What is prehistory? »Its definition and meaning

Prehistory includes the study of humanity from its appearance on earth to the invention of writing. Therefore, it is a science that studies the most primitive stages of man. It is characterized by the absence of writing, which can leave clues or signs of who and how the first humans were. However, a jug, a stone carved in the shape of a knife, a drawing in the cave, are evidence that the historian or archaeologist had on hand to know what this human was like, and in this way, expose its main features and its cultural environment.

What is Prehistory

Table of Contents

Prehistory is known as the period of humanity that occurred between the appearance of the hominin (subtribe of hominid primates from which Homo sapiens comes), until a record of the history of the planet could be obtained. This period is studied by the archaeological and paleontological sciences.

However, this was not a homogeneous event throughout the world, since in some regions prehistory came to an end earlier than in others, as advanced civilizations emerged. While the peoples of Mesopotamia, Egypt and some neighbors reach history around 5,000 BC, others do not reach it until the beginning of the Christian era, and there are even tribes that still lead a primitive life (African tribes).

There is no total agreement among historians about what prehistory is, since many consider that history as it is known is defined by those events in which man has been involved since his existence, which would mean that prehistory would be everything what happened on earth before it appeared.

To obtain knowledge of this diffuse period that means prehistory, researchers resort to archaeological excavations, where remains are found that provide the information that is known up to now in this regard, using other disciplines such as:

• Paleontology (which studies all organic beings that lived on earth thousands or millions of years ago and how humans lived in Prehistory).
• Ethnography (which studies peoples and their cultures).
• Nuclear physics (to date the findings).
• Topography (describe the reliefs and surfaces).
• Technical drawing (reconstruction of pieces or other findings), among others.

Stages of Prehistory

The most remote antecedent of man was Australo pithecus, which had the main characteristics of a primate, and it evolved to become Homo habilis, then Homo erectus, Homo sapiens neanderthalensis, until it became Homo sapiens sapiens (Thinking man), the which exhibits all the characters of what we are today. This evolution was also evidenced in a cultural way throughout each stage of this period of time, so each one has different and marked Prehistoric characteristics.

For a better understanding of the time, it is necessary to detail each stage in the time line of prehistory.

Paleolithic

Of all the stages of prehistory, this is the oldest, lasting approximately from 3,000,000 BC to 10,000 BC. This period is divided into 3 stages: the Lower Palaeolithic, the Middle Palaeolithic and the Upper Palaeolithic, characterized by:

1. Lower Paleolithic (3,000,000 BC - 250,000 BC)

• Nomadism was the way of life that man of this time had, which consisted of moving from one place to another in search of resources.
• The main activities consisted of fishing, hunting and gathering fruits.
• The first tools of Prehistory began to be evidenced, with the manufacture of instruments and the first weapons of Prehistory made of stone, ivory and bones that facilitated their activities.
• The caves were the shelters that they chose to protect themselves, and in which they captured artistic expressions (cave paintings).
• During this stage Australopithecus, Homo habilis, Homo erectus and Homo sapiens lived.
• They were grouped in families, which was the first known concept of society.
• Fire was discovered, probably due to the observation of natural phenomena that allowed them to create techniques to generate it.

2. Middle Palaeolithic (250,000 BC - 30,000 BC)

• It was basically developed in Europe and the Near East. In Asia they have found evidence of the existence of the Cro at this stage.
• The Mousterian technique was implemented, in which bone and flint (a type of stone) were carved to make different tools.
• The Neanderthal emerges, which possessed greater intelligence. Experts presume that they used articulate language to communicate. Homo sapiens sapiens also emerged.
• The so-called "concheros" (accumulations of mollusk shells) were created, where they placed the remains of their deceased relatives with their belongings and animal remains.
• In this stage, fire was used at will and the most widely used weapons were the spearhead, the double-sided knife, scrapers and burins (pointed bar).
• The climate was determined by glaciations, so the living conditions of the hominids were extreme. There were humid climates, with environments between humid prairies and Atlantic forests.

3. Upper Palaeolithic (30,000 BC - 10,000 BC)

• The vegetation was adapted to the cold, because most of the time large regions of the world were covered with ice.
• The fauna was characterized by the coexistence of species from hot and cold climates, even with the presence of tertiary animals such as the saber-toothed tiger or the mastodon, and the elephant, the horse and the mammoth appear.
• The Cromagnon, a more advanced being, emerged, which lived with the Neanderthals in Europe.
• Better tools are developed, such as the hand ax, hooks, needles made with bones, among others.
• The first animals are domesticated, among them, the dog; and agriculture is booming, so they are settling in regions.

Mesolithic

It is the period of prehistory that follows the Palaeolithic, between 10,000 BC and approximately 6,500 BC, being the transition period between the Paleolithic and the Neolithic. Its main characteristics are:

• It began at the end of the last ice age (Würm glaciation), ending the Ice Age. This led to increasingly warmer climates, opening the way to the proliferation of forests and biodiversity, the flooding of coastal areas due to thawing, and the appearance of semi-desert areas in the tropics.
• It was the period where the transition between the Pleistocene and the Holocene took place, the first being characterized by a great glaciation, and the second by the disappearance of ice caps.
• Pleistocene megafauna (or giant animals) disappear, but others such as reindeer and bison managed to survive by migrating north. Other animals such as deer and elk reproduced with greater success, as well as those that began to be consumed such as pheasants, geese and pigeons.
• Other weapons were developed, such as the bow, arrow, and hook. Boats are also emerging to fish offshore.
• Due to the above, there was an improvement in hunting (which was focused on some specific species). Other activities that were booming were gathering, fishing and shellfish.
• As settlements emerge in some regions, nomads become semi-sedentary.
• The men were distributed in the east of the Near East; in some countries of the Middle East and the Far East; Western Europe; some regions of North America, Mexico and Peru.

Neolithic

It is the stage that happens to the Mesolithic, and it is, among the prehistoric stages, the one that marks the end of what was previously known as the Stone Age (also made up of the Paleolithic and Mesolithic). The most outstanding characteristics of this period are:

• Its term means "new stone" or "new stone" and, depending on the geographical location for those years, it began in the year 7,000 BC until approximately 4,000 BC, ending the Stone Age.
• Polished stone tools were developed instead of the carving technique, resulting in more stylized instruments than the rough ones of the Paleolithic.
• The hominids that remained during this stage were the Cro-Magnon and Homo sapiens.
• The activity of the cattle ranch begins, being replicated in the different existing tribes, forming agrarian societies.
• Agriculture took a boom, which is considered as the fact that marked a before and after in history; Instruments were developed for this, such as the wooden sickle, the mill and the sacks.
• Hunting decreases as the herds move north due to the thaw and man returns to the caves. They domesticated animals, such as oxen, horses, and donkeys, which were very useful for agricultural work.
• The first sedentary settlements emerge, giving rise to villages and, later, to cities. The funeral ceremonies took more complexity.
• Population settlements spread across western Asia, New Guinea, Mesoamerica, eastern China, the Andes Mountains, eastern North America, Amazonia, and sub-Saharan Africa.

Age of metals

It is the era that continued after the Stone Age, and which was noted for a significant advance in technology, with the use of different molten metals for the manufacture of weapons and tools.

It begins with the appearance of the first copper smelters, from which there was a development of metallurgical activities, which were the standard of the sub-stages of this era. They are part of the metal age: the Copper or Chalcolithic Age, the Bronze Age and the Iron Age.

European Chalcolithic

Also called the Copper Age, it was the first period of the Metal Age, which took place in the third millennium BC, from 4,000 to 3,000 BC approximately, although some authors claim that it may have started in 6,000 BC Some of the main characteristics of this period are:

• The implementation of copper as a manufacturing material for weapons, tools and utensils that were used for the daily activities of man. However, this did not mean the disappearance of the stone and other materials also used previously.
• It was developed in the Iberian Peninsula, Northern Europe, France and Germany.
• Some of the new devices developed or improved were arrowheads, tools for plowing the earth, pots and other ornamental elements.
• The discovery of the smelting of elements that could be found in nature, such as copper, allowed them to realize that metals could be separated from impurities and minerals.
• The wheel was invented, which started the trade, since before it, loads were carried out, which involved a great investment in time and effort.
• Agriculture had a great progress, since irrigation channels, compost systems and other types of crops are created.
• Populations begin to organize better and social stratification arises, creating more complex societies. In this framework, trades such as crafts and goldsmithing emerge.
• The climate was characterized by being diverse. There were heavy rains and the glacial climate was limited to the great mountain systems. In the Iberian Peninsula, the annual average temperature was 10 to 12 degrees Celsius lower than the current average, which is 17 degrees Celsius.
• In terms of flora, cloud forests, temperate forests and conifers with redwoods predominated in the highest areas. In the lower zones forests with pine trees could be found; temperate forests with oak, ash and maples; and Mediterranean forests, with holm oaks.
• Due to climate change, the fauna diversified towards other animals, such as horses, wolves, wild boars, leopards and goats, among others.

Bronze age

This stage is characterized by the appearance and use of bronze, which is an alloy between copper and tin, which had greater hardness and durability, offering resistance to oxidation and corrosion. Some characteristics of this age are:

• This era began in ancient Mesopotamia, the place where the use of this metal was used for the first time. It spread throughout the Middle East, the Aegean, Central Europe, Atlantic Europe and the Iberian Peninsula.
• Climate changes were evidenced, creating more humid conditions, which affected crops, although they did not affect the disappearance of some populations.
• As for the fauna, foxes and dogs were common, which were used as pack animals. Similarly, cows, sheep and goats were common, although the horse was not yet well known. Other animals such as wolves and bears also populated the Earth.
• Its period was from the year 3,000 to 2,000 BC approximately.
• The man of this time created various weapons and tools with this material, adding the artistic element, so that the combination of aesthetics with utility gave them status. Similarly, he began to give more importance to funeral rituals.
• The demand for this metal was the basis of the first state societies. Other precious metals began to be exchanged in exchange for other products and mining was practiced.
• The casting techniques were perfected, using molds to manufacture different objects.

Iron age

This period took place between 2,000 and 1,000 BC, in which iron began to be used, which offered them greater malleability and durability. Some characteristics of this stage are:

• The iron that was originally found came from space, which reached Earth through meteorites. However, evidence was found that they were later worked on, starting the real steel industry.
• The men of this time learned to extract iron for the manufacture of elements that helped them in the fields of crops, battles and other activities, which resulted in a greater provision of free time, with which they developed the manufacture of crafts, textiles and jewelry. They also built palaces and temples.
• It had its development in Asia Minor or Anatolia, as it was called in ancient times, spreading to the Middle East, Aegean, Egypt, Italy, Syria, Mesopotamia, Armenia, the Caucasus, India, China, Japan and other regions of Asia, Africa and in America in Bolivia, Peru, Chile, Ecuador and Colombia.
• More armaments are created for war purposes.
• The predominant fauna based on the findings of the time, are wild boars, goats, horses, oxen, hares and deer.

Paleoindian period

It is understood as the era of the beginning of the history of America, and in fact, it is the most extensive, which includes all the events on the continent since 15,000 and 7,000 BC.

• The animals of this period were characterized by belonging to the megafauna, that is, animals of enormous size, such as the saber-toothed tiger, the mastodon, the American lion, the mammoth, or the milodon, among many others.
• Although there is no agreement on the beginning of this period, experts agree that it begins when the first humans arrived on the continent from Asia through the Bering Strait.
• Because of this, the Amerindians come from Asian Mongoloid populations, although there has been cranial evidence of the existence of other men who do not have the same origin.
• There was a great technological exploration to develop more specialized tools for different activities.
• The hunting of herbivorous animals took place, such as the mastodon, the American horse, deer, rodents, rabbits, armadillos and foxes.
• Large formations originated due to climate change, in addition to the Bering Strait, as North and South America became connected.

Archaic period

This began in approximately 8,000 BC, coinciding with the beginning of the Holocene or the warming of the planet that concluded the Ice Age.

• Sedentarization begins progressively due to crops, so that cultures and traditions are created in populations. The man was socially organized in what were known as exogamous tribes, meaning that each tribe had a limited number of people, and when it exceeded the capacity limit, one of the members had to leave the group and create a new tribe.
• Textile activities began to be carried out for the manufacture of clothing and elements such as ropes, ropes, strings and nets for fishing.
• Agriculture had already advanced and in addition to cotton, pumpkins, potatoes and beans, corn began to be cultivated; and also livestock thanks to the domestication of animals.
• The technical division of labor originates, which consists of the specialization of various jobs and labors in the field and otherwise.

Protohistory

This period is characterized by being a diffuse stage, since it appears as a phase of change between the end of Prehistory and the beginning of History, of which there is not much record. There is a disagreement among historians about the delimitation of the term, since there are those who affirm that it was the invention of writing that determined the end of Prehistory and its record would later come from the Greeks or other civilizations, and others who affirm that it was in this period that he transitioned to written records.

The written sources would come from the Greeks, Egyptians, Phoenicians or Hebrews. This period is also known as the Metal Age and already towards the end of the Iron Age, since it was at that time that the use of the same in human activity was evidenced.

Training period

These may refer to the Formative Period of America or the Andean Formative Period. The first is that third part of the prehistory of the American continent that took place between 1,500 BC and 292 AD, a period in which the tribes formed sedentary populations thanks to the development of agriculture.

The second refers to the time of the appearance of ceramics, goldsmithing, the improvement of agricultural techniques, textile art, among other advances, and is divided into lower formative (before the emergence of Chavín, and where goldsmithing and ceramics); the middle formative (when the Chavín culture emerged, which took place in Peru, and when monochromatic ceramics and stone sculpture appeared); and higher education (when other cultures become independent with their own rituals outside the Chavín culture).

What event marked the end of Prehistory

The event that set the tone for the beginning of what is known as History today, was the invention of writing, at which point we began to have records of the activities carried out by man, their customs, culture, migrations, movements, among other aspects. The writing marked a significant precedent, with its invention the end of prehistory as it is known today was marked.

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