Africa is one of the largest continents in the world possessing a rich history. Africa which is surrounded by Red sea, Indian Ocean, Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea has been hosting various civilizations from the past. All the humans have evolved from Africa. It is believed that all the human beings belong to the Homo sapiens species whose ancestors were the natives of African tropical savannahs a few million years ago.
Hence it can be said that human species evolved from Africa and find its roots in Africa. Africa can also be regarded as the generator of the oldest human civilizations. The geography and wide landscape of Africa contributed quite a lot in the historical civilization development in the African continent. When we talk about the ancient African hierarchy, the following civilizations and ages need to be discussed in the following hierarchical manner:
- Late Stone Age or Neolithic age
- Old Stone Age or Paleolithic age
Old Stone Age or Paleolithic age
This era can be regarded as the longest period prehistoric time which is the oldest recognizable advent of proto human species. This era was so long it itself is divided into phases to get a clear understanding of it, where the first phase is named as Oldwan and the second phase is known as Acheulian. These two phases are associated with many stone age developments.
This era is known as Stone Age because it marked the first usage of stone based tools for various purposes. It is also considered that the first appearance of human civilization was seen in this era, which spread all over the world gradually with due course of time in the later ages. The early Stone Age era was so long that it witnessed various refinements in the stone based tools and by the end of early Stone Age many sophisticated tools were developed.
Late Stone Age or Neolithic age
Late Stone Age era started around 20,000 years ago from the current date. When this era started human have arranged themselves in relationships, social structures and civilizations. They understood the importance of groupings and togetherness. They also developed themselves on technical front to a great extent.
By this time human started using much better techniques for hunting and gathering food. Stone based tools became even better, sharper and effective.They started understanding seasons and growth of plants according to seasons. By this time people started living in small societies. Kinship and marriages were practised among males and females in this era.
Religious and artistic aspects of people also came forward and people started developing interest in various other things apart from their responsibilities. People started giving strong emphasis on groupings, leadership, cooperation etc. This new Stone Age is popularly known as Neolithic age.
After Neolithic age and when people learned grouping various civilizations came into being in many parts of the continent and rest of the world. Initially all groups’ practiced similar policies and societies but gradually each one developed its own social culture and policies.
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