T1.

Introduction: Prologue to History

 What is History?
History : Record and interpretation of the human past
past thoughts and actions of human beings as well as
circumstances that determined or influenced those
thoughts and actions

Not only information but also interpretation

Not just a dry chronicle of past events - history also

seeks to identify the causes of those events

History studies society, culture, politics, economy and

all other spheres of human life in the past
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 Why History?
Those who cannot remember the past are
condemned to repeat it - George Santayana
(1863 1952), Spanish/American philosopher,
poet, novelist
History focuses on the past creates the
foundation for understanding the present and
anticipating the future
Education remains incomplete without some
basic knowledge about the past

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 Chronology in History

BC: Before Christ

BCE: Before Common Era (Before Christian
Era)
AD: Anno Domini
CE: Common Era (Christian Era)
Decade, Century, Millennium

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 How historians determine dates

Radiocarbon dating : radiocarbon isotope

C14 decays into C12
Potassium-argon method : potassium decays
into argon
DNA analysis: determines biological
inheritance, genetic variations

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 Evolution of human beings
African apes separated into gorillas, chimpanzees and
hominids (human-like creature)
Hominids eventually became modern humans through a
long and complicated evolutionary process
Skeleton of a young adult hominid found in Ethiopia in
1974 given the name Lucy just above 3 feet tall,
could walk upright, had ape size brain but humanlike
jaw and teeth
Dated approximately 3.2 million years ago

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Evolution of human beings

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Lucys skeleton and reconstructed image
 Evolution of humans
Survival required constant adaptation with
environmental changes some of the hominid groups
were better at it than others.
Hominids developed bipedalism, cognitive skills

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 Evolution

Most prominent hominids/humans include:

Australopithecus, Homo Habilis, Homo
Erectus, Homo Neanderthal, Homo Sapiens

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 Human Evolution

Australopithecus - Homo habilis - Homo erectus - Neanderthal

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-
Homo sapiens
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 Evolution of Human Society

Human Society

Age of Stone Age of Metal

Neolithic Age
Paleolithic Age
(from the end of
(c. 2,600000 BCE to
Paleolithic to c.3500
c. 8000 BCE)
BCE) 12
 Stone Age

Stone Age: phase of prehistory when the earliest

humans lived used stone to make most of their tools
also used other materials

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Means of livelihood during Paleolithic Age

Hunting

Food gathering

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Means of livelihood during Neolithic Age
Domestication of plants (agriculture)
Domestication of animals.

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 Paleolithic dwellings

Temporary dwellings
such as caves or
mammoth bone huts
hunting and food
gathering forced
people to move
where food was

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 Neolithic houses

Settled life due to

changes in means of
livelihood required
durable homes
Usually made of
wood or mud bricks.

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 Paleolithic tools
Fist Hatchet (hand axe)

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Neolithic tools

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 Study Questions
How do you perceive history?
Why is it essential to know history?
How are past events dated?
Who are the Homo sapiens?
What were the different ages in the development
of human society?
What were the means of livelihood during the
Paleolithic Age?
What new means of livelihood were acquired by
humans during the Neolithic Age?
What was the difference between Paleolithic and
Neolithic Ages in terms of tools and weapons? 20
Thank You

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