Flashcards: Prehistory
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Created by:
HistoryofCrawford on November 25, 2011
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Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 prehistory | The period of time before a people develops written communication. |
| Paleolithic | Means "old stone age." This is the time period marked by foraging nomads, chipped stone tools, and extended family bands. |
| Mesolithic | Means "middle stone age." This refers to the intermediate time between the period marked by a nomadic, foraging existence and the beginning of farming. This period was characterized by the use of microliths. |
| foragers | People who hunt and gather for food. |
| nomads | People who live a migratory existence, continually moving from place to place. |
| Beringia | The 1,000-mile-wide "land bridge" created during the last ice age. According to archaeological evidence, Paleo-Indians crossed over this land bridge. |
| domestication | The taming of animals for human use, such as work or as food. |
| Neolithic | Means "new stone age." Refers to the period when people began farming, living in towns, producing polished or ground stone tools, domesticating additional animals, and developing specialization (crafts including metalworking). |
| Neolithic Agricultural Revolution | The transforming effects of intensive agriculture on human society. |
| Civilization | The development of a more complex society, characterized by a large population, the appearance of cities, government, and advanced technology. |
| cultural diffusion | The spread of ideas, customs, and technologies from one people to another. |