Lesson 2: Concepts, Aspects, and Changes of Culture and Society

Lesson 3: Enthnocentrism and Culture Relativitism

Lesson 4: Significance of Cultural, Social, Political and Economic Symbols
and Practices
The Neolithic Revolution is also called as the First Agricultural Revolution. During this period, there was a wide-
scale transition of many human cultures from a lifestyle of hunting and gathering to of agriculture and
settlement kind of society which eventually led to population increase. People depend on domesticated plants
and animals. They learned to create such crafts as pottery and weaving. They likewise developed boat as
means of transportation and for fishing as well.
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From being nomads during the early stage, human began to develop a sedentary type of society of which they
built-up villages and towns.

Furthermore, they were never contented of their accomplishments. They kept on discovering things for their
own convenience. So, they discovered metals, and they gradually abandoned stone as the basic element for
their instrument and tools.
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This period was known as Age of Metals (4000 B.C – 1500 B.C). The used of metal such as bronze, copper, and
iron produced a new historical development from the cradle civilization of Egypt, Mesopotamia, Persia
including the India, and China which later spread throughout Asia.

There were three stages distinguished within this Age due to the different types of metals that were used: The
Copper Age, the Bronze Age and the Iron Age; copper was the first known metal, it is of a low hardness and it
was used to make ornaments; bronze is an alloy of copper and tin and it is harder and stronger than copper.
Several eastern Mediterranean peoples discovered this metallurgy and progressed rapidly.

During this age, agricultural tools were developed with bronze, such as plows and sickles, military weapons like
swords, spears and shields, as well as household utensils like jars, bowls and cups. Likewise, a more developed
social, cultural, political, and economic system were improved. Tribes, empires, and state were recognized at
this point.

EARLY CIVILIZATION and RISE of the STATE

Ancient State and Civilization One of the earliest states and civilizations was found in the Fertile Crescent which
is known as the Mesopotamian civilization. The word Mesopotamia is a Greek word for “Land between two
rivers” which is often referred to as the cradle of civilization. It is the region of the Western Asia located
between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. It is known as the Fertile Crescent where the first evidence of
agriculture was also found.
Here the first human civilizations were taking the earliest steps from hunter-gatherer society into settled
community.

Moreover, it is in Mesopotamia that the history writing appeared as early as over 5,000 years ago. This
invention was so important that it marks the end of the Prehistory, and the beginning of history. One of the
first writing systems, the Cuneiform, is one of the most important civilizations in the history of Mesopotamian
culture.

Every city in Mesopotamia had its own government, rulers, warriors, patron god, and functioned like an
independent country. Mesopotamian cities were Ur, Uruk, Kish, Lagesh. There is a temple at the center of each
city called a ziggurat (a massive, tiered, pyramid-shaped structure).

There was also what we called Mesopotamian warrior-gods(2.400-2.500 B.C.)who govern and protect the
people under its government. Military commanders eventually became monarch creating a new structure of
government called a Dynasty. It is a series of rulers descending from a single-family line. The Akkadian Empire
lasted about 200 years. In the year 2350–2150 B.C, Babylonian Empire overtook Sumerians around 2000 B.C.,
and they built capital, the Babylon, on Euphrates River.

Another ancient states and civilizations was the Egyptian civilization. It emerged more than 5,000 years ago
along the River Nile in the north-east of Africa. The Ancient Egyptians lived near the River Nile because of its
fertile land suitable for growing crops and domestication of animals. Each year, water from the Nile rose and
flooded the area. When the water went back, it left mud that made the fields fertile.

Egyptians called their king a pharaoh. The pharaoh was all- powerful: He passed laws, He ruled the country, He
owned most of the land, and He controlled trade and led the armies. Egyptians believed that the pharaohs
were gods.

Modern State and Civilization In the European continent, several states and civilization grew tremendously
over centuries. In England, around 1500s, most of the people lived in small villages. They paid tithes to their
feudal landlords. Henry VII won the War of the Roses in England, which led into what is known as the Tudor
dynasty, and begun the development of the English nation-state.

In Spain in the year 1492, Spanish monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella took Spain back from the Muslim. It
became the era of Spain as a global power.

In France, Louis XIV of France created an absolute monarchy. France became the dominant power in Europe.
When The French Revolution broke out, it created the modern French nation-state, which sparked nationalism
around Europe.

In 1914, when various nation-states started to claim their power and superiority over all the nations in the
world, the World War I begununtil1918. In 1919, Treaty of Versailles ended the World War I. It divided several
multinational empires that led to the creation of several new nation-states.

In 1939, the World War II started until 1945. The end of World War II led to the formation of United Nations in
1945.

The State of the People: Democratic State In the recent decade after the two World Wars, people are
becoming more active in their government and state affairs, in which people become the source of political
power and government rules. This evolution in the government is known as the process of democratization, or
simply democracy – the rule of the people.
Democratization is the transition to a more democratic political regime, including substantive political changes
moving in a democratic direction. It may be the transition from an authoritarian regime to a full democracy, a
transition from an authoritarian political system to a semi-democracy or transition from a semi-authoritarian
political system to a democratic political system. What is a democracy? Moreover, a democracy is a form of
government where the citizens of the nation have the power to vote.

Types of Democracy

There are several different types of democracies;

(1) Representative democracy is a system where citizens choose government representatives among their
citizens,

(2) Direct democracy is when the citizens form a governing body and vote directly on issues,

(3) Constitutional democracy limits the powers of government through the nation’s constitution.

Lesson 4: The Evolution and Human Prehistory