Human Evolution and Early Civilizations

Human Evolution

• Hominids/Homo are "manlike primates"
• Homo rudolfensis were early hominids
• Homo habilis ("handy man") were the first toolmakers
• Homo erectus ("upright man") developed more sophisticated tools, and had a brain size similar to modern humans
• Homo sapiens ("thinking man") created art and changed their environment

Civilizations

• Paleolithic Period (Old Stone Age): Small groups (20-30), food-collecting, 20-25 years average lifespan
• Neolithic Period (New Stone Age): Permanent settlements, food production (farming), pottery and weaving developed
• Metal Age: A more developed social, cultural, political and economic system defined civilization

Types of Societies

• Hunting and Gathering Societies: Survived through hunting, gathering plants and shellfish, using stone, wood, and bone tools
• Horticultural Societies: Cultivated plants for food, allowing permanent or semi-permanent settlements
• Pastoral Societies: Nomadic, followed herds for food and supplies, using tools for raising animals
• Agricultural Societies: Used plows and irrigation, increasing food production enough to support large populations; no longer needed to produce all their own food
• Industrial Societies: Relied on machines for production; manufacturing and large population centers
• Post-Industrial Societies: Relied on information and communication technologies.

Social Groups

• Social groups consist of two or more people, regularly interact, share common outlook & goals
• Primary groups: Small, face-to-face, direct interaction (e.g., family, close friends)
• Secondary groups: Formal, impersonal, little intimacy (e.g., school classes, work teams)
• In-groups: Groups a person identifies with, feelings of belonging and loyalty
• Out-groups: Groups a person does not identify with, often feelings of dislike or difference
• Reference groups: Groups that influence individual's beliefs and behavior, even if not a member.

Kinship

• Kinship refers to social relationships based on characteristics like ancestry or origin.
• Consanguineal kinship: Based on blood relatives
• Affinal kinship: Based on marriage
• Monogamy: Marriage to one person at a time
• Polygamy: Marriage to multiple people at a time
  • Polygyny: One man, multiple women
  • Polyandry: One woman, multiple men
• Endogamy: Marriage within a specified group (e.g., clan or ethnicity)
• Exogamy: Marriage outside a specified group
• Levirate: A man marries his deceased brother's widow
• Sororate: A woman marries her deceased sister's widower

Families

• Family: A small social unit that typically cares for its younger members
• Nuclear family: Parents and children
• Single-parent family: One parent and children
• Extended family: Multiple generations living together
• Blended family: Two individuals who have children from previous relationships
• Patrilineal: Tracing descent through the male line
• Matrilineal: Tracing descent through the female line
• Bilateral: Descent traced through both male and female lines
• Patrilocal: A couple lives near or with the husband's family
• Matrilocal: A couple lives near or with the wife's family