The oldest stage in the history of mankind.

Public relations in primitive times

Primitive herd. Ancient people were forced to unite in herds in order to survive. These herds could not be large, no more than 20-40 people. The leader of the primitive herd was the leader, who advanced due to personal qualities. tribal community. The process of transformation of the primitive herd into a tribal community is associated with the development of tools. The collective property was the land, most of the tools. Late tribal communities united in phratries, phratries - in tribes. Phratry - ϶ᴛᴏ the original genus, divided into several subsidiaries. The clan was ruled by a council, which included all members of the tribe and an elder chosen by the clan. In case of extreme importance, a tribal council was assembled, consisting of the elders of the tribal clans and military leaders. Emergence of a neighborhood community. The Neolithic revolution dramatically accelerated the pace of development of the human community. The first major social division of labor took place - the separation of agriculture and animal husbandry into separate economic complexes. Truly revolutionary changes occurred due to the appearance of metals - first copper and gold, then bronze, and, finally, mankind learned how to smelt iron. For the manufacture of new, metal tools, artisans-blacksmiths appeared. The invention of the potter's wheel contributed to the development of pottery. With the invention of the loom, the weaving industry developed. Society, acquiring sustainable sources of livelihood, was able to carry out the second major social division of labor - the separation of crafts from agriculture and animal husbandry. All these changes led to the fact that at first large patriarchal families, consisting of several generations of paternal relatives, stand out from the clan. The introduction of iron tools led to the fact that a small family could feed itself, in connection with this, gradually a large patriarchal family breaks up into small families. Gradually, with the isolation of the economic activities of families, the tribal community was replaced by the neighboring community. The primitive neighboring community is characterized by a combination of private property (house, outbuildings, tools) and collective ownership of land. Representatives of all families have already gathered at the council and elected elders to decide the common affairs. Τᴀᴋᴎᴍ ᴏϬᴩᴀᴈᴏᴍ, the neighboring community included families not only related by kinship, but also belonging to different clans, connected territorially.

Natural and social in man and human community primitive era. Changes in the way of life and forms of social ties.

The history of mankind as a whole is characterized by the growing dynamics of changes taking place both in various spheres public life, and in the complex of interrelations between society and nature.

Traditional for the materialistic traditions of European science was the consideration of history from the point of view of man's conquest of nature. It really acts as a source of resources for the development of civilization. At the same time, a person is in constant interaction with his environment, he himself is its product and an integral part.

Human society and natural communities

The most ancient stone tools appeared about 2.5-3 million years ago. Consequently, at that time in East Africa there were already living creatures with the rudiments of reason.

The origin of the mind is explained by the action of natural laws of evolutionary development, interspecies struggle for survival. The best chances in this struggle were those species that, to a greater extent than others, could ensure their existence in the changing conditions of the natural environment.

Live nature demonstrated an infinite variety of both dead-end and viable variants of evolution. One of them was associated with the formation of the rudiments of social behavior, which many species of animals demonstrate. Uniting in herds (flocks), they could defend themselves and protect their cubs from stronger opponents, get more food. In the interspecific and sometimes intraspecific struggle between herds that needed similar food, those who had better developed communication, the ability to warn each other about the approach of the enemy, and better coordinate their actions on the hunt, won. Gradually, over hundreds of thousands of years, primitive sound signals expressing emotions began to acquire a more and more meaningful character among the predecessors of man.
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Speech was formed, inseparable from the ability to abstract, abstract thinking, which meant a complication of the structure of the brain.

Τᴀᴋᴎᴍ ᴏϬᴩᴀᴈᴏᴍ, the emergence and improvement of speech, abstract thinking have become the most important factor in the development of the human race itself. It is no coincidence that each new step in the evolution of man was associated, on the one hand, with the development of the brain, and on the other hand, with the improvement of hunting and fishing tools.

The accumulation of knowledge and practical skills in their application has provided man with decisive advantages in the struggle for survival in comparison with other species. Armed with clubs, spears, acting together, primitive hunters could cope with any predator. The opportunities for obtaining food have expanded significantly. Thanks to warm clothes, mastering fire, acquiring the skill of preserving food (drying, smoking), people were able to settle over a vast territory, felt relative independence from the climate and the vagaries of the weather.

The accumulation of knowledge was not a constantly evolving, progressive process. Many human communities perished due to starvation, disease, attacks by hostile tribes, the knowledge they received was completely or partially lost.

Paleolithic

Approximately 1.0 million - 700 thousand years ago, a period begins, which is called the early Paleolithic (from the Greek "paleo" - "ancient" and "lithos" - "stone"). Excavations in France, near the villages of Shell and Saint-Achel, made it possible to find the remains of caves and ancient settlements, where successive generations of predecessors lived for tens of thousands of years modern man. Subsequently, such finds were discovered in other places.

Archaeological research has made it possible to trace how the tools of labor and hunting changed. Tools made of bone and sharpened stone (points, scrapers, axes) became more and more perfect and durable. The physical type of a person changed: he more and more adapted to moving on the ground without the help of hands, the volume of the brain increased.

The most important achievement early paleolithic there was a mastery of the ability to use fire (about 200-300 thousand years ago) to heat the home, cook food, and protect against predators.

The period of the early Paleolithic period ends with a sharp change in the natural conditions of the existence of primitive people. The onset of glaciers began, approximately 100 thousand years ago, covering almost the entire territory of Russia, Central and Western Europe. Many herds of primitive Neanderthal hunters could not adapt to the new conditions of existence. Between them, the struggle for diminished sources of food intensified.

By the end of the early Paleolithic (about 30-20 thousand years BC), Neanderthals completely disappeared in Eurasia and Africa. A man of the modern, Cro-Magnon type has established himself everywhere.

In the same period of time, under the influence of differences in natural conditions, the main races of people developed.

The Mesolithic era (from the Greek "mesos" - "middle" and "lithos" - "stone") covers the period from the 20th to the 9th-8th millennium BC. It is characterized by a new change in natural conditions, which are becoming more favorable: glaciers are retreating, new territories are becoming available for settlement.

IN given period the population of the Earth did not exceed 10 million people.

In the Mesolithic era, rock art was born and became widespread. In the remains of dwellings of that time, archaeologists find figurines depicting people, animals, beads and other decorations. All this indicates the onset of a new stage in the knowledge of the world. Abstract symbols and generalized concepts that arose with the development of speech acquire, as it were, an independent life in drawings and figurines. Many of them were associated with rituals, rituals of primitive magic. The large role of chance in people's lives gave rise to attempts to improve the situation in hunting, in life. So there was a belief in signs, favorable or unfavorable. Fetishism appeared - the belief that certain objects (talismans) have a special magical power. Among them were figurines of animals, stones, amulets supposedly bringing good luck to their owner. There were beliefs, for example, that a warrior who drank the blood of an enemy or ate his heart acquires special strength. Hunting, treating the sick, choosing a couple (boys or girls) were preceded by ritual actions, among which dance and singing were of particular importance. Mesolithic people knew how to make percussion, wind, stringed and plucked musical instruments.

Special meaning attached to funeral rituals that became more and more complex over time. In ancient burials, archaeologists find jewelry and tools that people used during their lifetime, food supplies. This proves that already at the dawn of history there were widespread beliefs in the existence of underworld where a person lives after death.

Gradually, faith in higher powers was strengthened, which could both help and harm. They were supposed to be appeased by a sacrifice, most often a part of the booty, which had to be left in a certain place. Some tribes practiced human sacrifice.

It was believed that some people have great abilities to communicate with higher powers, spirits. Gradually, along with the leaders (they usually became the strongest, most successful, experienced hunters), priests (shamans, sorcerers) began to play a prominent role in the life of primitive tribes. Οʜᴎ usually knew the healing properties of herbs, had some hypnotic abilities and had a great influence on their fellow tribesmen.

The time of the completion of the Mesolithic and the transition to a new stage in the development of mankind can only be determined approximately. Many tribes of the equatorial zone in Africa, South America, on islands South-East Asia and the Pacific Ocean, among the natives of Australia, some peoples of the North, the type of economic activity and culture has practically not changed since the Mesolithic. At the same time, in the IX-VIII millennia BC. in some parts of the world, the transition to agriculture and pastoralism begins. This time of the Neolithic revolution (from the Greek "neos" - "new" and "lithos" - "stone") marks the transition from appropriating to producing type of economic activity.

Human and nature

Man around the X millennium BC. has established itself on all continents as the dominant species and in this capacity has ideally adapted to the conditions of its habitat. At the same time, further improvement of hunting tools led to the extermination of many species of animals, the reduction of their livestock, which undermined the foundations of the existence of primitive people. Famine and related diseases, the intensification of the struggle between the tribes for the increasingly poor hunting territories, the reduction in the human population - such was the price of progress.

This first ever crisis in the development of civilization was resolved in two ways:

The tribes living in the harsh climate of the North, desert areas, jungles seemed to freeze in their development and in the knowledge of the world around them. Gradually, a system of prohibitions (taboos) developed, limiting hunting and food consumption. This prevented population growth, hindered the change in lifestyle and the development of knowledge.

In other cases, there was a breakthrough in qualitative new level development. People moved to a conscious impact on the natural environment, to its transformation. The development of agriculture and cattle breeding took place only in favorable natural conditions.

After a successful hunt, live wolf cubs, lambs, kids, calves, wild boars, foals, deer often ended up in the camps. Initially, they were considered as a food supply, then it became clear that they could live in captivity and give birth. Breeding animals turned out to be much more productive than hunting their wild relatives. It took thousands of years for individual attempts at domestication to lead to the establishment of a new type of economy. During this time, new breeds of domesticated animals arose, most of which, unlike their wild ancestors, could no longer survive in the natural environment, they needed a person to protect them from predators.

The transition to agriculture took place in a similar way. The gathering of edible plants has always played an important role in the life of primitive man. Over time, from observations and experience, the understanding came that plant seeds can be sown near the settlement and, with appropriate care, watering, weeding, get good yields.

Agricultural and pastoral crops

The first agricultural cultures of the 7th-4th millennia BC arose near large rivers, where the mild climate and exceptional soil fertility made it possible to obtain good harvests - on the territory of modern Egypt, Iran, Iraq, India, Central Asia, China, Mexico, Peru.

During this period, the life of people has undergone very significant changes.

For most of the primitive communal era, the existence of people was subordinated to the interests of the struggle for survival. All the time was spent looking for food. At the same time, a person who accidentally strayed from his tribe or expelled from it had no chance of surviving.

The only form of division of labor existed between men, who were mainly engaged in hunting, and women, who remained in the camp and looked after the children, who ran the household, sewing, and cooking.

Structure over time public relations started to get more difficult. Thanks to the increased productivity of labor, it became possible to produce more products than was essential for the survival of the tribe. This made it possible to expand the diet, make consumption more diverse. Stable economic ties gradually developed between neighboring settlements. The division of labor deepened. On the one hand, agriculture separated from cattle breeding, on the other hand, handicraft work acquired independent significance (weaving and pottery developed, boats and the first wheeled carts appeared, driven by horses, oxen and donkeys). There was also a division of labor. For example, in some settlements, artisans specialized in weapons, in others - in weaving, in others - in the manufacture of dishes, etc. There was an exchange in kind between the tribes. But with its expansion, there was a need for the existence of a single equivalent of the value of goods, in other words, in money.

The emergence of excess production became the basis not only for the development of trade, but also for the emergence of property inequality. Gradually, the leaders, sorcerers (priests), the most skilled artisans began to accumulate property and valuables. Experienced artisans and healers, whose work was especially highly valued by their fellow tribesmen, began to hide the secrets of their craftsmanship.

Transition from matriarchy to patriarchy

The appearance of property, property, knowledge, labor and professional skills, which were inherited, was closely connected with the changes in the way of life of people of the Neolithic era, the emergence of such a cell of the organization of society as a family.

The most important role in the formation of the family was played by the transition from matriarchy to patriarchy.

In a period when the main source of food was hunting, the century of men turned out, as a rule, to be short. Only the most successful and skillful of them lived to be 25-30 years old.

Under these conditions, women played an important role in the preservation of the family. It was they who gave birth to new generations of hunters (the degree of kinship was determined by the mother), raised children, kept the hearth, organized the life of the tribe, whose members were related by blood ties. This system was called matriarchy.

The work of a farmer, cattle breeder, craftsman did not involve such a risk to life as hunting. Mortality among men decreased, the number of men and women equalized. This played a big role in changing the nature of family relationships.

Fields and cattle pens were usually located near the settlement, and men now worked together with women, doing the most difficult, hard work. The acquired skills and knowledge they passed on to children. This determined the increasing role of men in the tribe. In many nations, it gradually became dominant.

The emerging traditions, customs, and rituals also consolidated the norms of patriarchy͵ ᴛ.ᴇ. special role of men in society.

Neolithic people usually lived in large families (several dozen people), which included blood relatives. Men and women belonging to the same clan could not marry each other. The timing of this prohibition, which avoided the genetic degeneration observed by most tribes, is unknown, but it arose quite a long time ago.

Grown up girls were given in marriage to other clans, and men took wives from them. In other words, women passed from generation to generation, men remained in their family, and it was they who became its permanent core. The degree of relationship was now taken into account in the male line. In some tribes, women were seen as a kind of commodity that one family sold to another.

With such a system family ties the property created or acquired by the family remained in it. The concept of ownership has emerged. Craftsmen, healers also sought to pass on their knowledge to their family members.

Several clans living in the neighborhood, whose members married each other, constituted a tribe. The head of the tribe was the leader.

Transition to the Eneolithic

With the growth of the population, individual clans settled in undeveloped or conquered territories, and over time, new tribes formed. Related tribes speaking the same language, having similar beliefs, usually maintained close ties with each other. Together they formed alliances of tribes, supporting each other in case of conflicts, in lean years.

Tribes that moved far away from their original territory (those who specialized in cattle breeding were especially inclined to resettle) often lost ties with the center of their origin. Their language developed, words borrowed from new neighbors appeared in it, associated with changing forms of economic activity.

At the same time, in the development of agricultural and pastoral tribes, new stage: they move on to the development of metals. In search of new materials for the manufacture of tools, artisans found nuggets of low-melting metals (copper, tin, lead, etc.) and eventually learned to make weapons, tools and jewelry from them. Metals were better and faster to process than stone, they could be used to make more productive tools, the best weapon, armor.

There were still few available reserves of metal, their processing was only the first steps, in connection with this, stone tools were used for a long time. Nevertheless, the time that began with the development of metal (the first metal tools date back to the 7th millennium BC, but they are widely distributed only in the 4th-3rd millennium BC) is called the Eneolithic (copper-stone century). It was marked by the onset of a new stage in the history of mankind, associated with the emergence of the first states.

The oldest stage in the history of mankind. - concept and types. Classification and features of the category "The oldest stage in the history of mankind." 2017, 2018.

Introduction

The age of the human community is estimated at 35-40 thousand years (it must be borne in mind that man appeared on planet Earth much earlier). At the dawn of history, human communities, regardless of the region of residence, began from the same starting position, which is usually called the primitive community system.

This system was characterized by an extraordinary similarity throughout the entire territory of human habitation; uniformity of social structures, methods of labor activity, beliefs, everyday culture, etc. But over the course of history, mankind has come to strikingly different results. IN modern world we have a colossal variety of social structures, political systems, levels and types economic development, spiritual, artistic culture etc.

History as a science of the development of human society in all its diversity is a collection of various actions, actions of individuals, human groups, which are in a certain relationship, making up human society. Therefore, the subject of study of history is the actions of individuals, humanity, the totality of relations in society.

According to the breadth of the study of the object, history is subdivided: the history of the world as a whole (world or General history), the history of continents (for example, the history of Asia and Africa, the history of Australia), the history of individual countries and peoples or groups of peoples (for example, the history of Russia, the history of the southern and western Slavs).

Historical science has gone through several stages of development as society has developed, summarizing the experience of many human generations, enriching itself with new historical facts. Its basis is the collection, systematization and generalization of facts. Branches of historical knowledge distinguish: civil history, political history, history of state and law, history government controlled, economic history, military history, history of religion, social, history of culture, music, language, literature.

The historical sciences also include ethnography, which studies the life and culture of peoples, and archeology, which studies history according to material sources antiquity - tools, household utensils, decorations, etc. and whole complexes - settlements, burial grounds, treasures, etc.

Auxiliary historical disciplines have a narrower subject of study, study it in detail and contribute to a deeper understanding. historical process generally.

Periodization of the ancient history of mankind

Modern science has come to the conclusion that the entire variety of current space objects was formed about 20 billion years ago. The sun - one of the many stars in our galaxy - arose 10 billion years ago. Our Earth is an ordinary planet solar system- has an age of 4.6 billion years. Now it is generally accepted that man began to stand out from the animal world about 3 million years ago.

The periodization of the history of mankind at the stage of the primitive communal system is rather complicated. Several variants are known. Most often used archaeological scheme. In accordance with it, the history of mankind is divided into three large stages, depending on the material from which the tools used by man were made. Stone Age: 3 million years ago - the end of the III millennium BC. e.; Bronze Age: end of III millennium BC. e. - I millennium BC. e.; Iron Age - from the 1st millennium BC. e.

Among different peoples in different regions of the Earth, the appearance of certain tools and forms of social life did not occur simultaneously. There was a process of formation of a person (anthropogenesis, from the Greek "anthropos" - a person, "genesis" - origin) and human society (sociogenesis, from the Latin "societas" - society and the Greek "genesis" - origin).

The earliest ancestors of modern man looked like apes, which, unlike animals, were able to produce tools. In the scientific literature, this type of ape-man was called homo habilis - a skilled man. Further evolution of the habilis led to the appearance of the so-called pithecanthropes 1.5-1.6 million years ago (from the Greek "pithekos" - monkey, "anthropos" - man), or archanthropes (from the Greek "ahayos" - ancient). The archanthropes were already human. 300-200 thousand years ago, archanthropes were replaced by a more developed type of man - paleoanthropes, or Neanderthals (at the place of their first discovery in the Neandertal area in Germany).

During the period of the early Stone Age - Paleolithic Paleolithic-ancient stone Age(from the Greek "palaios" - ancient, "lithos" stone). Accordingly, "mesos" - medium, "neos" - new; hence the Mesolithic, Neolithic. (about 700 thousand years ago) a person entered the territory of Eastern Europe. Settlement came from the south. Archaeologists find traces of the stay of the most ancient people in the Crimea (Kiik-Koba caves), in Abkhazia (not far from Sukhumi-Yashtukh), in Armenia (Satani-Dar hill near Yerevan), and also in Central Asia (south of Kazakhstan, Tashkent region). In the Zhytomyr region and on the Dniester, traces of people living here 500-300 thousand years ago were found.

Approximately 100 thousand years ago, a significant part of the territory of Europe was occupied by a huge glacier up to two kilometers thick (since then, the snowy peaks of the Alps and Scandinavian mountains have formed).

The emergence of the glacier affected the development of mankind. The harsh climate forced a person to use natural fire, and then to get it. This helped a person to survive in conditions of a sharp cold snap. People have learned to make piercing and cutting objects out of stone and bone (stone knives, spearheads, scrapers, needles, etc.).

Obviously, the birth of articulate speech and the generic organization of society dates back to this time. The first, still extremely vague, religious performances, as evidenced by the appearance of artificial burials.

The difficulties of the struggle for existence, the fear of the forces of nature and the inability to explain them were the reasons for the emergence of pagan religion. Paganism was a deification of the forces of nature, animals, plants, good and evil spirits. This huge complex of primitive beliefs, customs, rituals preceded the spread of world religions (Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, etc.).

During the late Paleolithic period (35-10 thousand years ago), the glacier melted, and a climate similar to the modern one was established. Using fire for cooking further development tools, as well as the first attempts to streamline relations between the sexes, significantly changed the physical type of a person. It was to this time that the transformation of a skilled man (homo habilis) into a reasonable man (homo sapiens) belongs. According to the place of the first find, it is called Cro-Magnon (Cro-Magnon area in France). At the same time, obviously, as a result of adaptation to the environment in the conditions of the existence of sharp differences in climate between different regions of the globe, the current races (Caucasoid, Negroid and Mongoloid) were formed.

Further development was the processing of stone, and especially bone and horn. Scholars sometimes refer to the Late Paleolithic as the "Bone Age". The finds of this time include daggers, spearheads, harpoons, needles with an eye, awls, etc. Traces of the first long-term settlements were found. Not only caves, but also huts and dugouts built by man served as dwellings. Remains of jewelry have been found that allow you to reproduce the clothes of that time.

During the late Paleolithic period, the primitive herd was replaced by a higher form of social organization - the tribal community. A tribal community is an association of people of the same kind who have collective property and conduct a household based on the age and gender division of labor in the absence of exploitation.

Before the advent of pair marriage, kinship was established through the maternal line. At that time, a woman played a leading role in the economy, which determined the first stage of the tribal system - matriarchy, which lasted until the time of the spread of metal.

Many works of art created in the late Paleolithic era have come down to us. Picturesque colorful petroglyphs of animals (mammoths, bison, bears, deer, horses, etc.), which were hunted by people of that time, as well as figurines depicting a female deity, were found in caves and at sites in France, Italy, and the Southern Urals ( the famous Kapova Cave).

In the Mesolithic, or Middle Stone Age (10-8 thousand years ago), new advances were made in stone processing. The tips and blades of knives, spears, harpoons were then made as a kind of inserts from thin flint plates. A stone ax was used to process wood. One of major achievements was the invention of the bow - a ranged weapon, which made it possible to more successfully hunt animals and birds. People have learned to make snares and hunting traps.

Fishing has been added to hunting and gathering. Attempts of people to float on logs are noted. The domestication of animals began: the dog was tamed, followed by the pig. Eurasia was finally settled: man reached the shores of the Baltic and the Pacific Ocean. At the same time, as many researchers believe, people from Siberia through the Chukotka Peninsula came to the territory of America.

Neolithic - last period Stone Age (7-5 ​​thousand years ago) is characterized by the appearance of grinding and drilling tools made of stone (axes, adzes, hoes). Handles were attached to objects. Since that time, pottery has been known. People began to build boats, learned to weave nets for catching fish, weave.

Significant changes in technology and forms of production during this time are sometimes referred to as the "Neolithic Revolution". Its most important result was the transition from gathering, from an appropriating economy to a producing one. Man was no longer afraid to break away from the habitable places, he could settle more freely in search of better living conditions, developing new lands.

Depending on the natural and climatic conditions on the territory of Eastern Europe and Siberia, various types of economic activity have developed. Cattle-breeding tribes lived in the steppe zone from the middle Dnieper to Altai. Farmers settled in the territories of modern Ukraine, Transcaucasia, Central Asia, and southern Siberia.

The hunting and fishing economy was typical for the northern forest regions of the European part and Siberia. The historical development of individual regions was uneven. Cattle-breeding and agricultural tribes developed more rapidly. Agriculture gradually penetrated the steppe regions.

Among the settlements of farmers in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, Neolithic settlements can be distinguished in Turkmenistan (near Ashgabat), in Armenia (near Yerevan), etc. In Central Asia in the 4th millennium BC. e. the first artificial irrigation systems were created.

On the East European Plain, the most ancient agricultural culture was Trypilska, named after the village of Tripoli near Kyiv. Trypillian settlements were discovered by archaeologists on the territory from the Dnieper to the Carpathians. They were large settlements of farmers and pastoralists, whose dwellings were located in a circle.

During the excavations of these settlements, grains of wheat, barley, and millet were found. Wooden sickles with flint inserts, stone grain grinders and other items were found. The Trypillia culture belongs to the Copper Stone Age - the Eneolithic (III-I millennium BC).

New push in historical development humanity received by mastering the production of metal. On the territory of our country, the development of those tribes that lived near deposits of copper and tin accelerated. On the territory of Eurasia, such tribes lived in the regions of the North Caucasus, Central Asia, the Urals and Siberia.

The transition to metal tools led to the separation of pastoral and agricultural tribes. The role of the male shepherd and farmer increased in production. Matriarchy has been replaced by patriarchy. Cattle breeding led to an even more intensive movement of clans in search of pastures. Separate clans were united and enlarged into large tribes.

Large cultural communities began to take shape. Scientists believe that these communities corresponded to the language families from which the peoples who currently inhabit our country came out. The largest language family - Indo-European. It developed on the territory of modern Iran and Asia Minor, spread to Southern and Eastern Europe, Asia Minor and Central Asia, to the region of the Hindustan Peninsula. Subsequently, the Indo-European language family split into several branches: in the south and southeast - Iranians, Indians, Tajiks, Armenians, etc.; in the west - the current Germans, French, British, etc.; in the east - the Balts and the distant ancestors of the Slavs.

Another large language family - Finno-Ugric(current Finns, Estonians, Karelians, Khanty, Mordovians, etc.) has long occupied the territory from the Kama region to the Trans-Urals, from where its tribes settled in the European North, the Volga region and Western Siberia. Ancestors Turkic peoples lived in Central Asia, from where they began their advance into Eastern Europe and further west. In the mountain gorges of the North Caucasus since bronze age peoples live to this day Iberian-Caucasian language family. The Koryaks, Aleuts, Eskimos and other peoples settled on the territory of Eastern Siberia and North-East Asia, who have survived here until our days. The origin of peoples (ethnogenesis) is one of difficult questions Sciences; This is a long process that takes several millennia.

Renowned anthropologist and population geneticist Alan Templeton argued strongly against the theory that had been accepted for the past 20 years. New genetic data show that the ancient Eurasian humanity was not forced out by sapiens who left Africa 80-100 thousand years ago, but mixed with them. The blood of Eurasian archanthropes, and possibly Neanderthals, flows in our veins.

Facts everyone agrees on

Africa was the ancestral home of mankind, no one doubts this now. Approximately 1.9 million years ago, our distant ancestors - early archanthropes, carriers of the pebble (Oldowian) culture, for the first time went beyond the borders of their native continent, as evidenced, in particular, by recent finds in Georgia. Archanthropes widely settled in South Asia. 800-600 thousand years ago, the second Eurasian expansion of people from Africa took place, this time carried out by more advanced representatives of the human race ( Homo antecessor and others like him, carriers of the Acheulian culture that had developed earlier in Africa).

European and West Asian populations of these people after several hundred millennia became Neanderthals, and in Africa, meanwhile, their distant relatives evolved into "anatomically modern man" - Homo sapiens . Approximately 100 thousand years ago, a small group of sapiens left Africa and gradually populated Asia, Australia and Europe. All this is quite reliable facts. Experts argue about something else: did the representatives of the “last wave” mix with the ancient Eurasian humanity or did they completely oust it?

Mitochondrial Eve and Y-Chromosomal Adam in African Eden

Within twenty recent years decisive superiority was on the side of the second point of view. The main argument was the results of the analysis of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of modern people, to a lesser extent - the Y-chromosome. Based on the polymorphism of mtDNA nucleotide sequences, the evolutionary tree of this part of the human genome was reconstructed, the branches of which, if you move along them from top to bottom (reverse in time), converged to one point in time and space: Africa, about 150 thousand years ago. This is how “mitochondrial Eve” appeared in the scientific press and in the media (mitochondria are transmitted through the maternal line), and after it, “Y-chromosome Adam” appeared in a similar way (only men have a Y chromosome and is transmitted from father to son), who lived at about the same time and in the same place.

These results were perceived by the public very violently, and, as usual, few people understood their true meaning. In fact, as Alan Templeton rightly points out, there is nothing surprising about either Adam or Eve. Any homologous DNA segments somewhere in the past inevitably converge to one point, that is, to one ancestral DNA molecule. And this point does not necessarily coincide with the moment of appearance of the species. Moreover, if you take different homologous sections of DNA, each of them will give its own “point of convergence” that is different from the others. The approximate coincidence of the results for mtDNA and the Y chromosome is nothing more than an accident, partly due to the fact that both of these sections of the a genome have a common property: they are present in each cell in only one copy (unlike most other sections of the a genome, which are present in duplicate). There is also an X chromosome, which occupies an intermediate position: in women it is present in two copies, in men in one.

Templeton showed that the expected time of convergence of an evolutionary tree built for a particular DNA region to one point depends on how many copies of this region are present in cells. It is the mtDNA and the Y-chromosome that should converge most quickly (as is observed, they converge approximately 150 thousand years ago). This does not mean that it was then that he appeared H. sapiens, it only means that these parts of the genome a are not suitable for the reconstruction of older events. The sites localized on the X chromosome converge in the more distant past (up to 2 million years); all other sites are even more ancient, some even before the evolutionary lines of man and chimpanzee were divided.

The history of mtDNA is not yet the history of mankind

How can we conclude from mtDNA or another part of the genome that our ancestors left Africa at a certain time? This is possible if shortly after this event one of the migrants developed a mutation in the studied DNA region, which then multiplied during the expansion. And then the modern geneticist will see that the frequency of this mutation in the non-African population, for example, is 10%, while in Africa it is not. The time of occurrence of a mutation is determined on the basis of other, later occurring mutations, using the "molecular clock" method. Well, what if, shortly after the exit from Africa, no mutation arose in this section of the genome? Then, of course, nothing will come of it: this section of the genome will simply not retain traces of the expansion that interests us.

In a word, Templeton convincingly showed (and most biologists, by the way, agree with this) that it is impossible to draw final conclusions about the evolution and history of human settlement from a single section of the a genome (for example, from mtDNA). Such conclusions require complex analysis many different regions of the genome a.

Mankind has always been one

That's what Templeton does. In 2002, he already published his results based on the study of 12 DNA regions (in addition to mtDNA and the Y chromosome, another 10 regions were included in the analysis). Critics at the time pointed to insufficient sample size, poor accuracy, and other possible methodological flaws. This time, Templeton brought the number of analyzed sections of the human genome to 25. The results did not change, on the contrary, they became much clearer and more convincing.

They consist of the following. Different sections of DNA have retained traces different events in human history. The overall picture surprisingly exactly coincides with the one that is reconstructed according to archeological data. Three stretches of DNA have preserved traces of the oldest wave of exodus from Africa about 1.9 million years ago. This means that the blood of ancient Asian archanthropes flows in our veins! Seven stretches of DNA testify to a second exodus from Africa about 0.65 million years ago (Acheulian expansion). Representatives of this wave are also our direct ancestors. Finally, five more DNA segments (including mtDNA and the Y chromosome) confirm the third exodus from Africa about 100 thousand years ago.

Moreover, Templeton's data show that the exchange of genes between the Eurasian and African populations of our ancestors almost never stopped, although it was greatly hindered by large distances. It turns out that ancient humanity was not at all a collection of isolated populations (races, subspecies, species ...) - it was relatively uniform over the past two million years!

Neanderthal question

The mtDNA of Neanderthals is very different from ours, and other parts of the a genome have not yet been isolated from fossil bones. However, according to Templeton, this does not at all prove that our ancestors did not interbreed with Neanderthals and that in modern people there is no trace of Neanderthal blood. For example, unidirectional hybridization could occur (sapiens women could give birth to children from Neanderthal men) - in this case, mtDNA cannot tell us anything. Similar examples, when the genes of one people were transmitted to another only through men, are known from the later history of mankind.

Based on his data, Templeton calculated the probability that the theory of the complete displacement of all the ancient inhabitants of Eurasia by sapiens is still correct. The probability turned out to be 10–17. There is no less. The researcher believes that this theory has not only been refuted by him - it has been destroyed.

It remains to wait for the counterarguments of the opposite side.

| Genetics, Anthropology |

Renowned anthropologist and population geneticist Alan Templeton has made a strong case against the theory that has been widely accepted for the past 20 years. New genetic data show that the ancient Eurasian humanity was not forced out by sapiens who left Africa 80-100 thousand years ago, but mixed with them. The blood of Eurasian archanthropes, and possibly Neanderthals, flows in our veins.

Apparently, many varieties of ancient people, until now considered extinct dead-end branches, did not disappear without a trace. Their direct descendants live to this day - it's you and me.

Facts everyone agrees on

Africa was the ancestral home of mankind, no one doubts this now. Approximately 1.9 million years ago, our distant ancestors - early archanthropes, carriers of the pebble (Oldowian) culture, for the first time went beyond the borders of their native continent, as evidenced, in particular, by recent finds in Georgia. Archanthropes widely settled in South Asia. 800-600 thousand years ago, the second Eurasian expansion of people from Africa took place, this time carried out by more advanced representatives of the human race ( Homo antecessor and others like him, carriers of the Acheulean culture that had developed earlier in Africa).

European and West Asian populations of these people after several hundred millennia became Neanderthals, and in Africa, meanwhile, their distant relatives evolved into "anatomically modern man" - Homo sapiens. Approximately 100 thousand years ago, a small group of sapiens left Africa and gradually populated Asia, Australia and Europe. All this is quite reliable facts. Experts argue about something else: did the representatives of the “last wave” mix with the ancient Eurasian humanity or did they completely oust it?

Mitochondrial Eve and Y-Chromosomal Adam in African Eden

For the past twenty years, the second point of view has been decisively superior. The main argument was the results of the analysis of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of modern people, to a lesser extent - the Y-chromosome. Based on the polymorphism of the mtDNA nucleotide sequences, the evolutionary tree of this part of the human genome was reconstructed, the branches of which, if you move along them from top to bottom (reverse in time), converged to one point in time and space: Africa, about 150 thousand years ago. This is how “mitochondrial Eve” appeared in the scientific press and in the media (mitochondria are transmitted through the maternal line), and after it, “Y-chromosome Adam” appeared in a similar way (only men have a Y chromosome and is transmitted from father to son), who lived at about the same time and in the same place. These results were perceived by the public very violently, and, as usual, few people understood their true meaning. In fact, as Alan Templeton rightly points out, there is nothing surprising about either Adam or Eve. Any homologous DNA segments somewhere in the past inevitably converge to one point, that is, to one ancestral DNA molecule. And this point does not necessarily coincide with the moment of appearance of the species. Moreover, if you take different homologous sections of DNA, each of them will give its own “point of convergence” that is different from the others. The approximate coincidence of the results for mtDNA and the Y chromosome is nothing more than an accident, partly due to the fact that both of these regions of the genome have common property: they are present in each cell in only one copy (unlike most other parts of the genome, which are present in two copies). There is also an X chromosome, which occupies an intermediate position: in women it is present in two copies, in men in one.

Templeton showed that the expected time of convergence of an evolutionary tree built for a particular DNA region to one point depends on how many copies of this region are present in cells. It is the mtDNA and the Y-chromosome that should converge most quickly (as is observed, they converge approximately 150 thousand years ago). This does not mean that it was then that H. sapiens appeared, it only means that these parts of the genome are not suitable for the reconstruction of older events. The sites localized on the X chromosome converge in the more distant past (up to 2 million years); all other sites are even more ancient, some even before the evolutionary lines of man and chimpanzee were divided.

The history of mtDNA is not yet the history of mankind

How can we conclude from mtDNA or another part of the genome that our ancestors left Africa for some certain time? This is possible if, shortly after this event, one of the settlers developed a mutation in the studied DNA region, which then multiplied during expansion. And then the modern geneticist will see that the frequency of this mutation in the non-African population, for example, is 10%, while in Africa it is not. The time of occurrence of a mutation is determined on the basis of other, later occurring mutations, using the "molecular clock" method. But what if, shortly after leaving Africa, no mutation arose in this region of the genome? Then, of course, nothing will come of it: this section of the genome simply will not retain traces of the expansion that interests us.

In a word, Templeton convincingly showed (and most biologists, by the way, agree with this) that it is impossible to draw final conclusions about the evolution and history of human settlement from a single genome region (for example, mtDNA). Such conclusions require a comprehensive analysis of many different regions of the genome.

Mankind has always been one

That's what Templeton does. In 2002, he already published his results based on the study of 12 DNA regions (in addition to mtDNA and the Y chromosome, another 10 regions were included in the analysis). Critics then pointed to insufficient sample size, low accuracy, and other possible methodological flaws. This time, Templeton brought the number of analyzed sections of the human genome to 25. The results did not change, on the contrary, they became much clearer and more convincing.

They consist of the following. Different sections of DNA have preserved traces of different events in the history of mankind. The overall picture surprisingly exactly coincides with the one that is reconstructed according to archeological data. Three stretches of DNA have preserved traces of the oldest wave of exodus from Africa about 1.9 million years ago. This means that the blood of ancient Asian archanthropes flows in our veins! Seven stretches of DNA testify to a second exodus from Africa about 0.65 million years ago (Acheulian expansion). Representatives of this wave are also our direct ancestors. Finally, five more DNA segments (including mtDNA and the Y chromosome) confirm the third exodus from Africa about 100 thousand years ago.

Moreover, Templeton's data show that the exchange of genes between the Eurasian and African populations of our ancestors almost never stopped, although it was greatly hindered by large distances. It turns out that ancient humanity was not at all a collection of isolated populations (races, subspecies, species ...) - it was relatively uniform over the past two million years!

Neanderthal question

The mtDNA of Neanderthals is very different from ours, and other parts of the genome have not yet been isolated from fossil bones. However, according to Templeton, this does not at all prove that our ancestors did not interbreed with Neanderthals and that there is not even a fraction of Neanderthal blood in modern people. For example, unidirectional hybridization could occur (sapiens women could give birth to children from Neanderthal men) - in this case, mtDNA cannot tell us anything. Similar examples, when the genes of one people were transmitted to another only through men, are known from the later history of mankind.

Based on his data, Templeton calculated the probability that the theory of the complete displacement of all the ancient inhabitants of Eurasia by sapiens is still correct. The probability turned out to be 10–17. There is no less. The researcher believes that this theory was not only refuted by him - it was destroyed.

It remains to wait for the counterarguments of the opposite side.

Diagram of the history of mankind according to A.R. Templeton. On the right are the DNA segments (haplotypes) that confirm this or that event. It can be seen that mtDNA and the Y chromosome “work” only starting from the last exit from Africa about 100 thousand years ago. Rice. from an article in the Yearbook of physical anthropology

How did man appear? There is still no generally accepted opinion on this matter. Science and religion may give different answers. The latter teaches what was created by God. Believers believe that in this way people were endowed with an immortal soul and mind.

Features of the scientific point of view

Most scientists are of the opinion that man is descended from ape-like creatures. The latter changed in the process of evolution. Their backs straightened, their long arms shortened. The brain continued to develop. Thanks to this, these creatures became smarter. Their isolation from the animal world was inevitable. This is how the first ancient people appeared. It is worth noting that the above theory is not fully supported by scientific evidence. Nevertheless, even at school they begin to study how ancient people lived (Grade 5 school curriculum gives a brief account of that era).

Features of appearance

The history of ancient man begins about two million years ago. The earliest remains were discovered by scientists in Africa. Thanks to this, it became possible to establish how it looked. This man could only walk by leaning heavily forward. He had arms so long that they hung even below his knees. At the same time, his forehead was sloping and low. Powerful protruded above the eyes. The size of his brain was smaller than that of However, if compared with a monkey, he was larger. This man has not yet learned to speak. He was only able to make staccato sounds. Humans have continued to evolve over time. Their brain size has increased. The appearance has also changed. Gradually, they began to master speech.

Features of the first tools

The life of ancient people was full of dangers. They needed food and protection from various predators. This required special tools. So the first tools of ancient people appeared. They were made from improvised materials found in nature. Several blows of stones between themselves were enough for a rough but durable device with a pointed end to appear. With the help of it, digging sticks were turned and clubs were cut down. The first tools of ancient people were represented by them, as well as pointed stones. Thanks to the ability to make them, man differed from animals. The work of ancient people can be called painstaking and difficult.

Main occupations

The life of ancient people, in particular Neanderthals, took place in caves. In the ice age, they protected a person from the cold. Near the remains of Neanderthals, scientists often managed to find the bones of cave hyenas, lions and bears. This means that a person had to fight with predatory animals for housing. The remains of other animals, such as large ones such as the rhinoceros or the mammoth, allow us to conclude that the life of ancient people was closely connected with intensive hunting. During the time of Mustier, it especially developed. The history of ancient man testifies that to a large extent food was obtained by hunting small animals, as well as collecting fruits and roots.

Features of the hunting process

Neanderthals from the Mousterian era went hunting not only in open areas. Also for these purposes they visited forests. There they pursued mainly medium-sized animals. The life of ancient people forced them to unite. Very often they attacked large animals together. Sometimes these were sick and defenseless animals that fell into a swamp or pit. Neanderthals did not disdain eating their corpses. The whole process of cutting the animal was divided into several stages. After killing him, the Neanderthals cut the skin with stone tools. Meat was also removed by their use. Long bones were broken. Next, the nutritious bone marrow was removed, and the brain from the skull. The meat was consumed raw. It could also be pre-fried at the stake. Most likely, the skins of dead animals were used to cover the body.

Further development

In the Mousterian era, the management and technique of the economy became much more complicated. The division of labor continued. The most experienced hunters became leaders in the primitive herd. It is worth noting that European Neanderthals were quite adapted to environmental conditions, even quite difficult ones. However, their life expectancy was significantly reduced due to the difficulties of the fight and various diseases.

Features of stone tools

Features of the organization of labor

Of course, not only men, but also women had to work. However, it is obvious that the form of their labor participation was different. Here it is advisable to take into account the anatomical and physiological characteristics inherent in women. They could not take part in the hunt for large animals, as it required a fast and long chase. In addition, it was more difficult for women to fight dangerous animals, as well as throw stones. Thus, there was an urgent need for a division of labor. Moreover, this was required not only by hunting, but also by many other features of the life of ancient people. There was a complication of social relationships, as well as collective actions.