skill,
fertility, charisma
 Possible gender equality related to food
production
 Men: protein from hunting
 Women: plant gethering

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Big Game Hunting
 Evidence of intelligent coordination of hunting
expeditions
 Development of weaponry
 Animal-skin disguises
 Stampeding tactics
 Lighting of fires, etc. to drive game into kill zones
 Requires planning, communication

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Paleolithic Settlements
 Natufian society
 Modern Israel and Jordan
 Wild wheat, herding
 Jomon society
 Japan
 Wild buckwheat, fishing
 Chinook society
 Pacific Northwest
 Berries, acorns, salmon runs
 Groups of 1000 or more

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Neandertal Peoples
 Neander valley, western Germany
 Also found in Africa, east Asia
 Evidence of spirituality: ritual burial

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Cro-magnon Peoples
 Physically similar to modern humans
 Greater capacity for speech?
 Homo sapiens sapiens
 Increased variety of tools
 Adornments, decorative furniture, cave paintings
 “Venus” figurines
 Cave paintings

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Neolithic Era (“New Stone Age”)
 Distinction in tool production
 Chipped vs. polished
 Men: herding animals rather than hunting
 Women: nurtured vegetation rather than foraging
 Spread of Agriculture
 Slash-and-and burn techniques
 Exhaustion of soil promotes migration
 Transport of crops from one region to another

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Origins of early spread of agriculture

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Agriculture and Population Growth
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
3000
BCE
2000
BCE
1000
BCE
500 BCE
Population (millions)

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Surplus Food and
the Specialization of Labor
 Emergence of villages and towns
 Discoveries at Çatal Hüyük, Turkey, occupied
7250-5400 BCE
 Tremendous range of manufactured products
 Pottery, Jewelry, Textiles, Copper tools
 Development of crafts

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Social Distinctions
 Accumulation of landed wealth initiates
development of social classes
 Archaeological evidence in variety of household
decorations, goods buried with deceased members of
society at Çatal Hüyük

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Religious Values
 Elements of natural environment essential for
functioning
 Archaeological evidence of religious worship:
thousands of clay figurines, drawings on pots, tool
decorations, other ritual objects
 Fertility: Venus figurines

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Beginnings of Urbanization
 Jericho: concentration of wealth, building a wall
 Craft specialization
 Social stratification
 Governance
 Cultural workers