Early Humans and Beginning of Civilisation Class 9 Question and Answer
Notes of Early Humans and Beginning of Civilisation
Human history began long before kingdoms, empires, and civilizations. The earliest human history is mainly understood through archaeological evidence.
The period before the invention of writing is called Prehistory. Writing systems developed at different times in different parts of the world. One of the earliest writing systems belonged to the Sindhu–Sarasvatī (Harappan) Civilization.
The Sindhu–Sarasvatī Civilization is also known as the Indus Valley Civilization or the Harappan Civilization.
The Harappans used a pictographic script for writing. Harappan writings have been found on seals and pottery. The Harappan script is also called the Sindhu Lipi. The Harappan script has not yet been deciphered. Because it remains undeciphered, we still do not understand the Harappan language.
The Sumerians of Mesopotamia used the Cuneiform script. Ancient Egyptians used the Hieroglyphic script. The Sumerian and Egyptian scripts flourished around the same time as the Harappan Civilization.
Notes of Early Humans and Beginning of Civilisation
The Cuneiform and Hieroglyphic scripts have been successfully deciphered. The beginning of the historical period is marked by deciphered writing systems about 5,000 years ago.
Archaeological evidence helps us understand how early humans lived, what they ate, and how they evolved. The Brahmi script was used from around 400 BCE in the Ganga Valley and parts of southern India.
Emperor Ashoka formalized the Brahmi script during the 3rd century BCE. Brahmi was also used by Iron Age people across southern India.
The study of early human history explains the biological and cultural evolution of humans. Biological evolution refers to the gradual physical and genetic changes in humans.
Early human ancestors were known as Australopithecines. Australis means southern, and pithecus means primates. Modern humans are called Homo sapiens.
Cultural evolution explains how humans adapted to changing environments. The Quaternary Period covers the last 26 lakh (2.6 million) years, including the present.
Notes of Early Humans and Beginning of Civilisation
Climate and environmental changes influenced human evolution and survival. More than 99% of human history belongs to the prehistory period.Less than 1% of human history belongs to the historical period (the last 5,000 years).
Prehistory extends from about 3 million years ago to 5,000 years ago. The historical period began about 5,000 years ago and continues today.
Archaeological remains are the main source for studying prehistoric life. Human-made objects used as evidence are called artefacts. Artefacts include tools, implements, and other material objects.
Written documents are important sources for reconstructing historical societies. It is difficult to know the thoughts and beliefs of prehistoric people.
Literature provides information about names, events, and social, political, and cultural life. Dating prehistoric events is approximate because there are no written records.
Historical dates are more accurate because written records mention specific events such as coronations and wars. Early humans developed tools, techniques, and technology to survive changing climates and environments.
Humans used natural resources to meet their basic needs. Human life gradually changed from hunting and gathering to agriculture and food production.
Notes of Early Humans and Beginning of Civilisation
Agriculture enabled humans to produce surplus food. Surplus food and material goods laid the foundation of civilisation.
The earliest human ancestors are believed to have evolved in Africa. Early humans began migrating out of Africa about 2 million years ago.
Homo erectus was the first hominin to migrate out of Africa. Homo erectus used stone tools such as hand axes and cleavers.
Stone tools of Homo erectus have been found in Asia and Europe. The discovery of these tools shows their African origin and later spread to other continents.
Homo erectus dispersed beyond Africa between 2 million and 0.5 million years ago. Another major migration out of Africa occurred around 125,000 years ago.
This later migration involved early Homo sapiens (modern humans). Homo sapiens evolved in Africa about 300,000 years ago.
Today, Homo sapiens are distributed across all parts of the world. Archaeologists study early human sites to learn about our ancestors.
Tools, bones, and other objects provide clues about early human life. Archaeologists recreate and use ancient tools to understand their purpose.
Notes of Early Humans and Beginning of Civilisation
Experimental archaeology helps explain how early humans made and used tools. The earliest human settlements were found in Africa, Asia, and Europe.
These regions together are called the Old World. Different types of human ancestors lived together in the Old World.
The earliest known stone tools were made about 3.3 million years ago. Making stone tools marked the beginning of human behavior.
Humans are called hominins because they were tool makers.
Stone tools acted as extra-corporal limbs, extending the abilities of human hands.
Early humans made, used, and discarded their tools after use. Discarded tools became buried under layers of earth over time.
Archaeologists discover buried tools to reconstruct human history. The buried remains of ancient humans gradually turned into fossils.
Fossils are preserved remains or traces of plants, animals, or humans from the distant past. Fossils form over thousands or millions of years under layers of earth.
Tools and fossils are the main sources of evidence about early humans. Homo habilis means “Handy Man.”
Homo habilis lived mainly in Olduvai Gorge (Tanzania) and Kenya.
Homo erectus invented hand axes and cleavers. Homo erectus was among the first human ancestors to migrate out of Africa. Homo erectus gradually spread into Europe and Asia. All human ancestors were tool makers.
Homo sapiens developed the most complex technologies among early humans. The Old World refers to the geographical region of the oldest human settlements during the earliest Palaeolithic period.
NCERT Questions and Answer
Q. How did humans live on Earth before the beginning of civilisation?
Ans – Before the beginning of civilisation, humans lived a simple life that depended completely on nature.
a) Humans lived as hunters and gatherers, hunting wild animals and collecting fruits, roots, and nuts.
b) They led a nomadic life, moving from one place to another in search of food, water, and shelter.
c) They lived in caves, rock shelters, or temporary huts made from natural materials.
d) They used simple tools made of stone, wood, and bone for hunting, cutting, and protection.
e) They learned to control fire, which helped them cook food, keep warm, and protect themselves from wild animals.
Thus, before civilisation, humans lived a simple and challenging life. Over time, they learned farming, settled in villages, and gradually developed organised societies, which marked the beginning of civilisation.
Q. How did humans communicate before writing was invented?
Ans – Before the invention of writing, humans communicated through simple methods. They used spoken language, gestures, sounds, and pictures to share ideas, feelings, and information with others.
Q. How is archaeology helpful in understanding our past?
Ans – Archaeology is the scientific study of the past through the remains left by ancient people.
a) Archaeology helps us study ancient civilizations through their remains and artefacts.
b) Archaeologists discover tools, pottery, which provide information about people’s daily lives.
c) It helps us understand the culture, practices of ancient societies.
d) Excavations reveal the houses, buildings, roads, and cities built by early humans.
Thus, archaeology plays a vital role in understanding our past. It provides valuable evidence about ancient human life and helps us reconstruct the history of civilizations accurately.
Q. How did early civilisations interact with each other?
Ans – Early civilisations did not live in isolation. They interacted with one another through trade, travel, and cultural exchange, which helped in the spread of ideas, goods, and technology.
a) Early civilizations traded goods such as metals, spices, pottery, textiles, and precious stones.
b) They used land routes and river or sea routes to travel and carry out trade.
c)People exchanged ideas, knowledge, and technologies, improving farming, crafts, and construction.
d) Different civilisations influenced each other’s art, architecture, language, and religious beliefs.
Thus, early civilisations interacted through trade, travel, cultural exchange, and political relations.
1. Do you think life became easier or more challenging after humans
started farming? Give two reasons for your answer.
Ans – Life became more challenging in some ways after humans started farming.
Harder work: Farming required people to stay in one place, clear land, sow seeds, and protect crops, which involved continuous physical labour.
New problems: Settled life led to population growth and could bring conflicts over land and resources. People also became more dependent on successful harvests.
Conclusion: Farming provided a more stable food supply, but it also introduced new forms of labour, dependence, and social problems.
2.. The environment offers human societies both opportunities
as well as challenges. Explain with reference to early farming
communities and river-valley civilisations.
Ans – The environment offered early human societies both opportunities and challenges.
Early farming communities: Fertile land, suitable climate and availability of water helped people grow crops and domesticate animals. However, they also faced challenges such as droughts, floods, pests and changes in climate, which could destroy crops.
River-valley civilisations: Rivers such as the Nile, Tigris-Euphrates and Indus provided water for farming, fertile soil and routes for transport and trade. At the same time, floods, changing river courses and the need to manage water created difficulties.
Thus, people learned to adapt to their environment and developed farming, irrigation, settlements and systems of cooperation to make use of its opportunities and overcome its challenges.
3. Why do historians divide early human history into different ages
Ans – Historians divide early human history into Stone Age, Bronze Age and Iron Age mainly on the basis of the materials used to make tools and weapons during different periods.
Stone Age: Humans mainly used stone tools and gradually developed farming and settled communities.
Bronze Age: People learned to make and use bronze tools and weapons, leading to the growth of crafts, trade and cities.
Iron Age: The wider use of iron made stronger tools and weapons possible and supported farming, settlements and expanding societies.
This classification shows how humans developed new technologies, improved their ability to use natural resources, and gradually built more complex societies.
It helps historians understand the broad stages of technological and social change in early human history.
4. Imagine you are a Neolithic farmer. Describe one day of your
life. What challenges would you face that a hunter-gatherer
would not?
Ans – If I were a Neolithic farmer, my day would begin early. I would work in the fields, prepare the soil, sow seeds, water and protect the crops. I would also look after domesticated animals and help store the harvested grain for future use.
Unlike a hunter-gatherer, I would face some new challenges. I would have to stay in one place and work regularly, rather than move in search of food. I would also be worried about droughts, floods, pests and crop failure, because my food supply would depend heavily on the harvest. I would need to protect my crops and stored food from animals and other people.
Thus, farming provided a more stable food supply but also brought continuous labour and dependence on successful crops.
5. Imagine that the Harappan script gets deciphered tomorrow. What new types of information do you think historians might learn?
Ans – If the Harappan script were deciphered, historians could learn many new things about the Harappan civilisation, such as:
Political system: Who ruled the cities and how the administration was organised.
Daily life: Details about people’s occupations, customs, beliefs and social life.
Trade and economy: Information about goods, markets, traders and trade with other regions.
Religion and beliefs: Names of gods, religious practices, rituals and ideas about life and death.
Language and literature: The language spoken by the Harappans and possibly stories, records or other written texts.
Thus, deciphering the script could give us direct evidence from the Harappans themselves, helping historians understand their civilisation much more clearly.
6. Prepare a table with three columns—Palaeolithic, Mesolithic, and Neolithic—and fill in their distinctive features: tools, settlements, art, and subsistence.
Ans – Do it Yourself.
7. Bronze Age civilizations developed independently but share common features. Examine this statement with reference to the civilizations given in this chapter.
Ans – The Bronze Age civilisations mentioned in the chapter, such as the Indus Valley, Mesopotamian, Egyptian and Chinese civilisations, developed independently but had several common features.
They had planned settlements, agriculture, skilled crafts, trade, social divisions, organised governments and religious beliefs. They also developed systems of writing, measurement and technology.
8. Although rivers provided many benefits, they also created challenges for early societies. Discuss both the advantages and disadvantages of settling near rivers.
Ans – Settling near rivers had both advantages and disadvantages:
Advantages: Rivers provided water for drinking and irrigation, fertile soil for farming, fish and other resources, and easy routes for transport and trade.
Disadvantages: Rivers could cause floods, destroy crops and houses, and spread water-borne diseases. People also had to protect their settlements from changing river courses.
9. With the help of your teacher, find out more about the code of Hammurabi. Why was it important? Do you think it was fair to all sections of society? Give reasons for your answer.
Ans – The Code of Hammurabi was a set of laws created by Hammurabi, the king of Babylon, around 1750 BCE. It covered matters such as trade, property, family, wages and punishments.
It was important because it helped maintain order and justice and made laws known to the people.
However, it was not completely fair to all sections of society. Punishments and rights could differ according to a person’s social status, and women, slaves and poorer people generally had fewer rights.
10. If you had to choose one major innovation from early civilizations and change the world permanently, what would it be and why?
Ans – If I had to choose one major innovation from early civilisations, I would choose writing.
Writing made it possible to record laws, knowledge, history, trade and ideas. It helped societies communicate across generations and develop organised administration and education.
11. Compare the social hierarchy and daily life of people in the Egyptian civilization with those in Mesopotamia or China. What similarities and differences do you notice?
Ans – Egyptian and Mesopotamian societies were both hierarchical and depended heavily on agriculture and rivers.
Egyptian Civilization
Pharaoh was at the top, followed by officials, priests, soldiers, traders and farmers.
Most people worked in farming, crafts and construction.
Religion strongly influenced daily life.
The Nile supported farming and transport.
Mesopotamian Civilization
Kings were at the top, followed by priests, officials, merchants, artisans and farmers.
Many people worked in farming, trade and crafts.
Religion also played an important role in daily life.
The Tigris and Euphrates supported farming and trade.