Chapter 1

Who were the first known humans and which time periods/territories did they cover? The earliest human-like creatures were known as hominids and lived in Africa about three or four million years ago. They were known as “southern ape-men”, having flourished in eastern and southern Africa. The Australopithecines were the first hominids that made simple stone tools to hunt or defend themselves, existing about two to four million years ago. These early human-like creatures were bipedal, meaning they walked upright on two legs, enabling them to make journeys on foot. In 1959, a new form of hominid was discovered in Africa labeled the Homo habilis or “handy human”. These hominids were believed to have a brain fifty percent larger than that of the Australopithecines. This allowed them to become more sophisticated in finding food and hunting in Africa. The emergence of the Homo Erectus began about 1.5 million years ago. The Homo Erectus were the first hominid to migrate to Europe and Asia from Africa.

Describe the …show more content…
Historians call this area the Harappan civilization and found sophisticated communities with mudbrick villages located there. The abundant rainfall helped the civilization thrive and archeologists found the area to be from the Himalayas to the Indian ocean. The Harappan civilization started off as a tiny village until they thrived and grew until a ruling elite became leader. Archeological evidence suggests that made of over fifteen hundred cities and towns ruled by landlords instead of being a large center with a centralized monarchy. There were no royal burial monuments unlike the Egyptian empire in the old kingdom and only a few images exist that represent kings or priests. Harappa did not have a centralized government or become a major civilization like the Assyrians and Persians yet traded with Sumer and had a social