Download Unit 4 Agricultural and Urban Revolutions

Unit 4
Agricultural and Urban Revolutions
Introduction to Unit
This unit explores the transition to agriculture and then to urban life between 10,000 and 2,000 years ago. Efforts
to track this transition by pinpointing the earliest agricultural crops have been hampered by the nature of the
plants themselves. Cereal grains, which are hard-shelled, were often burned (carbonized) during preparation and
were thus preserved in archaeological deposits. In contrast, root crops like yams and potatoes lack hard, burnable
parts, making their preservation unlikely. Because of this discrepancy in preservation, it remains unknown
whether root crops were domesticated even earlier than cereal crops. Bearing these limits of interpretation in
mind, it seems clear that during the Neolithic period, relatively large populations dependent on grain-based
agriculture emerged in nearly every distinct geographic area of the world. Deliberate agriculture in turn gave rise
to impressive population increases. The pressures caused by rising population led to the spread of agricultural
peoples to new areas of the world.
Learning Objectives
· Identify the different patterns by which human societies around the world domesticated plants and
animals.
· Analyze the relationship between increasing complexity in human societies and the ways people thought
about social differences such as gender, status, and class.
· Identify the impact urban technologies such as metallurgy and pottery making had on the environment.
Preparing for This Session
Read Unit 4 in the Bridging World History online text. You may also want to refer to some of the Suggested
Readings and Materials. If you feel you need more background knowledge, refer to a college-level world history
textbook on this subject (look under the index for Agriculture [ancient world], Cities and Towns, Çatalhöyük).
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Unit 4
Unit Activities
Before You Begin—30 minutes
Before viewing the video, look at the following outline of the causes and effects of the Agricultural Revolution and
predict what kinds of images will be used in the video to show causes and effects.
Outline of the Causes and Effects of the Agricultural Revolution
I. Definition of the Agricultural Revolution (also called the Neolithic Revolution)
a. Evidence of plant and animal domestication appears clearly about 10,000 years ago in the Middle East
(Jericho and Çatalhöyük)
b. Previously, humans gathered wild plants and hunted animals. Earlier, hominids scavenged animals killed
by other predators.
II. Theories about the causes of the Agricultural Revolution vary.
a. The human population increased, so more reliable sources of food were needed.
b. The climate became more conducive to plant cultivation.
c. The gradual experimentation by gatherers of wild plants (mostly women) led to dependence on plant
cultivation.
III. Effects of the Agricultural Revolution
a. The global population increased
i. World population was six to eight million around 8,000 BCE
ii. World population was around 300 million in 1 CE
b. Labor divided into food-producing and non-food-producing jobs, creating hierarchies in economic and
political organization of human societies.
c. Social complexity increased and created greater differences in the responsibilities and powers of the
genders.
d. Population density increased leading to more diseases and a need for a higher birth rate.
e. The types of pottery, irrigation, and metallurgy technologies increased.
Watch the Video for “Unit 4: Agricultural and Urban
Revolutions”—30 minutes
Activity 1: Evidence of the Agricultural Revolution, 8,000 BCE
to 4,000 BCE—45 minutes
· Discuss the kinds of visual evidence used in the video to support the explanations of the causes and effects
of the Agricultural Revolution.
· Discuss the meaning of the word “domesticated”: to genetically modify wild plants or animals for human
consumption.
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Unit Activities, cont’d.
· Map where the following list of plants and animals were domesticated in different parts of the world: cows,
chickens, wheat, barley, maize (corn), yams, teff, sunflowers, beans, potatoes, rice, oxen, citrus fruits, pigs,
goats, sheep, llamas, guinea pigs, turkeys, cassavas, bananas, chocolate, tobacco, coffee, tea, and sugarcane.
· Discuss how historians explain the differences in the types of plants and animals domesticated in various
parts of the world: the climate, the available wild plants, and/or the needs of the humans in that region.
Activity 2: Analyze a Map—15 minutes
Analyze the world map of where food production first happened on a large scale. Discuss with a partner how you
think historians explain the independent development of domesticated plants and animals.
Item #6413. Hot Pepper Studios, created for Bridging World History, MAP OF
EARLY AGRICULTURE SITES: TEHUACAN
VALLEY, GUILA NAQUITZ, CHAVIN DE
HUANTAR, THE FERTILE CRESCENT,
INDUS RIVER VALLEY AND THE YELLOW
RIVER VALLEY (2004). Courtesy of
Oregon Public Broadcasting.
Activity 3: Development of Urban Societies—30 minutes
Look at the photographs taken of archaeological sites on the following pages and discuss these questions with a partner:
· Historians use archaeological evidence such as plant and animal remains, the layouts of settlements, and
the sizes and numbers of pots to study the development of the earliest settlements. What kind of changes
over time do you think historians expect to see in archaeological results from any particular site?
· What conclusions about urban life can historians draw from that evidence? There are signs of distinct areas
designated for specialized functions, such as communal food processing and cooking, ceramic and bead
production, and the crafting of decorated figurines. By 4000 BCE, Mehrgarh had gradually emerged as a
highly specialized and prominent craft and trade center.
· In what ways is archaeological evidence limited? The technologies archaeologists currently use cannot capture and analyze all available material at a site.
· What other kinds of evidence might help broaden the picture of early urban life?
· How do interpretations change when new evidence is found? Since archaeological evidence is limited, the
conclusions that historians draw from pre-historical sites are not fully supported. As new evidence emerges,
new conclusions must be made.
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Unit 4
Unit Activities, cont’d.
Item #4841. Michael Ashley-Lopez, ARCHAEOLOGIST REMOVING SOIL FROM EXCAVATED HUMAN
BONES, ÇATALHÖYÜK, TURKEY (c. 1995). Courtesy of
The University of California at Berkeley.
Item #4845. Michael Ashley-Lopez,
GODDESS STATUETTE FROM ÇATALHÖYÜK, TURKEY (n.d.). Courtesy of The
University of California at Berkeley.
Item #4844. Michael Ashley-Lopez, UC BERKELEY
TEAM EXCAVATING A NEOLITHIC HABITATION AT
ÇATALHÖYÜK, TURKEY (c. 1995). Courtesy of The
University of California at Berkeley.
Item #4849. Michael Ashley-Lopez, EXCAVATED
GRAVE AT ÇATALHÖYÜK, TURKEY (c. 1995). Courtesy
of The University of California at Berkeley.
Unit 4
Item #4847. Michael Ashley-Lopez, CLAY VESSEL
EXCAVATED FROM ÇATALHÖYÜK, TURKEY (c. 1995).
Courtesy of The University of California at Berkeley.
Item #4947. Michael Ashley-Lopez, UC BERKELEY
TEAM EXCAVATING UNDER A TENT AT ÇATALHÖYÜK,
TURKEY (c. 1995). Courtesy of The University of
California at Berkeley.
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Unit Activities, cont’d.
Activity 4: Development of Social Stratification, Gender
Differences, and Impact on the Environment—30 minutes
Discussion Questions
· Discuss this definition of technology: any of the methods humans use to adapt to their environment and
ensure their survival.
· When human societies became more complex, how did this affect the ways people thought about social
differences such as gender, status, and class?
· Metallurgy and pottery making caused considerable damage to the environments where ores were mined
and metals forged. Scarred landscapes, deforested terrain, and heaps of slag were the byproducts of this
early industry around the world. How has human impact on the environment changed or continued since
the first Agricultural Revolution?
· Who benefited from technology? Look at the examples of the Shang tombs and Chavin temple platforms.
Item #2773. Robert J. Milnes, EXCAVATION OF
ANYANG, CHINA (n.d.). Courtesy of World Art
Kiosk/Robert J. Milnes.
Item #2779. Anonymous Chinese, WAR CHARIOT OF
FU HAO (REAR VIEW) IN ANYANG, CHINA (c. 1250
BCE). Courtesy of World Art Kiosk/Robert J. Milnes.
Item #1886. John Rick, MONKEY STELA EXCAVATED FROM CHAVIN DE HUANTAR,
PERU (n.d.). Courtesy of John Rick.
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Item #1888. John Rick, EXCAVATION SITE AT CHAVIN DE
HUANTAR, PERU (n.d.). Courtesy of
John Rick.
Unit 4
Homework
Read Unit 11 in the online text, Section 3, Reading 2: Liu Xinru, “Migration and Settlement of the Yuezhi-Kushan:
Interaction and Interdependence of Nomadic and Sedentary Societies,” Journal of World History 12, no. 2 (Fall
2001): 261–92 and answer the following questions.
Reading Questions
· What are some examples of the interdependence of nomads and sedentary societies in the pre-modern
world?
· Effects of nomads on trade and transportation of sedentary societies?
· Effects of nomads on religions of sedentary societies?
· Effects of nomads on the clothing and cultures of sedentary societies?
· Which type of these effects do you think wreathe most important to further changes in the pre-modern
world?
· Which type of these effects do you think contributed the least to long-term continuities in the pre-modern
world?
· Why is it difficult to determine if the Yuezhi and the Kushans were the same people? Why does it matter to
historians if they were?
Optional: Visit the Web Site
Explore this topic further on the Bridging World History Web site. Browse the Archive, look up terms in the Audio
Glossary, review related units, or use the World History Traveler to examine different thematic perspectives.
Unit 4
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Bridging World History