chap 1 Flashcards
How long have Hominids been around?
About 4 million years
Who were the first hominids?
Australopithecines
When Australopithecines first appeared?
about 4 million years ago
How Australopithecines manipulated objects?
with their hands
How Australopithecines survived?
Relied on hunting and eating wild fruits
What was Australopithecine’s lifestyle?
Nomadic
When did Homo erectus appear?
1.5 million years ago
How did the homo erectus walk?
in upright position
What improvement did homo erectus did?
controlled fire
what improvement in migration did homo erectus do?
moved out of African continent
When did homo sapiens appear?
200 000 years ago
what are the 2 kinds of homo sapiens?
Neanderthal and homo sapiens sapiens
when did neanderthals went instinct and why?
between 40 000 and 30 000 years ago , the less numerous neanderthals were outnumbered and absorbed by homo sapiens sapiens through breeding
give characteristics of Neanderthals.
small, not really intelligent, muscular, reproduce quick, live in small groups
lifestyle of homo sapiens sapiens
nomadic
when did homo sapiens sapiens come to america?
about 15 000 years ago when they crossed the Bering Strait
When was paleolithic era?
c. 2 500 000 to 10 000 BCE
how did nomads live in Paleolithic era?
in groups of about 25 ppl, hunted big animals, gathered fruits and berries, devlopped religious beliefs.
When was the Neolithic era?
10 000 to 4000 BCE
what revolution did happen in neolithic era
transition from food-collectors to food-producers, transition from nomadic to sedentary lifestyle
What evolution happened in neolithic era?
molding metal tools and weapons
what invention was created in 3000 BCE?
the writing systems
What were the 2 societies that invented the writing systems?
Ancient Mesopotamia and ancient Egypt
Where is Mesopotamia (present-day)
Iraq, Iran and Syria
What is Mesopotamia known as?
the cradle of civilization
Between which rivers was Mesopotamia located?
Between Tigris & Euphrates rivers
Sumerians (engineers) what did they do?
Built irrigation systems, water reservoirs
Sumerians (inventors) what did they do?
Saw, hammers, glue, jewlery, CUNEIFORM
Sumerians (writing system)
invented pictographic writing called cuneiform,
Sumerians (occupations)
90% of pop worked in agriculture, other 10% were gov. officials, merchants, artisans, there were also slaves
Sumerians (trade)
traded between diff. Sumerian city-states, invented wheel to facilitate transport,
Sumerian (religion)
Polytheistic, feared gods du to floading of rivers, thought gods were angry, ceremonies (animal sacrifices/ Ziggurats),
Sumerian (political organization)
not a unified kingdom, lived in city-states of about 15 000 inhabitants, fought each other frequently, inabillity to unite made them vulnerable to foreing invaders
The akkadians
challenged sumerian control around 2340 BCE, led by sagron of akkad, between 2100 and 2000 BCE sumerian city-states regained independence but continued to fight amongst themselves
The amorites
dominated the sumerians starting c. 1800 BCE, well-organized army, solid bronze weapons, brilliant leader names Hammurabi
The code of Hammurabi
unified Mesopotamia through the rule of law, one of oldest law codes, contains 282 laws (281, no law 13) written on 8 foot high black stone, famous idea “eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth”
According to a legend, who unified Ancient Egypt in 3000 BCE?
Narmer, also called Menes, he was the first Pharaoh who ruled both lower and upper egypt.
Describe what was a Pharaoh
ruler in ancient Egypt, Considered a living god who maintained order and harmony, A source of life
Ancient Egypt
What are the similarities between Ancient Egypt and Ancient Mesopotamia
Mostly agricultural, Egyptians depended on floods to obtain water for themselves and their fields, Polytheistic religious beliefs, invented writing system (hieroglyphs)
Ancient Egypt
What are the differences between Ancient Egypt and Ancient Mesopotamia
More rural (less large cities), lived in small farming hamlets near nile river, did not fear flooding (they saw it as a blessing from their gods), Nile facilitated transportation of goods (no invention of wheel), less vulnerable to invasions,
