Archeology, Archaeology

A period when writing systems or some unique feature existed; epoch; era: The historic period in any particular region begins when writing systems emerge or when literate cultures come into contact with the regions preliterate inhabitants.

Any primate member, fossil or living, of the family of Hominidae: A hominid includes modern humans and extinct immediate ancestors of humans.

The biological classification of Hominidae refers to the group of animals (a "family") which includes all great apes as well as humans.

Humans and their ancestors belong to this family.

A member of the taxonomic group Hominini, the evolutionary category that includes the modern humans and the vanished bipedal relatives: The hominin, is a member the biological taxonomic classification for the grouping of animals (a "tribe") that include chimpanzees and all human species past and present.

Hominins were previously described as hominids.

A fossil human form that lived from approximately two million years ago to 200,000 years ago: The Homo erectus is thought to be an ancestor of the Homo sapiens.

The Homo erectus existed over a large part of the Old World.

The earliest representative of the genus Homo: The Homo habilis, the primitive human, appeared in Africa about two million years ago and was the first to use stone tools.

1. Genus and species to which modern humans as well as earlier extinct forms belong: The first appearance of Homo sapiens may be as early as 400,000 years ago.
2. Etymology: from Latin for "wise man."

One of a group involved in the food-procurement system based on the gathering of wild plants and the hunting of wild animals: The groups of hunter-gatherers tend to be small in size and mobile in order to take advantage of the seasonal availability of the resources they procure.

Hunter-gatherers neither keep animals nor farm land.

The last or most recent glacial period is also calledd the Würm, Weichsel, or Wisconsin glaciation depending where on Earth it took place: The last Ice Age was a period which lasted from about 115,000 to 12,000 years ago, and was characterized by massive glaciers that covered large portions of the northern hemisphere.

Referring to something in its original place or position: An artifact in a site is in situ when it is found by the archeologist in its original location.

A huge family of related languages that stretches from northern India to Europe: In school, Judy learned that the Indo-European languages included most of the languages in most part of Europe and some of the world colonized by Europeans since 1500.

The period of history between 3000 B.C. and 1000 B.C.: The Iron Age succeeded the Bronz Age in Asia, Europe, and Africa and was a time in the human past when iron was the dominant material used for tools.

Its date varies from place to place.

An ancient Greek vessel used for mixing water and wine: A krater was a kind of classical antique receptacle with a rather large round body and a wide opening for blending wine and water.

The lands next to the east coast of the Mediterranean: The Levant region is a cultural area usually consisting of of Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, and Syria.

A horizontal stone or wooden piece or beam that supports the weight above a door or window: Sam learned that the lintel was the horizontal structure between the uprights or vertical sections of the front door of his house and supporting the wall above it.

A piece of portable stone that is the result of human manufacture: A lithic can be a stone tool, a projectile, or a piece of waste material.