Cultural Evolution

in Asia
A human is smart because he was able
to mold the stone and use it for his
everyday life during a period when he
was mostly dependent on the forces of
nature.
They are our ancestors – the ones who
are called Homo sapiens sapiens,
species in which we belong at present.
Prehistory refers to the
period of long history of
humankind almost 2.5
million years ago or before
the creation of systematic
writing.
History, the study of
human’s past based on
written documents only
started at about 5000
BCE(Before the Common
Era) in West Asia.
The discipline of archeology
is the primary source of
knowledge about prehistory.
Two essential processes
happened during the prehistoric
period: evolution and abililty of
humans to create things.
Evolution or the biological
changes that occur to a human until
he obtains the knowledge that would
separate him from animals.
(sapientization)
The ability of the present species
to create things or tools from his
environment.
In recording dates of the prehistory, it is
vital to use modern technology and
equipment to identify the significant events
in the past.
The Stone Age is divided into
1. Paleolithic
2. Mesolithic
3. Neolithic
During the Paleolithic, the prehistoric
humans lived as hunter-gatherers.
Mesolithic is the transitional part
toward human’s agricultural way of life.
During Neolithic, humans lived by
farming.
Bronze Age and Iron age, respectively
followed the Stone Age.
 Paleolithic Period
Paleolithic Period (Old Stone Age) is the
earliest period in the prehistory that shows
the evidence of the emergence of humans.
Comes from the word “palaios” or old and
“lithos” or age.
This is the earliest period in the Stone age
and the longest stage of the history of human
kind.
It is also the period when the
hominid started using stone tools.
Hominid refers to those who
belong the family of bipedal primate
mammals where the present form of
human, his ancestors and his other
relatives belong to.
In the study of Paleolithic in Asia,
two important areas of development
with regards to the use of tools can
be observed.
The used of hand-axes in the
regions of Southwest Asia, Central
Asia, Central Siberia, and India.
The use of pebble tools in
some parts of South Asia,
Southeast Asia and China.
In these places, the use of a
chopper which is often made
from pebbles is prevalent.
 Mesolithic Period
The period after Paleolithic is called
Mesolithic.
Comes from Greek word “mesos” or
middle and “lithos” or stone.
With the end of the glacial period, the
climate become warmer, which is suitable for
farming.
 Neolithic Period
The last part of the Stone Age is called
Neolithic (New Stone)
Comes from “neos” or new and “lithos” or
stone.
The distinct characteristics of this period is
the use of different tool, human settlement in
permanent communities, domestication of
crops and animals and the existence of
knowledge about pottery and weaving.
The earliest traces of Neolithic culture can
be found in West Asia between 8000 BCE
and 6000 BCE.
The people also started to domesticate
animals and plant crops.
One of the earliest communities that
emerged in the world is the city of Jericho in
the valley of Jordan, which was established
around 7000 BCE.
After one thousand years, another
Neolithic settlement emerged in Asia Minor
in a place called Catal Huyuk in the place
of Konya at Central Anatolia, which is
present day Turkey.
Catal Huyuk is an agricultural community
where people plant wheat and barley and
domesticate sheep and cows.
It is said that an individual only
lived up to thirty years old during
this time.
The deceased are buried inside the
house, and they put food on the spot
where the dead lies.
Such practice implies that our
ancestors believe in life after death.
Mesopotamia reached the Neolithic
way of life at around 10 000 BCE.
This happened in India around 5000
BCE.
The Neolithic culture in West Asia,
particularly in the river-valley of Tigris-
Euphrates, developed into a civilization
during the Bronze Age back in 3500
BCE.
Between 6000 BCE and 2000 BCE,
the Neolithic culture spread in Europe
and the river-valleys of Nile in Egypt,
Indus in India, and Huang He in China.
The emergence of these civilizations
in the world is the start of another
chapter in the history of humankind.
 Metal Age
Bronze Age followed the Neolithic
Period in the region of Eurasia.
It started during the period when
bronze was already being used to make
ordinary tools or weapons.
Smelting or the process of extracting
iron from ore is important.
If the amount of iron extracted is
enough, one can already create various
things through pounding, melting, and
molding.
This technology first emerged in West
Asia.
The first iron that was molded was
copper. By combining copper and tin,
bronze was made.
The Bronze Age in West Asia
started from 3000 BCE until 1000
BCE.
This technology spread to Eurasia,
from Britain to China. In 2000 BCE,
a large part of Eurasia was already in
the Bronze Age.
Around 1000 BCE, the Iron Age
started in West Asia and spread to
Eurasia.
In 500 BCE, Eurasia was also in the
Iron Age.
The use of iron became widespread
because it had more supply than copper
and tin.
It was used to make tools for
agriculture and war.
The Iron Age is the highest
level of cultural and
technological development
during prehistory.