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Africa’s First People Chapter 7 Section 1 Mr. Storms Terms to know • • • • • • Hunter-Gatherer Domesticate Surplus Civilization Migrate Ethnic group Africa’s First People • Today the dry sands of the Sahara cover most of North Africa. • But until about 4,000 years ago, this large area held enough water to support many people and animals. • Scientists think that Africa’s first farmers lived there. • Paintings on cliffs and cave walls tell their story. An example Africa’s First People • But the history of people in Africa is even older. • Several million years earlier, the continent’s first people lived in East Africa. • We know this because of the stones and bones they left behind. • These East Africans were the very first people to live on the Earth. Hunter-Gatherers • The earliest humans probably survived by gathering wild fruits, nuts, and roots. • These hunter-gatherers also hunted animals for meat and clothing. • They made tools out of wood, animal bones, and then stone. • The first use of stone tools marks the beginning of a period scientists call the Stone Age. Hunter-Gatherers • These stone tools worked very well. • The scientist Louis Leakey found some of the first evidence of early people in East Africa. • He also taught himself to make and use their tools. • Using a two-inch, 25,000 year old stone knife, Leakey could skin and cut up a gazelle in just 20 minutes. Farming and Herding • Between 10,000 and 6,000 years ago, hunter-gatherers began to farm and to herd animals. • The first farmers probably planted wild grains such as wheat, barley, sorghum, and millet. • At first they just protected the areas where these grew the best. Later they began to save seed to plant for the next year’s crop. Farming and Herding • Later people began to domesticate plants. • They threw away seeds from weaker plants and saved seeds from stronger ones. • People domesticated animals by breeding certain animals together. • Domesticating plants and animals meant people could plant their own crops. Farming and Herding • They did not have to travel to places where grains were already growing. • As a result, they could settle in one place. • Most people settled where the land was fertile or productive. • Some communities produced a food surplus. • Surpluses allowed some people in the community to do work other than farming. Civilizations on the Nile • Over hundreds of thousands of years, some Stone Age groups became civilizations. • A civilization is a society with cities, a government, and social classes. • Social classes form when people do a variety of jobs. • As a result, some people are rich, some are poor, and others are middle class. Civilizations on the Nile • Civilizations also have architecture, writing, and art. • One civilization arose on the Nile River about 5,000 years ago. Egypt • Each summer, the Nile River floods its banks. It leaves a layer of fertile silt that is ideal for farming. • People began farming along the banks of the Nile by around 4000 B.C. • They settled in scattered villages. Over centuries, these villages grew into the civilization of ancient Egypt. Egypt • Ancient Egypt was ruled by kings and queens called pharaohs. • The people believed the pharaohs to be gods as well as kings. • When pharaohs died, they were buried in pyramids. • People painted murals and picture-writings called hieroglyphics on the walls in the pyramids. Egypt • Egyptian civilization included more than just the pyramids. • The Egyptians were advanced in papermaking, architecture, medicine, and mathematics. • Clip Nubia • Starting in about 6000 B.C., several civilizations arose south of Egypt. • This area was called Nubia. • The final and greatest Nubian kingdom arose in the city of Meroe during the 500s B.C. • It did well until about the middle of the A. D. 300s. Meroe was probably the first place in Africa where iron was made. The Bantu Migrations • By about 500 B.C., West Africans had learned to heat and shape iron. • They used it to form parts of tools such as arrowheads, ax heads, and hoe blades. • The strong iron tools made farming easier and created food surpluses. • As a result, West Africa’s population increased. The Bantu Migrations • Around 2,000 years ago, a group of people who spoke Bantu languages began to migrate. • Over hundreds of years, these Bantuspeakers settled in central and Southern Africa. • They introduced farming, herding, and iron tools to these regions. The Bantu Migrations • Today, people in this part of Africa belong to hundreds of ethnic groups. • But almost all of these ethnic groups speak Bantu languages.