World Civilization

I
Introduction
 Difficulty Studying History

I. July 2001 discovery of Hominid

II. Early Hominid Society: Prehistoric

A. Oral Culture
B. Nomadic
C. Tools/ language and communication

 Knowledge of Early Ancestors

A. Prior to 5000, archeological and anthropologic (records,
fossils, cultural, genetic)
 Difficulty Studying History

I. Knowledge of early Ancestors

A. Humans descended from Hominids
B. Beginning about 2 million years ago Hominids grew in
dexterity, brainpower, tools
C. Cultural Behavior begins with the onset of the of Old Stone
Age or Paleolithic period (2 million-10,000 BCE)

 Achievements of Hominids/cultural behavior

 Social /communication skills
 Hunting, Foraging, Family, Gender
 Migration
 Social/Cultural Skills

What set Hominids apart from other Animals

B. Better ways at adapting to environment
 Learned which plants were digestible.
 Power of memory and speech
 Cultural development unique to humans- languages, arts,
rituals, institutions, technologies, - distinguished form
others
 Hunting, Foraging, Family, and
Gender
A. Early Hominids scavengers/ nomads

B. Foraging parties were connected by Kinship, small easy to

relocate
C. Members of Kinship group – extended family

D. Children of hominids require nurturing longer.

E. Family concerns may explain division of labor between men

and women
F. Gender division does not mean women valued less. Adults
collaborated in making decisions for all in extended group
 Migration/Ice Age

A. Paleolithic period corresponds roughly with what

geologists called the Pleistocene Epoch aka the Great Ice
age – (2,000,000 BCE to roughly 8,000 BCE.

B. Ice age alternates in climate

C. Induced by growing populations or environmental

changes, mammals created new habits

D. 1.8 million years ago hominids left Africa and traveled to

Asia.
 Migration/Ice Age

A. 200,000 to 150,000 BCE; Homo Sapiens emerged (modern

man)
1. Developed greater linguistic skills, ability to reason, developed
sharing of information
2. Innovators: fashioned ropes from fibers, developed spears and
harpoons for hunting, warmer clothing, food preservation leading
to longer life span
3. By about 50,000 BCE - human societies migrated to Australia via
boat
4. 12,000 BCE when huge glaciers absorbed much of the water, sea
levels dropped hundreds of feet, exposing a broad land bridge.
 Migration/Ice Age

A. By the End, Paleolithic period, almost every region of

globe was inhabited by human societies.

B. Cultural Diversity
1. Each group adjusted to their climates and conditions
differently

 Paleolithic Cultural/Spiritual perspectives

1. New forms of expression , paintings, writing, burial practices
 Inter-connections/ Conflict

I. Distinct separate societies/ not in isolation

a. Contact made with neighbors. Divide territory,
familial links,
b. Conflict occurs when hunting became depleted
 Emergence of Agriculture

I. 10,000 BCE, Nomadic life changes

a. West Africa – new techniques for gathering food

 Neolithic (New Stone Age, 9000-3000 BCE)

 New tools developed, domesticated plants & animals,
established permanent settlements.

 Farming began in West Africa (archeological evidence)

 Spread to Fertile Crescent between 9000-8000 BCE,
crescent shaped region, Israel, Syria, Iraq
 It is believed that animal domestication began here
 Emergence of Agriculture

I. Agricultural Innovation and Expansion

a. West Africa first place, Sudan, Sahara, 8000 BCE
b. China, valleys of the great rivers settlers started to grow
crops and cultivated sorghum as early as 8000 BCE
c. By 7000 BCE Ag began in the Indus Valley of India
d. By 6000 BCE AG it started in Europe and Egypt’s Nile Valley
e. In Western Hemisphere: Ag developed differently, w/o
contact with Eurasia, 7000 BCE the crop was corn, beans,
and squash
f. In all areas the farming was accompanied by population
growth and need for more land, land was cleared.
 Pastoral Nomads

I. Foraging persisted, not all took up ag readily, harder work

than hunting

II. Combination of hunting/ag in Northern areas (North America)

III. Americas, some took up farming but not herding, were there
were fewer large domesticated animals

IV. Central Asia, embraced herding but not farming where arid
climate were unsuitable for grazing animals bunt not crops.

V. Mobile herders such as these know as Pastoral Nomads

 Pastoral Nomads

I. Contact with Ag societies and trade took place also

conflict. In long run Ag could support far more people
a. Settled societies developed
 Agricultural Societies (Village,
Land, Family)
A. Ag societies would develop into settled societies, with
many advantages; population, weapons, possessions,
and power, enabling them to defeat or displace all
nomadic peoples
B. Key Difference 1: permanence of place, the Farming
Village, small settlements of homes in a compact cluster,
surrounded by lands on which the villagers raised food.
C. Key Difference 2: Ag society communities grew larger
than nomadic groups, who were limited by the need for
mobility,
 Agricultural Societies (Village,
Land, Family)
A. Possession of land became a key concern in Ag societies.
Where livelihoods depended largely on the land they
sought to maintain/expand access to various lands
B. Families were also more structured.

C. Key Difference 3: Gender roles

1. Nomadic societies: women’s role crucial to survival, women
supplied the plant food for whole groups survival while men
are out hunting
2. AG: women worked in the home and village, men in the
fields
 Agricultural Societies (Village,
Land, Family)
A. Key Difference 4: Family size:
1. Nomadic families smaller, women needed to be able to
share child rearing
2. Ag societies: many hands were needed in the fields, larger
families were desirable

 Long run: Ag societies had a crucial advantage: the

ability to produce a food surplus, in good years, and store
for bad years, ensuring survival
 Complex Societies Emerge

I. End of Neolithic Period. (West Africa, North Africa)

II. Mesopotamia: The First Civilization
 Civilization is a culture that has attained a degree of
complexity, characterized by urban life and the
interdependence of its urban residents.
 Civilization is a culture capable of sustaining a greater
number of specialists to furnish the economic, social,
political and religious needs of a greater unit
 Other concerns: writing (need to keep records) architecture
that is permanent, combined with a religious background
 Sumer (Bronze Age)

I. In the area of Mesopotamia. Emerged around 3500-3100

BCE.
(a) First complex society, 3500 wheels, and transportation of
wood and stone down rivers to urban centers.
(b) 3200 BCE Sumer obtains majority of characteristics of
civilization.
(c) Contact with other civilizations: Egypt
(d) By 2800 BCE syllabic writing reduced from 2000 characters
to 600, evolved from a pictorial form of writing.
 Sumer (2800 BCE)

I. Full complex civilization

(a) Age of constant warfare, (Old Sumerian Period), each city
attempted to protect and enlarge its land and guarantee its
access to water and irrigation
(b) Each city-state Theocracy, chief local god was believed to
be the actual ruler, in Sumer it was Ensi.
(c) Gilgamesh the famous Ensi of Urk about 2700 BCE, was
strong ruler, Epic poem shows Sumerian rules could be
questioned.
 Sumer (2800 BCE)

I. Full complex civilization

(a) Like many religions to follow, priests, administrators, Ensi’s
began to confiscate land and assert their authority over other
people
(b) Slavery: like their other Mesopotamian neighbors/ancestors used
Slavery. However had rights, and not based on race.
(c) Sumerian women could attain a high prominence on the rank of
their own or their husbands.
(d) Men had the greatest authority over their wives in economic and
legal matters, children were under control of parents until 20 or
21 years of age.
 Akkadian Period (2300-2150)

I. North of Sumer was Akkad, inhabited by Semites who

adopted Sumerian Culture

II. Sargon I was the first Akkadian ruler from 2370-2315 BCE
to conquer Sumer and establish Empire from Persian Gulf
to the Mediterranean.

III. Sargon I proud of his low status

IV. Successors were not as tireless as Sargon and Dynasty

collapsed around 2150 BCE
 Lugals Return (2150-2000)

A. Lugal: those of the political elite in Sumer, often lugal

would refer to KING.

B. By 2150 Lugals of Sumer city of UR returned the rule of

Sumer to Mesopotamia.

C. New Neo-Sumerian period- introduced centralized

administration to Akkad and Sumer

D. The formerly temple dominated cities became provinces

administered by closely regulated governments.
 Lugals Return (2150-2000)

A. Religion became an arm of the state, High priests became state

appointees

B. Head of bureaucratic state was a Lugal located in Ur

C. Lugal of Ur called themselves “Vigilant Sheppard” of their people and

were celebrated as living Gods.

D. Disaster struck Ur around 2000 BCE when the Elamites from what is now
Iran destroyed the city.

E. The Sumerians were never again a dominant political force, but their
cultural influence would be powerful throughout all subsequent
civilizations in the Tirgis Euphrates valley.

F. Sumerian language continued as a language of scholarship and ritual

 Summary

 Agricultural Revolution gave way to the birth of complex

civilizations

 Sumer/Akkad were first great complex civilizations