Ancient Civilizations

Australopithecus

200,000 BCE

Existed 4.5 million years ago. First hominid. Located in central Africa, present day Ethiopia. Lived in trees, animal like, eating fruits and berries with a little bit of meat. Important because it is the start of the evolutionary chain.

Homo Habilis

200,000 BCE

Existed 2.5 million years ago
Means abled human
Tool making hominid
First ones to make stone tools
Made tear dropped shaped hand axes, scraping tools, and carving tools. Allow them to hunt and process things
It is important because it is the next step in our evolutionary chain, and a huge jump in technology, larger brains to make better decision and communicate. Were perhaps learning from one another.

Homo Erectus

200,000 BCE

Existed 1.8 million years ago
Translates to upright man
Lived in Africa
Human like body proportions
Ranges from 4 ft 9 in - 6 ft 1 in tall

Homo Sapian Sapians

200,000 BCE

Existed 200,000 years ago until today
Most human like
Ability to run faster and longer
Run on two feet so their hands are freed to throw things accurately
Survived due to language and collective learning
This evolutionary event was a major step in the advancement of humans because being able to run on two legs and then throw things meant easier hunting and quicker to move around which made travel easier

Creation of stone tools

200,000 BCE

Discovered around 2.5 million years ago
The earliest creations were hammerstones, stone cores, and sharp stone flakes

Spear

200,000 BCE

Was recently found in a study that the spear was invented as many as 500,000 years ago
Combined a wooden shaft, mixed adhesives and a stone that had been chiseled to a lethal point
Was a monumental part in evolution because not only did it amplify the killing power of early hunters, it also demonstrated clearly that they had developed the capacity for complex and abstract reasoning

Fire

200,000 BCE

Evidence for the controlled use of fire by Homo erectus, beginning some 1,000,000 years ago
Important for warning off predators and cooking food
Was an important step in the development of humans
Impacted how the people could cook food and also key for their survival to warn off unwanted predators

Mount Toba Eruption

75,000 BCE

Located in the Barisan Mountains, north-central Sumatra, Indonesia
Considered to be the largest volcanic eruption in history. Sent the planet into a severe ice age.
The ashes of the eruption covered the sun causing the ice age
This eruption created the first ice age. The ice age caused a lot of animals to go extinct or be endangered which lowered the diversity of animals in the wild. Makes humans have to move to find more resources

Bow and arrow

66,000 BCE

Invented about 64,000 years ago
Had been found in a cave in South Africa
The bow consisted of a stave made of wood or other elastic material, bent and held in tension by a string
The arrow was a thin wooden shaft with a feathered tail

Out of Africa Theory

65,000 BCE

Dominant model of the geographic origin and early migration of modern humans
Spread throughout Eurasia over thousands of years
This is how early humans spread throughout Africa. Demonstrating how the early Africans branched out their civilization and created new land. This impacted the type of farming they would eventually do and the new species of animals they would discover

Land bridge

11,000 BCE

Created over 13,000 years ago
Connected Asia and North America
People crossed this land bridge and eventually migrated into North and South America
This land bridge led to areas where people could discover new technology to better their society. Also led to new farmland and resources where they could develop and grow. The land bridge impacted the boundaries of civilizations which could in turn create conflict but overall benefited the surrounding people

Invention of Agriculture

8000 BCE

Traditional hunter-gatherer lifestyles were set aside to make room for agriculture
Agriculture impacted the food surplus and was a steady food source
Agriculture also impacted the advancement of technology because ag led to inventions such as irrigation which made farming more efficient
Was thought that maybe early inhabitants domesticated agriculture simply for more food
Could provide a surplus
Charles Darwin believed agriculture was an accident

Early humans following coastline

8000 BCE

After leaving Africa, human groups followed coastal routes to the Americas and South-East Asia
Followed the coastline because it was easier to find resources
The impact of following the coastline was the amount of food such as fish and richer resources they could find as they went further down the coastline

Fish Hook

7000 BCE

Usually made from bone, shell, horn, bird’s beaks, or constructed with a wooden shank and a flint point
The fish hook impacted civilizations by creating a new way to get food. Instead of getting the fish by hand they could throw a fish hook into the water and get fish way faster
The fish hook was the first step into creating the fishing pole where they just added a stick and could cast further distances