Evolution of Human
As we knew, there are several things we can find out about our past through history like what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, crafts persons, artists, musicians and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang.
It took many thousands of years for primitive human to change into civilised human of today. It took almost 3,00,000 years for human to change from a food gatherer to a food producer. But once he had learnt to be a food producer, he advanced very quickly.
Archaeology, means the study of the remains of the ancient past. This consists of monuments or building, coins, pottery, tools made of stone and metal, figures, images and various other articles which people living many centuries ago had used in their daily life. Archaeologists, who study archaeology, have names for time. They called the earliest period Palaeolithic. This comes from two greek words, 'Palaeo' meaning 'Old' and 'Lithos' meaning 'Stone'. The name points to the importance of finds of the stone tools.
The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the three time periods:
1. Lower Palaeolithic
2. Middle Palaeolithic
3. Upper Palaeolithic
And this long span of Palaeolithic time period covers 99% of human history.
This period when man used stone implements alone, is called the Stone Age, which is classified into three categories:
1. Palaeolithic Age
2. Mesolithic Age
3. Neolithic Age
During the earliest Stone Age period (i.e. Palaeolithic Age), the use of tools gave man a big advantage. It enabled them to cut dowm branches of trees, to kill animals, to dig the Earth and to shape wood and stone.
The discovery of fire was an accidental discovery. The striking together of two pieces of stone called flint, produced a spark which when it touched dry leaves and twigs, burst into a flame. From evidences founded for the microscopic traces of wood ash, we can interpret that, in Early Stone Age (or Lower Palaeolithic Age), Homo erectus was able to use a controlled fire at that time. (This concept is widely accepted among historians).
The period when we find environmental changes beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago, is called the Mesolithic (Middle Stone Age). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny and are called Microliths.
These microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. Around this time period (12,000 years ago), there were major changes in the climate of the our Earth with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. (It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important.)
The next stage from about 10,000 years ago is known as the Neolithic Age. With the continuation from changes in the Earth's climate, this was also a time when several grain bearing grasses including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent (Indian reference here). Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food and learnt where they grew and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. That clearly indicated that, herding and domestication continues and results Agriculture in Neolithic Age.
The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestors of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to came near the camps where they lived, such as sheep, goat, cattle, pig, etc. and people protect them from wild preys. Very often plants and animals that are tended by people different from wild plants and animals. So, domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago, virtually all the plant and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. The earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley; and earliest animals to be domesticated were sheep and goat.
People start selecting those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large size grain and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. People use grain crop in following ways:
- as seed
- as food
- as gifts
- as stored food.
And this indicates us about the earlier human settlement on Earth. About when, why and how earlier human settlement took place in human history, you will read in our upcoming Articles. Till now we are leaving you with a question -
"What were the reasons behind begining of Agriculture in human history?"
You can give you answer in comment section along with your opinion, thought, query, suggestions, if applicable.
References
1. NCERT History Books class 6 to 12.
2. Tamil Nadu Board History Books.
3. Ancient Past Book by RS Sharma
4. History by Vipin Chandra.
5. The Wonder that was India by A.L.BASHAM.
7. Creature Earth.
8. Wikipedia.
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