How did our distant ancestors live? How did our ancestors live?

There are many theories about how man originated. How did our ancestors live? Who were they? There are a lot of questions, and the answers, unfortunately, are ambiguous. Well, let's try to figure out where man came from and how he lived in ancient times.

origin theory

• There are several theories about how man appeared: he is a creation of the cosmos, a creature from another world;
• the creator of man is God, it was he who laid down everything possible that man possesses;
• man appeared from the monkey, evolving and entering new stages of development.

Well, since most scientists still adhere to the third theory, because a person is so similar in structure to animals, we will analyze this version. How did people live in the deepest antiquity?

First stage: parapithecus

As you know, the ancestor of both humans and monkeys was a parapithecus. If we say the approximate time of the existence of parapithecus, then these animals inhabited the Earth about thirty-five million years ago. Despite the fact that scientists know too little about such ancient mammals, there is a lot of evidence that great apes are evolved parapithecus.

Second stage: driopithecus

If you believe the still unproven theory of the origin of man, then Driopithecus is a descendant of Parapithecus. However, a well-established fact is that Driopithecus is the ancestor of man. How did our ancestors live? Exact time The life of Dryopithecus has not yet been established, but scientists say that they lived on Earth about eighteen million years ago. If we talk about the way of life, then, unlike parapithecus, which settled exclusively on trees, driopithecus already settled not only at height, but also on the ground.

Stage Three: Australopithecus

Australopithecus is the direct ancestor of man. How did our Australopithecus ancestors live? It is established that the life of this ancient mammal originated about five million years ago. Australopithecus looked more like modern man their habits: they calmly moved on their hind legs, used the most primitive tools of labor and protection (sticks, stones, etc.). Unlike their predecessors, Australopithecus ate not only berries, herbs and other vegetation, but also ate animal meat, since these same tools were often used for hunting. Despite the fact that evolution was clearly moving forward, Australopithecus was more like an ape than a man - thick hair, small proportions and average weight still distinguish them from modern man.

Fourth stage: a skilled person

On the this stage the development of evolution, the human ancestor was no different from Australopithecus in its appearance. Despite being skilled, he was distinguished by the fact that he could freely make tools, means of protection and hunting on his own. All the products that this ancestor produced were made mainly of stone. Some scientists are even inclined to believe that in his development a skilled person reached the point that he tried to transmit information to his own kind using certain combinations of sounds. However, the theory that it was at this time that the beginnings of speech already existed has not been proven.

Fifth stage: Homo erectus

How did our ancestor, whom today we call "upright man" live? Evolution did not stand still, and now this mammal was very reminiscent of a modern person. In addition, already at this stage of development, a person could make sounds that served as certain signals. This means that we can conclude that there was already speech at that time, but it was inarticulate. At this stage, the volume of the brain has increased greatly in humans. Thanks to this, a skilled person no longer worked alone, but the work was collective. This human ancestor could hunt large animals, as hunting tools were already sophisticated enough to kill a large game.

Sixth stage: Neanderthal

For a very long time, the theory that Neanderthals were the direct ancestors of man was considered correct and accepted by many scientists. However, studies have shown that Neanderthals did not have any descendants, which means that the branch of this mammal was a dead end. Despite this, in their structure, Neanderthals are very similar to modern humans: a large brain, lack of hair, a developed lower jaw (this suggests that Neanderthals had speech). Where did our "ancestors" live? Neanderthals lived in groups, making their homes on the banks of rivers, in caves and between rocks.

The last stage: a reasonable person

Scientists have proven that this species appeared 130 thousand years ago. External resemblance, the structure of the brain, all the skills - all this suggests that a reasonable person is our direct ancestor. It is at this stage of the revolution that people begin their own cultivation of livelihoods, settle not just in groups, but in families, run their own household, keep their own barnyard and start researching new plant cultures.

Slavs

How our people lived This is the finally developed ancestor of modern man, who is characterized by division into racial groups. Human ancestors living in the Middle Ages were mostly Slavs. In general, this race appeared in the Baltic lands, and soon, due to its large number, settled throughout the territory Western Europe and northwestern Russia. In addition, the Slavs fought constant battles, were distinguished by a special technique for owning weapons and stamina in battle. Slavs are the ancestors of specifically Russian, German, Baltic and other peoples.

Our ancestors, the Slavs, came to Europe from Asia in ancient times. The Slavs settled along the lower reaches of the great Danube. Here the climate is good and the land is fertile. Our ancestors would not have left those places, but other peoples began to push them. Our ancestors were divided into several territories:

• Part of the Slavs remained to live on the Danube. From them came the beginning of the Serbs and Bulgarians.
• The other part of the tribe went north. Moravians, Poles and Slovaks found their origin here.
• Another part of the people went to the tributaries of the Dnieper and gave rise to the Russian people, who are our ancestor.
• Glades began to be called those Slavs who lived in the fields near the middle reaches of the Dnieper.
• Drevlyans also appeared, who settled in the forests near the mighty Pripyat River.
• Other various tribes of Slavs appeared. For example, rodimichi, Polotsk, northerners.

Economy of the Slavs

How did our Slavic ancestors live when they came to different parts of Europe? When the cold came, our ancestors thought about how to make themselves a stronger and warmer shelter. The huts that were built by them, they began to cover with clay. And those tribes that settled near the forests decided to build huts from logs. Among the dwellings, the Slavs made hearths to make a fire. The smoke that came from the fire went into a hole in the roof or in the wall. Tables and various utensils were made of wood.

Bad weather and low temperatures forced the Slavs to make warm clothes for themselves. Various fur animals lived in the forests. To catch a fast hare or a cunning fox, a man made a bow and sharp arrows. With such a tool, you can catch up with a bird in the sky, and a fast hare in the field.

Of course, in those distant times, our ancestors did not have good weapons. But they still had arrows, and a bow, and spears with sharp tips.

Activities of our ancestors

What did the Slavs do, how did our ancestors live, in order to have food, culture?

The Slavs loved agriculture. Our ancestors grew millet, buckwheat, and flax. They cultivated the fertile southern lands. To sow them, the Slavs spent three years cultivating new soil:

• 1 year: cutting down trees;
• Year 2: all trees were burned, and the ashes were left to increase the fertility of the land;
• Year 3: sowing and harvesting.

After three years, this land lost its fertility, so new plots were taken for cultivation. The main tools of labor of the Slavs were an ax, a plow, a hoe, chains, a harrow.

There is also a lot of fertile soil in the South. Sowing on each plot lasted about three years, then the plots were changed to new lands. Here, the ralo, plow and wooden plow became the tools of the ancestors.

Our ancestors Slavs were engaged in cattle breeding. Bred here and pigs, and cows, and horses, and oxen. Fishing and hunting were one of the most important occupations at that time.

The Slavs ate rough food, and sometimes completely raw:

• animal meat;
• fish;
• milk.

Art of the Slavs

Art did not bypass our great ancestors. They knew how to carve on wood various images, color them. Music was one of the most beloved art forms. The Slavs made various musical instruments and learn to play them.

• harp;
• bagpipes;
• pipes.

Slavic charter

What else can you learn about how our distant ancestors lived? They did not know letters, but they had information about chronology and arithmetic. Polysyllabic numeration was not a mystery to the ancestors. The Slavs observed the seasons and gave them 12 names just like the Romans did.

The board of the Slavs was popular, and then transformed into "aristocratic". Military leaders were elected as rulers, and then boyars, princes, pans and kings.

The language of the Slavs was rather rough in its sound. Our Eastern ancestors had a common language for a very long time. These Slavs became the progenitors of Russians, Belarusians and Ukrainians. After Influence various factors the language began to change. New words were formed from common ones, or old expressions were rethought, and some words were borrowed.

Slavic religion

How did our ancestors live in religion? Until the end of the tenth century, the Slavs were pagans and worshiped the forces of nature and the souls of deceased ancestors.

The main deity of all the Slavs was the god of thunder Perun. He was represented as a tall, black-haired and black-eyed man with a golden beard. AT right hand he held a bow, and in his left a quiver with sharp arrows. According to ancient beliefs, Perun raced across the sky in his chariot and shot fiery arrows.

There were many revered gods among the ancestors of our Slavs:

• Stribog - the god of the wind;
• Dazhbog - the deity of the sun;
• Veles is the patron saint of herds;
• Svarog is the god of heaven and the father of all deities.

How our distant ancestors lived can be told by their belief in the future. afterlife. The Slavs buried the dead in the ground, but there were cases when they were burned. With a dead person, his utensils, belongings, and weapons were placed in the grave and on the fire. If the Slav was a warrior, then his war horse was also placed nearby. Our ancestors believed that the dead would rise again, and there they would need everything that accompanied their life on earth. After the burial ritual, funeral feasts were organized.

Omens for the Slavs also played a big role. It was believed that the gods send various signs so that people know the future. From this belief came the custom of divination. People who knew a lot about omen and divination bore the names of sorcerers, sorcerers, witches and magicians.

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If you think that people in the past were less eccentric than the current generation, then remember their fashion and traditions - there is a lot of surprise there.

website made a small list of what our ancestors considered normal, and found out that you and I are not so strange.

First and second dream

Europeans living in the Middle Ages practiced what is now called biphasic sleep. The first dream began at sunset and lasted until about midnight, then people woke up and were awake for 2–3 hours. Someone prayed or read at this time, while others communicated with household members or neighbors. Then came the second sleep, which lasted until sunrise.

Live Alarms

Knocker-up, or alarm clock man, is a profession that has existed since late XVIII century until 1920. The duties of such people included the awakening of those who had to go to work. "Alarm Clocks" banged on the windows of their customers with sticks or shot them with peas from a blowpipe. It is not entirely clear who woke the knocker-ups themselves, but there is a version that they did not go to bed at all before work.

Boys' dresses

Starting from the 16th century and until about 1920, it was customary for boys up to a certain age (4–8 years) to wear dresses, and this did not bother anyone. Probably the main reason for this was the high cost of clothing, and dresses were easier to sew on the outgrowth. The tradition did not pass even the family of Nicholas II - in the photo is his son Tsarevich Alexei in a dress similar to those worn by his sisters.

Chopins

Chopins, also known as zoccoli and pianelli, are a type of platform shoes that could reach a height of 50 cm. It is not surprising that those who wore these shoes needed the help of servants so as not to literally fall prey to fashion. However, chopins were worn not only out of a desire for beauty, but also in order not to stain clothes in street dirt.

Bloodletting for all diseases

Fear of water procedures

In the Middle Ages, in some countries it was believed that water only brings illness to a person, and lice were called "God's pearls." These beliefs were shared by the monarchs. Isabella of Castile was proud of the fact that in her life she washed only twice: at birth and before the wedding. Once the gentleman drew attention to her dirty hands and nails, to which the queen replied: “Oh, you should have seen my feet!”

Posthumous photographs

Another custom, which in our time looks, if not creepy, then at least very strange. But in the 19th century, it was a way to preserve the memory of departed loved ones. As a rule, before photographing, the deceased were given a “live” appearance: they sat in natural poses and drew their eyes on their closed eyelids - just like in this photo.

Radioactive products and cosmetics

At the beginning of the 20th century, people perceived radiation as an extremely positive phenomenon, which scammers did not fail to take advantage of: cosmetics, foods and drinks enriched with radium and thorium, radioactive souvenirs, and even devices for saturating water with radioactive elements appeared on sale.

Alas, there were casualties: the athlete Eben Byers drank huge doses of the Radithor drink, as a result of which he died. The Wall Street Journal reacted to this sad event with a snide note: “The radium water helped him very well. Until his jaw dropped."

Heroin as a cough medicine

Surprisingly, 100 years ago heroin was considered a harmless alternative to morphine and sold in pharmacies as a cough medicine. Moreover, it was recommended even to children. Subsequently, it was found that heroin is converted to morphine in the liver, and in 1924 its use was banned, but in

July 16, 2017 in the Moscow historical park Kolomenskoye there will be a festival"Battle of a Thousand Swords", where Russian reenactors and guests from Bulgaria, Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary, Ireland and other countries will present life medieval Russia and her neighbors. It will be a military holiday, the main decoration of which will, of course, be the Battle. The holiday will take place on the site of the Dyakovo settlement, ancient settlement 5th century. On the eve of the festival, the Ratobortsy Historical Projects Agency prepared several materials about the life of our ancestors especially for Utra.

Photo: Historical Projects Agency Ratobortsy

We now live in a time when, after several decades of wandering around the world, many began to return to the question "who are we?". It seems to someone that the question is rhetorical, and everything is clear - get out, read Karamzin. And this question has never bothered someone, and never will. But if you ask where and when Russia went, who the Russians are, then many will immediately begin to get confused. It is necessary to clarify this issue, we decided. As Vovchik Malay said in the book "Generation P", so that one could "just explain to anyone from Harvard: tyr-pyr-eight-holes, and it's not good to look like that."

So, let's start our story about Ancient Russia. As pundits say, our civilization on Earth is not the first, nor the second, nor the last. And the peoples settled on the territory of the planet in different centuries and from different starting points. Ethnic groups mixed, various tribes formed and disappeared. Natural disasters came, the climate changed, flora and fauna, even the poles, they say, moved. The ice melted, the ocean level rose, the center of gravity of the planet changed, a giant wave swept over the continents. The survivors gathered in groups, forming new tribes, and everything started again. All this happened so slowly that it is hard to imagine. It would be more difficult to observe, perhaps, only how coal is formed.

So. In the history of our civilization there was a time that historians call the Age of Migration of Peoples. In the 4th century AD, there was an invasion of the Huns into Europe, and then it went and went. Everything churned and moved. The ancestors of the Slavs, the Wends, described by Herodotus as early as the 5th century BC, lived between the Oder and Dnieper rivers. Their resettlement took place in three directions - to the Balkan Peninsula, in the interfluve of the Elbe and Oder, and to the East European Plain. Thus, three branches of the Slavs were formed, which exist to this day: Eastern, Western and Southern Slavs. We know the names of the tribes that have been preserved in the annals - these are the meadows, the Drevlyans, the northerners, the Radimichi, the Vyatichi, the Krivichi, the Dregovichi, the Dulebs, the Volynians, the Croats, the streets, the Tivertsy, the Polochans, the Ilmen Slovenes.

Photo: Historical Projects Agency Ratobortsy

By the 6th century AD the Slavs were at the stage of decomposition of the primitive communal system, its place was gradually occupied by the so-called military democracy. The tribes expanded their possessions, and the importance of military force each tribe or union of tribes. The team started playing key position in society, and at its head was the prince. Accordingly, how many squads, so many princes, and if the tribe settled widely and set up several cities, there will be several princes there. In the 9th century, we can already talk about the established borders of the principalities, call this formation Ancient Russia with its center in the city of Kyiv.

In Internet search engines it is very easy to find maps of Russia of the 9th-10th centuries. On them we will see that the territory of Ancient Russia was not localized around the capital. It stretched from south to north from the Black Sea to the Baltic and Lake Onega, and from west to east - from the modern Belarusian city of Brest to Murom. That is, to the border of the Finno-Ugric tribes, partially including them in its composition (recall that Ilya Muromets came to Kyiv prince from the village of Karacharova).

Photo: Historical Projects Agency Ratobortsy

The territory is huge, not only in those days, but also in today's times. Now there is none European country of this size, it was not there at that time. One problem - all the princes were equal among themselves, recognizing the supremacy of the prince, who sits in Kyiv. Why in Kyiv? Because since ancient times, the Slavs preferred to settle on the banks of rivers, and when active trade was established, they became rich and attracted the most active and creative people to those settlements that stood on trade routes. The Slavs actively traded with the south and east, and "the path from the Varangians to the Greeks" passed just along the Dnieper.

A few words about the squad and the peasantry. The peasant at that time was free and could change his place of residence, since there were plenty of free deaf places. Ways to enslave him have not yet been invented, the wrong ones were social conditions. The princely warriors were also free people and did not depend on the prince in any way. Their interest was in joint military booty. The prince, who was more like a military leader for the squad, could immediately lose her favor if military luck did not accompany him all the time. But over the course of a couple of centuries, this system of relations has changed. The combatants began to receive land allotments from the prince, to grow into households and their own small squads. There was a need to fix the peasants on their land. The squad turned into a local noble army.

Photo: Historical Projects Agency Ratobortsy

Of course, the life of the principalities was not like an idyll. The princes envied each other, quarreled, went to war with each other, gratifying their ambitions. This happened primarily because inheritance rights were not transferred from father to son, but vertically - through brothers. The princes multiplied, seating their sons on thrones in different cities and towns. So large principalities were divided into so-called appanages. Each brother was given his inheritance, which he ruled, defended, collected tribute from the people and gave part of it to the Grand Duke. So the princes began to compete.

This all went on for a long time, until in the XIII century the reverse process of gathering small principalities into large ones began. This was due to external factors- firstly, the need to repulse an external enemy, which both for Europe and for Russia became the Horde Mongols. Secondly, trade and political centers were shifting. Trade along the Dnieper faded, new trade routes opened, for example, along the Volga. Ancient Russia gave birth to such political formations as Kievan, Vladimir-Suzdal and Novgorod Rus. As a result, everything came down to a confrontation between two large state associations - the Grand Duchy of Moscow and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. But that's a completely different story.

Historians believe that since ancient times, the Eastern Slavs settled in the VI century in the middle reaches of the Dnieper, approximately where the city of Kyiv is now located. The settlement of the Slavic tribes went up the Dnieper and its tributaries.
Dense forests began here - first deciduous, and to the north - mixed and coniferous (about this natural area we talked to you). The settlers found themselves in unusual conditions.

In a new place, the Slavs usually settled along the banks of rivers and lakes in several large family groups. True, families then consisted of 15-20 people: the head of the family with his wife, their adult sons with their wives, their children, and sometimes grandchildren. Three - four yards settled together.
In the houses of the Slavs, the floor was deepened into the ground by a meter, the walls were made of thin tree trunks - poles, peeled of branches and bark. The poles are interconnected with wooden spikes, connected with flexible bark for strength. The roof is also made of poles, and on it is a thick layer of straw.
In the corner was a stove made of stone - it heated the house, they cooked food on it. The stove was heated in black - this means that there was no chimney, and all the smoke came out through the windows, doors, holes in the roof. Inside such a house it was always cool, dark and damp. The windows cut in the walls were covered with boards or straw at night and in the cold - after all, there were no glasses then.
In the house, all the free space was occupied by a table and 2-3 benches. In the corner lay several armfuls of hay covered with animal skins - these are beds.
The life of the settlers was not easy. Like all primitive peoples, the Slavs were engaged gathering and hunting. They collected honey, berries, mushrooms, nuts, hunted wild boars, elks, bears, fished in the rivers. Now we also go to the forest to pick mushrooms, berries, and fish. But for us it is a rest, and for our ancestors it was a huge work, and not easy. After all, products had to be prepared for the whole family.
Since ancient times, the Slavs have been engaged in agriculture. They plowed with wooden plows on bulls. They sowed rye and wheat.

However, in dense forest glades suitable for agriculture are rare, and the land is infertile. the forests had to be burned to make room for arable land and to fertilize the land with ash. In addition, forest predators and "dashing people" - robbers constantly threatened.
In addition, the ancient Slavs developed beekeeping (beekeeping). Where did this word come from? Since ancient times, honey has been a commodity, medicine and one of the main delicacies. But it was very difficult to get it. The Slavs lured the bees with honey, and then traced their path to the hollow. Finally came up with board- a stump of a tree with a hollow or a hollowed-out block of wood.

Bort

This is how beekeeping appeared. Now the board has been replaced by a beehive.
From ancient times in Russia traded surplus crops, exported them to the Greek cities on the Black Sea coast (at the lesson of Cuban studies, we talked about them in great detail).
The well-known in ancient times trade route "from the Varangians to the Greeks" passed along the Dnieper. Varangians in Russia were called warlike people from the coast and islands of the Baltic Sea. Why did cities appear along the trade route? Look at the map.

The path "from the Varangians to the Greeks"

Then the path lay to Kyiv, where a caravan of boats was going, and then to Byzantium, where furs, grain, honey, and wax were brought. From the shores of the Baltic Sea, merchants sailed along the Neva River to Lake Ladoga, then along the Volkhov River to Lake Ilmen and further to source of the river Lovat. From here to the Dnieper, the boats were dragged by dry land. The boats that suffered from the dragging on the banks of the Dnieper tarred. At this place, the city of Smolensk arose.

The caravan was accompanied by a strong guard. In the lower reaches of the Dnieper there were river rapids, it was necessary to again pull the boats ashore and drag them again. Here, steppe nomads waited for caravans, who robbed merchants, took travelers prisoner.
Having passed the rapids, the caravan entered the Black Sea and sailed to the city of Constantinople (Istanbul).
New cities, various industries arose along the trade route, and the surrounding residents were drawn to them. And travelers acquaint the population with new goods, with the culture of other peoples, with the news in the world.
Populating new lands, people gave names to new rivers, cities, towns, mountains.
Settlement of the Eastern Slavs Eastern Europe was peaceful, but they were often attacked by nomadic tribes. Therefore, the Slavs were forced to master the science of war. Tall, strong Slavs were known as brave warriors. Fighting with enemies, they lured them into impenetrable forest jungles and swamps.
The constant struggle with the nomads claimed thousands of lives and distracted from peaceful labor. And yet the Slavs slowly but stubbornly moved along the path of state formation.

And now I propose to check the acquired knowledge by answering the quiz questions.