Primitive people. What did they look like, what did they know? Scientists are confident that they have found convincing answers to these questions. So when did primitive people appear? Where can you find wild tribes today?
Ancient people, or rather their very first species, appeared approximately 2.5 million years ago. If we go by Darwin's theory, which some consider crazy, then they descended from Australopithecus, these creatures are the highest among all primates. They appeared in Africa 2.5-3.5 million years ago. These monkeys had small brain and massive jaws. They could hold in their hands various items, like sticks or stones, and also move with a straight back.
Perhaps the key factor in evolution was that they could use the objects around them. This gave impetus to the functioning of the brain. A mutation occurred in the genes of South African monkeys, resulting in “homo erectus” or homo erectus.
Is “Homo erectus” still a person or does he belong to an animal?
Homo erectus is the first wild man who began to explore European spaces. It is difficult to say exactly when this species reached the lands of Europe, since the opinions of historians differ, and they give different dates. The “upright walkers” had already realized that it was much easier to survive together and began to gather in small tribes. With a collective mind, they came up with basic actions and began to develop simple hunting tactics and build huts. They began to use fire, but could not yet produce it. Homo erectus also realized that they should bury the dead. Some scholars claim that they worshiped certain types of animals.
What are their common characteristics? The chin was less protruding, the forehead was slightly inclined, right hand was more developed than the left. However, in general, they were similar to the previous species. Body covered with fur, long arms and legs. They communicated using gestures and confused shouts.
Neanderthals: who are they and where did they go?
200,000 years ago, the first primitive people called Neanderthals appeared in Europe. Having lived there for quite a long time, they disappeared in an instant. Scientists have made some assumptions, but to this day there is no exact information.
The first Neanderthal skull was found in Germany. Today, scientists are confident that they may be direct descendants of the human race. Their gene is present in DNA modern man in content from 1 to 4%. And not only among Africans. Most scientists recognize that our direct descendants are the Cro-Magnons, who lived not after the Neanderthals, but at the same time as them. These species coexisted for about 20,000 years. This also indicates that we may still carry some mixed genes within us.
Why did Neanderthals go extinct? There are many versions, but none of them have found significant confirmation. Some say that it's all to blame ice age, others claim that another human species could have committed genocide. In any case, the fact remains that the Neanderthals died out, and the Cro-Magnons continued to exist, as they were more predisposed to intellectual activity.
Cro-Magnons are the predecessors of modern humans
The development of Cro-Magnons differed significantly from the evolution of their predecessors. Outwardly they are not much different from modern people. Some sources confuse them with the concept of “homo sapiens,” believing that they are not much different. But in fact there are differences, and they should not be confused.
There are intact skulls of this species preserved in Ethiopia. Their age is approximately 160 thousand years. These wild people had an almost identical appearance to modern man. If you look at the skull, you can see that the brow arches are not very pronounced, the forehead is convex, and the face is smooth. This people can safely be called the longest-lived human species on earth. Californian scientists were able to discover that the first people on Earth appeared about 200,000 years ago in Africa, and then they began to actively populate the entire planet. At the beginning of the Upper Paleolithic (a period about 40,000 years ago), their habitat covered almost the entire planet.
How did wild people live?
Despite the fact that the first man appeared on Earth a very long time ago, archaeologists managed to recreate him daily life. First it became known that ancient people lived in small communities, since it was almost impossible to exist alone at that time, and those who renounced their tribe most often simply died. Even at that time, people were segmented and, based on the results of the distribution, they were given work that was within their capabilities. Ancient people had already adapted to the use of sticks and stones and with their help they obtained food for themselves and developed territory for the tribe.
They changed their place of residence very often because they were constantly in search of food. Most often, ancient people set up camps near watering holes and got their food there. Since they could not create full-fledged housing, they took refuge in caves and gorges. Over time, the area around the cave was devastated, food became less and less, therefore, the tribes had to move.
Even then, man learned to make fire. He was kept in caves and was not allowed to go out day and night.
The first city on Earth was built 3400 BC in South America. This building was the same age Egyptian pyramids. Is it a coincidence? An interesting fact is that the houses were built with enviable precision; it is obvious that the city was carefully designed before construction.
What did wild people wear?
About 170 thousand years ago, man first thought about clothing. It was she who helped him leave Africa and migrate to places with colder climates. In the cold, a person began to think more actively about survival, and the intellectual component began to develop.
At first, people used clothes to protect themselves from a mysterious threat from the outside. Then they came to wrap themselves in skins to protect themselves from the cold.
Wild people today
You and I are the “fruits” of evolution. However, there are people on the planet who have not been able to experience the blessings modern world. Most of them are the wild peoples of Africa and the tribes living in the Amazon. Time stopped for these people several thousand years ago.
What tribes do we know today?
- Sentinelese people living on Sentinel Island. They can foresee natural disasters. Modern researchers have tried to contact them, but to no avail.
- Maasai. Aggressive African tribe, their appearance characterized by the fact that from childhood they cut their lip and insert a large ring there. Polygamy flourishes in the tribe, as there are an order of magnitude more women.
- Groups of Nicobar and Andamanese tribes live by regularly raiding each other. From time to time, some of them are forced to carry out acts of cannibalism, since the food supply is replenished extremely rarely.
- Piraha. A very undeveloped but friendly tribe. Talks about the primitiveness of the tribe complete absence mythology.
Conclusion
Tribes consisting of wild people, still exist today. They shy away from modern man, because they subconsciously understand that he is capable of changing their usual way of life. In most cases, they treat researchers with misunderstanding and aggression. However, every year their numbers decrease, which suggests that civilization is conquering more and more new horizons.
Knowledge of nature developed the observation skills of ancient man. This allowed him to make many wonderful discoveries. People gradually learned to understand the plant world around them. They learned to distinguish beneficial plants from those that could cause harm. They began to eat many plants and learned the medicinal properties of some of them. Infusions, ointments, and decoctions were made from medicinal plants. Poisons were used to put fish to sleep, but they were mainly used to coat arrowheads.
Already in such a distant past, people were able to identify certain diseases and apply appropriate treatment methods. If necessary, they stopped the bleeding and even performed surgical operations, such as opening an abscess or removing a diseased tooth. In exceptional cases, diseased limbs could be amputated.
Hunting allowed me to learn a lot about the life of wild animals. People were well versed in the habits of animals; by their tracks they could determine their routes of movement. While hunting or gathering, people navigated the terrain. He learned this by observing the position of the Sun and stars in the sky.
The man knew how to measure distances. Long distances were measured in days of travel. In this case, a day was considered the period from sunrise to sunset. Smaller distances were measured by the flight of an arrow or spear. Very small - with the help various parts human body: foot, elbow, finger, nail.
Ideas about the world around us
Ancient man felt himself to be a part of nature. He was convinced of the existence of his connection with the animal and plant world. Therefore, the worship of certain species of animals and plants arose. The animal, which was considered the patron of the clan, was forbidden to kill and eat, and it could not be harmed in any way. The image of the patron of the clan was applied to weapons, household items, and the home was decorated with it.
Thunderstorms, the change of day and night, the rising and setting of the sun and moon, and other natural phenomena were considered by primitive people as the activity of spirits. In their minds, spirits often had a humanoid appearance.
f Remember folk tales, in which things, tools, plants are endowed human qualities.
Primitive man believed that there were evil and good spirits in the world. The patronage of good spirits helps to cope with a serious illness and promotes successful hunting. Evil spirits can cause terrible disasters - fire, death and other misfortunes. You can call for the help of good spirits and avoid evil ones with the help of a gift, that is, making a sacrifice in their honor. The victim could be a killed animal, and sometimes even a person. 
Buffalo. Bone carving. 13th millennium Stonehenge. England BC e. La Madeleine. France
Ancient people had their own explanation for death. In the Cro-Magnon burials found by archaeologists, the dead were laid in the position of a sleeping person. Their heads rested on a stone “pillow” or a bed of grass. Nearby were clothes, food, and jewelry. If the deceased was a hunter during his lifetime, hunting tools were located nearby. Excavations of burials indicate that the Cro-Magnons believed in an afterlife.
Primitive people believed in the powerful power of magic. It was believed that certain actions and words had magical powers, and the magical effect could be enhanced with the help of an amulet. An amulet, or amulet, is an object that protects a person from harm. For the hunt to be successful, a magical ritual was performed. At the same time, in their spells they turned to good spirits for help.
Only the shamans or sorcerers of the tribe knew mysterious, magical techniques. These were, as a rule, elderly people. They had more life experience than relatives. They knew how to observe nature, knew signs, and used the medicinal properties of plants. Sorcerers performing magical actions, given to hunters practical advice, could provide assistance in case of illness. IN tribal community, the tribe treated sorcerers with great respect. Kindred thought that sorcerers were endowed special gift, allowing them to communicate with and influence spirits. Shamans were trusted to educate young people.
Primitive people did not have writing, so their understanding of the surrounding nature was passed on from generation to generation in the form oral histories. This is how myths appeared - tales about heroes, gods, natural phenomena. For example, one of them said that the sun is a person who has two houses: on earth and in heaven. He makes a daily journey from one house to another.
Another myth spoke of a huge bird with giant wings. When it flies across the sky, terrible thunder is heard from the flapping of its wings, and when it blinks, lightning flashes. Through fantastic explanations of natural phenomena, primitive man sought to comprehend the world around him and understand his place in it.
More on the topic Knowledge of primitive people:
- VI. Private logical perfection of knowledge A. Logical perfection of knowledge in quantity.- quantity.- Axmentive and intensive quantity.- breadth and thoroughness or importance and fruitfulness of knowledge.- Definition of the horizon of our knowledge
§ 1. How did primitive man become intelligent?
Objective of the lesson. Be able to explain concepts: work, abilities, creativity.
A long time ago, people lived on Earth who were completely different from modern humans. These were primitive people. They lived in caves and dressed in animal skins. (You will learn more about the primitive era in history lessons Ancient world.)
It is difficult to imagine that primitive people were our ancestors.
But that's true. After many millions of years, man appeared modern look (reasonable man) - just like you and me. How did this happen?
Ancient man needed to get food for himself, sew clothes and build a home.
It wasn't easy. It took a lot of effort and labor. The more complex tasks a person set for himself, the more perfect his work became. The tools he used in his work also improved. With the help of a stone ax, a wooden spear, and a bone knife, he obtained food for himself and sewed clothes from skins. Primitive man turned into a skilled person. His hands became dexterous. The brain developed.
At first he hunted animals, and then began to tame them. Sheep, goats, pigs and cows gradually became domestic animals. Previously, he dug up edible roots and picked the fruits of wild plants, but now he began to sow barley and wheat, and bake hearty cakes from flour. Previously, he wandered through forests, mountains and valleys in search of food, but now he began to intelligently plan his work. I thought about how to grow crops, have sheep or cows, build a pen or barn for them.
Labor helped primitive people develop their capabilities. They learned to speak clearly and communicate with each other. Got some free time for creativity, that is, to create completely new, hitherto unknown tools, decorations, images.
A lot of time will pass before a person learns to write and pass on his knowledge and experience to those who will live after him. He will learn to know himself and the world around him.
Yes, step by step ancient man, powerless before the vagaries of nature, turned into a rational being, a modern human being.
* * * Questions and tasks for the paragraph
1. How did primitive people live? Look at the illustrations for the paragraph.
2. Highlight the reasons that contributed to the transformation primitive man into a modern homo sapiens.
3. What role did labor play in this? Give examples of how work influenced human development.
4 * . Using additional literature and Internet resources, define the concept of “labor.”
5. How did ancient man understand the world?
Read, retell, discuss
Young Bars
The tribe that had camped near Mount Big Spear a few months ago was worried. The young man Bars refused to go hunting with all the men. “You will die of hunger,” the elder told him. “We will miss you.” To this Bars replied: “Don’t worry about me. I know what I'm doing." While his fellow tribesmen were hunting, he collected various herbs and roots, saying: “Here is my meat. And here is my meat." And he put the plants in a bag woven from grass.
He loved to sit for long hours on the bank of the stream. Appeared on the wet sand beautiful patterns and mysterious signs. The tribe members really liked these signs. They copied them on small flat stones and took them with them for good luck.
The tribesmen watched the strange young man for a long time. They could not explain his eccentricities. He did not hunt, but he was healthy, strong, and never got sick. And then they decided to choose him as the Keeper of the Secret: after all, he knew something that they did not know.
...Bars was the first among them to think independently - a primitive scientist.
Finish the story
A ten-year-old girl from a hill tribe caught a fawn. The elders told her to bring the fawn to the fire in the evening to eat it. But the kind girl fell in love with the baby deer...
Find related words
Capabilities. Creation. Work. Human.
Reflecting on what has happened
1. Were primitive people cruel or kind?
2. Did they care about the children?
3 * . Using a dictionary or the Internet, formulate what abilities are and what abilities primitive people had.
Work with drawings
Look at the pictures and choose which ones relate to primitive society, and which - to a later period of time and to the present. Make up short stories.
Play
Primitive man finds himself in a modern department store. He is hungry and wants to find some clothes. The sellers are trying to teach him how to behave properly in the store.
Fill out the diagram
Using your knowledge of the history of the Ancient World, fill out the diagram of the transformation of primitive man into modern man.
Especially for vacationers, as well as regular travel lovers, we tell you where the legs of modern tourism come from.
1. Primeval world
The first people could not afford long-term parking. Having exhausted natural resources, they left their homes and went in search of new lands, where the mammoths were bigger and the grass was greener.
Constant migration processes stimulated the intellectual development of people: the beginnings of geographical knowledge appeared, botany, zoology and even elementary mechanics developed. In addition, the need to transmit accumulated information contributed to the emergence of rock art.
2. Ancient civilizations
With the advent of the first civilizations, the movement of human masses around the planet did not stop, although the motivation for movement changed.
The key to prosperity ancient states was international trade. Rulers Ancient Egypt regularly equipped expeditions pursuing trade and economic goals. For example, it is known for certain about the journey of a certain Hannu in 2750 BC. to the Red Sea coast for precious stones, ivory and incense.
Then, in the 27th century BC. e. Egyptian ships crossed the Mediterranean Sea for the first time - the destination of the wanderers was the Phoenician city of Byblos, from where the flotilla returned filled to the brim with cedar wood.
It should be noted that merchants often played the role of pioneers, supplying their homeland not only with rare goods, but also with valuable information about the structure of the surrounding world.
The development of trade led to the creation of the institution of embassies. Chinese, Egyptian, and Sumerian diplomats made long-term voyages to distant lands in order to become a guarantor of peaceful relations between states. Long before the start new era Religious wanderings also appeared. Groups of pilgrims making processions to the temples of the great gods, and missionaries spreading their own creed, organically fit into the cultural landscape of the ancient world.
3. Ancient Greece
The Hellenes also undertook trading voyages, made pilgrimages and traveled for knowledge (“The Father of History” Herodotus visited Egypt, Persia, Babylonia, the country of the Scythians and many other places, describing in detail the geography of his movements, as well as the history and culture of the peoples he saw). Moreover, it is in Ancient Greece For the first time, such phenomena as sports and health tourism appeared.
Those wishing to improve their health went to the temples of the god of healing, Asclepius. These structures, as a rule, were located far from cities in places with a favorable climate. Temple priests studied medicine and helped everyone who wanted to be cured of illnesses.
However, the treatment began even before the believer met the deity. The ritual preceding a visit to the temple included a number of important procedures: fasting, ablution, and visiting the bathhouse. In addition, the Greeks knew very well about the healing properties of sulfur, salt-sulfur and ferruginous waters. Baths were built near the springs, where wealthy citizens could relax and at the same time get rid of ailments.
The phenomenon of sports tourism appeared in Greece around the 8th century. BC e. thanks to Olympic Games. Every four years, tens of thousands of fans flocked to Olympia to watch their idols compete.
On the occasion of the Olympics, a fair was held in the city, where, in addition to shopping, one could listen to the performances of famous philosophers, poets or speakers, and also admire the works of local painters. Cultural leisure continued in the temples, where, for a fee, it was possible to watch the work of the priests, as well as listen to a “tour guide” telling stories and legends about this place.
A network of “sacred” roads was laid near large temples, providing unhindered access for pilgrims to the sanctuary. At resorts and near temples there were hotels that provided shelter for strangers, but travelers brought food with them. These institutions were municipally owned, because running such a business was considered unworthy.
In addition, in rich houses there were usually always rooms for guests - wealthy Greeks warmly welcomed even unfamiliar travelers.
“Hospitality Unions” were created in Greek cities. Each member of such a union - xen - became a defender of the interests of the inhabitants of another policy in his state. Over time, the institution of proxenes was formed in Hellas. Proxenus played the role of consul, representing the interests of the inhabitants of the place that assigned him this status.
4. Ancient Rome
During the heyday of the empire, a network of high-quality roads was built, the total length of which, according to various estimates, ranged from 80 to 300 thousand kilometers. Along the roads, at a distance of 6–15 miles from each other, there were post stations where it was possible to change horses, as well as satisfy other needs: dine at a tavern and stop for the night.
Most of the Roman hotels could not be called comfortable: pillows stuffed with straw and infested with insects, diluted wine, bad food. Therefore, the poor stayed at roadside hotels. Rich travelers spent the night in tents that they took with them.
Road maps with the designation of inns were in great demand among travelers. In addition to maps, at the beginning of the new era the Romans also had guidebooks at their disposal. They could be purchased at a special “tourist bureau”.
About the unprecedented blossoming of the tourism industry in Ancient Rome The fact that prominent minds of their time began to develop a philosophy of travel also speaks for itself. For example, Seneca the Younger wrote that for a productive vacation it is necessary to “choose places that are healthy not only for the body, but also for morals,” since “the area, no doubt, is not without the ability to corrupt.”
The first ideas about the Earth and its shape developed gradually. At first they were very far from modern ones. IN Ancient India They believed that the Earth lies on the backs of three elephants, and they stand on a huge turtle.
In a more complete description, the ancient Indians represented the Earth as
hemisphere resting on elephants. The elephants stood on a huge turtle,
and a turtle on a snake, which, curled up in a ring, closes the near-earth space.
When animals began to move, earthquakes occurred on Earth.
In the view of the ancient Egyptians: below is the Earth (god of the earth Geb), above it is the goddess of the sky (sky goddess Nut), to the left and right is the ship of the sun god (sun god Ra), showing the path of the Sun across the sky from sunrise to sunset.
To the ancient Slavs, the Earth seemed like a large egg, inside of which there was a flat Earth, and in the upper part there was a world of people,
and at the bottom there is a night country. Around the earth, like a protein, there are 9 heavens, each of which had its own purpose - one for the sun and stars, the second for the month, the third for clouds and winds.
IN Ancient Rus' believed that the Earth is flat, that it is such a flat thick pancake that lies on the backs of three huge fish or whales swimming on
the surface of the vast ocean.
Residents Babylonian kingdom represented the Earth in the form of a mountain. On the western slope of which is Babylonia. To the south of Babylon lies the sea, and to the east there are mountains that they did not dare cross. That’s why it seemed to them that Babylonia was located on the western slope of the “world” mountain.
The ancient Greeks imagined the Earth as a disk. The land is washed on all sides by the Ocean River. A copper firmament stretches above the Earth, along which the Sun moves.
The Vikings believed that the world began in northern ice. At the center of the world is a giant ash tree. At its roots there is a cold underground kingdom, in which giants live, the crown is inhabited by gods, and the world of people is located in the middle of the trunk. A squirrel constantly runs around this tree, bringing news to the eagle perched high in the branches, and to the snake hiding in the roots.
