Early Human Beings
Dec 28, 2015
The Big Bang Around 13.7 billion years ago
Huge explosion created everything there is in the universe, all energy that will ever exist.
The Big Bang created galaxies, stars and planets, including our own, Earth
Earth Created around 4.5 billion years ago
Earth’s conditions allowed for life to develop
Around 3.5 billion years ago, first living organisms start to develop (single-cell organisms)
65 million years ago: Dinosaurs become extinct due to an asteroid hitting Earth.
Early Human Beings – Paleolithic Era
Early human beings were hunter-gatherers. Hunted small animals and gathered plants.Life was harsh and short.
2.5 million years ago – 10,000 years ago: Paleolithic Era (Old Stone Age)
Humans start using stone tools (2.5 million years ago) Sharper stone blades would serve as weapons
Hunted larger animals
Early Human BeingsUse of Fire
Light, cook meals, scare animalsMade it possible to live in different climates,
colder areas
Early hunter-gatherers lived in small groups, or bands10-12 people and their childrenNomadic lifestyle (moved from place to
place)
Surviving the Stone Age
Near the end of the Paleolithic Era, two groups of larger-brained humans appeared.
Neanderthals (disappeared around 30,000 years ago)
Homo Sapiens, or “Wise People” – Modern Human Beings
Migration of Early Human Beings
Two main theories for this migration:
1.“out of Africa”: Around 100,000 years ago, homo sapiens migrated out of Africa
and slowly replaced other groups they encountered throughout the world.
2.Multiregional model: Development of modern humans occurred in different locations in Africa, Asia, and Europe at
different times.
Surviving the Ice Age – The End of the Paleolithic Era
Adaptation to the world’s climate
Building of new sheltersForming larger communities to hunt and defend
themselvesClans: 25-50 people with leaders.
Artwork developed in cavesHorses, bison, bulls, etc.
New Religious beliefs and practicesBurial Practices (ex. People buried with necklaces)Believed natural world was filled with spirits (animism)
What are some of the consequences of farming?
Pros ConsProduced more food
and required less land than hunting
More people were able to build permanent settlements
Provided new sources of material for clothing
Planting crops and herding animals took a great deal of time
Farming was uncertain. If crops failed, families could starve
Nomads sometimes attacked villages to steal food.
Clearing areas for farming could lead to deforestation, clearing an area of trees
Catalhoyuk• One of the world’s very first permanent settlements– Populated more than 8,000 years ago
• Located in what is now Turkey
• Population of approximately 6,500 people– 1,000 dwellings crammed together– No need for complex government– No streets – people climbed out through ladders in
their ceilings
• Supported by agriculture and animal domestication– Barley, peas, wheat– Cattle, sheep