Cheng Chen

10th of September of 2007

4th Hour Belch
AP World History

Outline Chapter 1 (Pages 4-14)

Apx. 5,000 years ago, people lived in Sumer, Mesopotamia (World's first urban civilization).

civilization-

1. Cities are administrators.

2. Politics are based on defined land rather than kinship.
3. Specialization of a high amount of people exists.
4. Social class is subjected to wealth status.
5. Buildings/monuments are created.
6. System of storing permanent records (writing) exists.
7. Long distance trade exits.
8. Interest in sophisticated science and art exists.

Stone Age-

• The whole stone age was 2 million years ago to 4,000 years ago:
• Paleolithic- 2 MYA - 10,000 Years Ago
• Neolithic- 10,000 Years Ago - 4,000 Years Ago
• First Man Made Fire: 1-1.5 Million Years Ago
• First cultivated cooking: 12,500 Years Ago
• First Woven Cloth: 26,000 Years Ago
• Earliest Cave Paintings: 32,000 Years Ago
• Earliest large stone graves: 100,000 Years Ago
• Start of Agriculture: 10,000 Years Ago

(Most of the earliest roots of human civilization/style originated from the Paleolithic Era.)

Neolithic Revolution = Agrictultural Revolutions-

• The changes of the new stone age was no just a singular change of the start of agriculture. The
revolution of this new era spanned with many subjects at many different times and many
different places.
• The main focus of the agricultural revolution is the adoption of agriculture rather than just
hunting/gathering.
• At first, semicultivation existed to let migrating bands move with certain preference of foods.
• More evidence of early agriculture came from the creation of tools for farm work.
• Men mostly did field clearing. Women did cultivation.
• 8000 B.C.E.- Wild plants were transformed into high yielding grains such as emmer wheat and
barley. Crop rotation soon started.
• Post 8000 B.C.E., eastern Sahara had a wet period = much agriculture. After this time (5000
B.C.E.), the residents moved by the Nile Valley to use the annual flooding for cultivation.
• 2600 B.C.E. tilling of heavier and richer soils started in Central Europe.
• Rice was from China: 10,000 B.C.E. - 5,000 B.C.E.
• The first domesticated animal was the dog. Later, more domestication existed supply many
resources.
• 2500 B.C.E.: Sahara at its maximum dryness- Pastoralism started there.
• Beer started around 3500 B.C.E.
• Australians relied much on hunting over agriculture of crops.
• Population @ 5000 B.C.E.= 10 million.
• Population @ 1000 B.C.E.= 50-100 million.
Life in Neolithic Communities:

• Farm work was harder than foraging.

• Agriculture = less nutrients than food from foraging. Agriculture also caused disease to spread
more quickly than through foraging.
• Farming also gave rise to the storage of harvests.
• Evidence mostly suggests that the replacement of farmers to non-farmers was gradual and not
by conquests.
• Kinship lines caused blood relatives to bond together, forming lineages or clans.
• Because of the large size of families, the tracing of ancestors became difficult. Many
societies focused on a certain course of tracing: Matrilineal (Through the female lines) or
Patrilineal (Through the male lines).
• Megaliths- Big Stones:
• Large stone structures were built during the neolithic time period.
• These structures suggested religious ideas. (i.e. Stonehenge)
• Towns were the centers of trade.
• Jericho (8000 B.C.E.) located at the west bank of the Jordan River.
• Catal Huyuk (7000-5000 B.C.E.) located at modern day Turkey. No evidence of apparent
dominant class or political structure exists.
• Religion also existed in Catal Huyuk. This religion is hypothesized to be female dominant.

Summaries:

During the Paleolithic era, the roots of human development and civilization started. At that time,
humans slowly developed ways and tools to advance themselves to control their environment and
techniques. In addition, humans also developed more advanced ways of expression. These include the
building of monuments, the creation of art work, the weaving of cloth, etc. Fire was also made at this
time.

With the basis set up during the Paleolithic era, the action of changing and advancing was further
engaged during the Neolithic era. During this era, the agricultural revolution started, causes many
communities to adopt farming techniques over ordinary foraging. This, with many other factors caused
humans to advance with civilization. The population of humans also boomed.

With the advent of civilization brought by the Neolithic period, culture also developed with humans.
Evidence of religion exists in old towns, especially in Catal Huyuk, in which every 2 houses had a shrine.
Megaliths were also erected, suggesting other styles of religion. Overall, art work, culture, and style
reflected the growth of civilization during the neolithic era.