1.1 Big Geography and the Peopling of the Earth

Period 1 – Technological and Environmental Transformations, c. 8000 BCE to c. 600 BCE

The term big geography draws attention to the global nature of world history. Throughout the Paleolithic period, humans migrated from Africa to Eurasia, Australia, and the Americas. Early humans were mobile and creative in adapting to different geographical settings from savanna to desert to tundra. Humans also developed varied and sophisticated technologies.

I. Archeological evidence indicates that during the Paleolithic era, hunterforager bands of humans gradually migrated from their origin in East Africa to Eurasia, Australia, and the Americas, adapting their technology and cultures to new climate regions.

A. Humans developed increasingly diverse and sophisticated tools— including multiple uses of fire—as they adapted to new environments.

B. People lived in small groups that structured social, economic, and political activity. These bands exchanged people, ideas, and goods.

• Explain how different types of societies have adapted to and affected their environments.
• Explain how environmental factors, disease, and technology affected patterns of human migration and settlement over time.
• Explain how crosscultural interactions resulted in the diffusion of culture, technologies, and scientific knowledge.
• Explain the causes and effects of economic strategies of different types of communities, states, and empires.
• Explain how local, regional, and global economic systems and exchange networks have influenced and impacted each other over time.