4th Millennium BC


This period will be divided into periods of 200 years.	Sapience Home Site Map About Sapience History Antiquity

This period will be divided into periods of 200 years.

Content

c. 4000-3000 BC Earliest known appearance of writing, asssociated with Sumerian and Egyptian cultures. Recorded history begins and becomes more extensive with each succeeding century.


Connections to physical and natural science including physics, chemistry, astronomy, earth science, and biology are somewhat useful. Applications of personal studies including the human body, psychology, and biography may be useful in examining this period.	Links to other sites: Not yet developed.
Applications of anthropology including social foundations, demography, and physical anthropology will be useful in examining this period. Human ecology including environmental impact on people, relations with other life, and human impact on the environment may be useful. Human geography including European geography, African geography, North American geography, South american Geography, and Oceanic geography will be highly important. Asian geography including Southwest Asia, South Asia, Central Asia, Southeast Asia, East Asia, and North Asia will be useful. Particular groups may also be useful. Culture is highly significant in this period. Material culture including foodstuffs, clothing, buildings, transportation devices, communication devices, tools, and other artifacts can be considered. Conceptual culture including graphic arts, literature, mathematics, applied science, and philosophy is not well known. Language including linguistics, writing, and languages of the world may be of some use. Behavioral culture including occupations, recreation and entertainment, and cultural events can be examined using material culture. Customs including vital customs, living and dwelling customs, social interaction customs, and institutional customs can also be considered. Institutions Families including marriage, parenting, kinship, and particular families may have been important but are obscure. Education seems to have been informal during this period. Research, teaching, cultural institutions, educational organization, and particular schools are somewhat obscure. Economics including economic activity, industries, and economic systems can be examined, but details are obscure. Government including law, government activity and government structure, and particular governments is poorly known, but present. Particular governments such as local, national, and international government can be considered. Religion including religious beliefs, practices, and organization is poorly known. Particular religions were principally some version of pagan religion. Asian pagan is at present easier to follow than European pagan, African pagan, or American Indian religion Sociology Social structure and change can be considered. Social structure including anthropological culture, cultural structure, institutional structure, and class structure can be considered. Social types including hunting and gathering, horticultural, and agrarian types can be considered. Social change including factors, processes, and particular changes can be examined. Only a few communities can be identifed this far back. Peoples of the world can be identified, and a few nations can trace their written history back this far. Nations are useful in helping organize studies. I have no specific information on Italy, South Korea, Myanmar, Ukraine, South Africa, Colombia Asiatic peoples are significant. I do not have much ifnormation for Thailand. In the Middle East there was substantial cultural advance. In Iran, there were buildings and signs of civilization comparable to neighboring Mesopotamia. Turkey was mostly neolithic, but by late in the period, signs of Bronze age metallurgy were present. In Egypt, Upper and Lower egypt were united in the Old Kingom, the pyramids were build, and written history began. Among South Asian peoples, India where neolithic farming villages can be found is significant. I have little information on Pakistan. I have little information on Bangladesh. Among Oriental peoples, the Yang Shao culture of China expanded. I have no specific information on Japan. Peoples of Southeast Asia probably developed, although I have no information on Indonesia for this period. I have no specific information on the Philippines. I have no specific information on Vietnam. Western civilization is poorly known. In what is now the UK there were Neolithic farming villages. I have no information on Northeast European peoples including those of Russia. Among Germanic peoples, I have no specific information on Germany. I have no specific information on Latin peoples including France African peoples are not well known. I know little of Congo. I have little information on East African peoples including Ethiopia. I have no specific information on West Africa, which includes Nigeria. American Indian peoples can possibly be examined. I have no specific information on Mexico. South American Indian peoples can be examined. I have no information on peoples of Brazil. North American Indian peoples such as were found in what is now the United States can be examined. Other History Connections with prehistory are rather weak. This is part of antiquity, and is preceded by the 5th millennium BC. It is followed by the 3rd Millennium BC. Classical and medieval history may be weakly connected, but the principal work is done in modern times. Although this was dominated by classical and biblical studies in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, work in the 18th century and the 20th century began to outline this period better. Studies in the future may improve knowledge and understanding of it.

Connections to physical and natural science including physics, chemistry, astronomy, earth science, and biology are somewhat useful.

Applications of personal studies including the human body, psychology, and biography may be useful in examining this period.

Links to other sites: Not yet developed.

Applications of anthropology including social foundations, demography, and physical anthropology will be useful in examining this period. Human ecology including environmental impact on people, relations with other life, and human impact on the environment may be useful. Human geography including European geography, African geography, North American geography, South american Geography, and Oceanic geography will be highly important. Asian geography including Southwest Asia, South Asia, Central Asia, Southeast Asia, East Asia, and North Asia will be useful. Particular groups may also be useful.

Culture is highly significant in this period. Material culture including foodstuffs, clothing, buildings, transportation devices, communication devices, tools, and other artifacts can be considered. Conceptual culture including graphic arts, literature, mathematics, applied science, and philosophy is not well known. Language including linguistics, writing, and languages of the world may be of some use. Behavioral culture including occupations, recreation and entertainment, and cultural events can be examined using material culture. Customs including vital customs, living and dwelling customs, social interaction customs, and institutional customs can also be considered.

Institutions

Families including marriage, parenting, kinship, and particular families may have been important but are obscure. Education seems to have been informal during this period. Research, teaching, cultural institutions, educational organization, and particular schools are somewhat obscure. Economics including economic activity, industries, and economic systems can be examined, but details are obscure. Government including law, government activity and government structure, and particular governments is poorly known, but present. Particular governments such as local, national, and international government can be considered. Religion including religious beliefs, practices, and organization is poorly known. Particular religions were principally some version of pagan religion. Asian pagan is at present easier to follow than European pagan, African pagan, or American Indian religion

Sociology

Social structure and change can be considered. Social structure including anthropological culture, cultural structure, institutional structure, and class structure can be considered. Social types including hunting and gathering, horticultural, and agrarian types can be considered. Social change including factors, processes, and particular changes can be examined. Only a few communities can be identifed this far back. Peoples of the world can be identified, and a few nations can trace their written history back this far. Nations are useful in helping organize studies. I have no specific information on Italy, South Korea, Myanmar, Ukraine, South Africa, Colombia

Asiatic peoples are significant. I do not have much ifnormation for Thailand. In the Middle East there was substantial cultural advance. In Iran, there were buildings and signs of civilization comparable to neighboring Mesopotamia. Turkey was mostly neolithic, but by late in the period, signs of Bronze age metallurgy were present. In Egypt, Upper and Lower egypt were united in the Old Kingom, the pyramids were build, and written history began. Among South Asian peoples, India where neolithic farming villages can be found is significant. I have little information on Pakistan. I have little information on Bangladesh. Among Oriental peoples, the Yang Shao culture of China expanded. I have no specific information on Japan. Peoples of Southeast Asia probably developed, although I have no information on Indonesia for this period. I have no specific information on the Philippines. I have no specific information on Vietnam.

Western civilization is poorly known. In what is now the UK there were Neolithic farming villages. I have no information on Northeast European peoples including those of Russia. Among Germanic peoples, I have no specific information on Germany. I have no specific information on Latin peoples including France

African peoples are not well known. I know little of Congo. I have little information on East African peoples including Ethiopia. I have no specific information on West Africa, which includes Nigeria.

American Indian peoples can possibly be examined. I have no specific information on Mexico. South American Indian peoples can be examined. I have no information on peoples of Brazil. North American Indian peoples such as were found in what is now the United States can be examined.

Other History

Connections with prehistory are rather weak. This is part of antiquity, and is preceded by the 5th millennium BC. It is followed by the 3rd Millennium BC. Classical and medieval history may be weakly connected, but the principal work is done in modern times. Although this was dominated by classical and biblical studies in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, work in the 18th century and the 20th century began to outline this period better. Studies in the future may improve knowledge and understanding of it.