1 / 27

In the Beginning …

In the Beginning …. A Crash C ourse of the First 200,000 years of Human History. Periodization. Period 1 – to c. 600 BCE AP uses BCE & CE for texts, course, and exam c. (circa) – means “approximately ” 600 BCE – by this time the world has seen the following: How societies originated

dash
Download Presentation

In the Beginning …

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. In the Beginning … A Crash Course of the First 200,000 years of Human History

  2. Periodization • Period 1 – to c. 600 BCE • AP uses BCE & CE for texts, course, and exam • c. (circa) – means “approximately” • 600 BCE – by this time the world has seen the following: • How societies originated • What people did to make societies work • Rules/hierarchies/governments • The world’s first empires have existed

  3. Human Migrations • Turn to page 14 in text

  4. Examples of Cultural Exchange • Clovis Culture of America • Name comes from the Clovis point, a kind of projectile point

  5. Examples of Cultural Exchange • Australian Aboriginal Societies • Continent-wide trade in stones, pigment, wood • Transmission of songs, dances, myths, & rituals

  6. Examples of Cultural Exchange • Creation of “Venus figurines”- earliest dated at least 35,000 years ago

  7. Environmental Impacts • Accelerated extinction of mega-fauna • Mammoths, giant wombats, saber-toothed tigers, emus, wild horses • Scorch & burn hunting – selection of desirable plants and animals • Introduction of new plant and animal species (Oceania)

  8. The First Human Societies • Societies were small, bands of 25–50 people • Very low population density and population growth

  9. The First Human Societies • Were seasonally mobile or nomadic • Moved in regular patterns to exploit wild plants and animals • Because of mobility; couldn’t accumulate goods • Societies were highly egalitarian • Most free people in human existence? • No specialists, most people had the same skills • Relationships between women and men were far more equal than in later societies

  10. The First Human Societies • Hunting & gathering peoples used to be regarded as “primitive” and impoverished • They worked fewer hours on average than modern people (17 hours a week) • Wanted or needed little material goods • Life expectancy was low (35 years on average)

  11. The Realm of the Spirit • It is difficult to decipher the spiritual world of Paleolithic peoples • Contemporary gathering and hunting peoples may not reflect ancient experience • Leads to much speculation and interpretation of art and ritual objects

  12. The Realm of the Spirit • Rich ceremonial life • Led by part-time shamans– spiritual leaders • Wide varieties of belief • Supernatural beings that influenced the world • Impersonal forces of nature that guided life • Venus figurines – religion may have been strongly feminine, with great goddesses or fertility worship • Cyclical view of time

  13. Eurasian Migration • Left hundreds of cave paintings:

  14. Eurasian Migration

  15. Eurasian Migration

  16. Eurasian Migration

  17. Australian Migration

  18. Eurasian Migration

More Related