HUMAN EVOLUTION

“For about 4 million years, human evolution has been a long, long process. From the early hominids
to modern humans, we are in the process of evolving at this very moment.”

• Mammals existed during the era of dinosaurs. But they kept a low profile and remained small and
fury like a hamster.
• After the extinction of the dinosaurs, this marked the Age of Mammals. Because dinosaurs went
extinct, mammals emerged as the largest land animals at this time.
• Hominids were the early proto-humans. They were known for sharpening objects with silicon rocks.
They began to master the use of their hands and fingers.

Let’s explore these early hominids (proto-humans), each species, and where they evolved geographically.
I. TIMELINE OF EARLY HOMINIDS:
1. Australopithecus Afarensis
Australopithecus Afarensis was the earliest form of hominids, which archaeologists dug up fossils in the
Afar Triangle of Africa, hence the name “Afarensis”.

2. Australopithecus Africanus
Australopithecus Africanus is the first of the early ape species classified as hominids.
3. Homo Habilis
About 2.35 – 1.5 million years ago, Homo Habilis had larger brains which helped their survival.

4. Homo Erectus (ASIA)

Homo Erectus lived approximately 1.3 million to 0.7 years ago and was found along the southern coast of
Asia.

5. Homo Neanderthalensis (EUROPE)

Homo Neanderthalensis, or Neanderthals, is an extinct species of hominins closely related to modern
humans (Homo sapiens).

6. Homo Sapiens
About 160-40 thousand years ago, the “doubly wise man” was the recent form of modern humans “homo
sapiens sapiens”.

A Timeline of Human Evolution:

Since about 4 million years ago, humans have evolved from early hominids to modern humans. Here are
14 species examples from human evolution now extinct.
Apes remained in trees as their primary food source. Eventually, grass began to spread in places like the
African Savannah. Because there were fewer trees, this forced apes to walk to new food sources.
With their heads above the grass to see predators, apes evolved by walking on two legs. It also helped to
have their hands available when they were traveling. So here we are at this point in human evolution.

II. HUMAN EVOLUTION

• The interrelationship of biology and culture is at the forefront of biological anthropology.

• In a biological and anthropological sense, all life has common origin, and the diversity of creatures is
the result of evolution.
• Human evolution is a long process that facilitated with the emergence of anatomically modern
humans.
Microevolution – is a change in the genetic make-up Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) – which is inherited by
offspring from their parents. Microevolution suggests that the changes in the frequency of genes in a
population, from our generation to the next, will eventually lead to macroevolution or speciation.
Natural Selection – proposed by Charles Darwin (1859), is about adaptation; the more you are genetically
adapted to the environment, the more you will likely survive.

III. THE BIRTH OF CULTURE

• Natural selection and adaptation concepts are like cultural evolution: how human culture profligates
and survives. The changes that happened morphologically to human beings from knuckle to bipedal
walking helped humans create culture.
• The unearthed artifacts prove and tells us that that human do evolved and one of which is the
movement of the foramen magnum tells that humans stood and become bipedal.

Biological and environmental factors influenced bipedalism. It was more advantageous to them.
Bipedalism – is an evolutionary change that probably led us to a lot of advantages.

IV. THE EVOLUTION OF THE BRAIN

Evolutionary anthropologists have proposed three categories of explanations why the human brain become
bigger through time.

1. Environmental reasons. Physical challenges like finding, hunting, or remembering sources of food
provide selection pressure for bigger brains.
2. Social factors. Interacting with others favored people with brains large enough to anticipate the
actions of others.
3. Cultural factors. People who were able to hold on to accumulated knowledge and share it within
generation to generation.

V. HUMAN VARIATIOON AND BIOLOGICAL ADAPTATION

• In adapting to environmental conditions biologically, humans have to physiologically and

anatomically respond.
.
1. Physiological adaptations – are relatively short-term changes in the body as a response to the
rapid environmental changes and stressors.
2. Anatomical adaptations – are long-term genetic changes in genotype because of selective
pressures.

• These adaptations are the reasons for the variation of the human species. This variation involves
the idea of having various physical characteristics, such as skin color, nose and face shape, hair
color and form, and eye color.

VI. CULTURAL ADAPTATION AND EVOLUTION

• Cultural Adaptation – the capacity of human beings and societies to overcome changes in the
environment through the modifications of their culture.
• Cultural Evolution – a concept that human culture changes. These include beliefs, knowledge,
customs, skills, attitudes, and languages.

CULTURAL, TECHNOLOGICAL, AND SOCIOPOLITICAL EVOLUTION

• Artifacts – a source that gives shreds of information in exploring the realm of the past.

Primary and secondary - two sources are necessary to complete the narratives and images of history and
pre-history.
 • Primary sources – are documents, images, or artifacts to provide first-hand testimony and direct
evidence that regards historical topics under research and investigation.
• Secondary sources – are scholarly works like books and journals written after the event occurs. It is
a work that analyzes, assesses, or interprets a historical event with the utilization of primary sources.

I. LITHIC TECHNOLOGY

• Pre-history – is also called the stone age. It has three periods; Paleolithic (old stone age),
Mesolithic (middle stone age), and Neolithic (new stone age).

Periods in the Stone Age:

• Paleolithic – humans used stone tools to hunt and gather.

• Humans that lived during this time are nomadic hunters and gatherers who utilized stone
tools to survive.
• Mesolithic – humans used microliths, or small bladed stone to hunt and introduce agriculture.
• Humans, during this time, lived nomadically in camps near rivers and other bodies of
water.
• They practiced hunting fishing, and food gathering. Started domesticating animals.
• Agriculture was introduced during this time that led humans to settle in villages.
• Neolithic – humans used polished stones and developed pottery, weaving, and sewing.
• The development of agriculture and food production characterizes this period.
• Ancient humans used tools and polished tools like axes and adzes for plowing and tilling
the land.
• Some advancements made were not only in tools but also in farming, settlements, and
arts, including pottery, weaving, sewing, etc.

SOCIALIZATION AND ENCULTURATION

SOCIALIZATION – process of shaping an individual’s behavior and mindset in accordance with a

group or society’s values, traditions, and beliefs.

I. THEORIES OF SELF DEVELOPMENT AND SOCIALIZATION

Freud’s Theory of Personality Development

➢ ID, EGO, AND SUPEREGO

• Sigmund Freud
• believes that an individual’s actions and development are not solely shaped by interactions
with others.
• human behavior and cognition are instead driven by motivations that are primarily
unconscious or repressed and most likely developed in early stages of childhood.

• Id – is the primal, biological, and instinctive impulses or desires which eventually become
repressed.
• Superego – is the part of an individual that want to comply with social norms in order to
be liked and respected by other members of society.
• Ego – is the decision making aspect of the human mind that seeks to strike a compromise
between the demands of the Id without violating the principles and values brought about
by the superego.

➢ “I” and “Me”

• Mead’s Theory of the Self
• George Herbert Mead
• His theory revolves around the concept of “I” and “Me”.
• Similar to Freud’s theory, Mead’s sees “I” and “Me” as more of a dynamic relationship
which forms the self.
 • “Me” - represents the internalization of how other people sees us. Embodies our self-
consciousness, being aware of how we are seen by other members of the society

• “I” – represent our instinctive selves which creatively and immediately responds to the
values and behavior adopted by “Me”. While “I” embodies how we would naturally respond
to outside stimuli or interactions, its dynamics and struggle with “Me” develops and
polishes our personality.
• Explains the three stages of self development.

➢ Looking Glass Self

• Charles Horton Cooley
• Argues that self continues to develop throughout our lifetime.
• His looking glass theory, explains that an individual discovers and develops himself or
herself by being aware and adapting to the perception or judgement of others accordingly.
• Three steps in forming the looking glass self:
1. We try to imagine how others see us.
2. We try to imagine what others think or feel when they see us.
3. We ask ourselves how we feel about their judgement.
• As we try to see ourselves based on how others see us, we try to develop behavior,
personality, and values based on favorable criteria.

II. STAGES OF SELF-DEVELOPMENT

- George Herbert Mead
- Preparatory stage, play stage, game stage.

• PREPARATORY STAGE
- this stage covers an individual’s development from infancy until two years old.
- As the mind is in its primary learning stages, the child tries to mimic those around them
– from words to other kinds of gestures and movements.
• PLAY STAGE (Ages 3-7)
- The child begins to understand certain interactions and gradually learns how to
communicate.
- The child at this stage gets better at communicating their needs and wants.
• GAME STAGE
- Individuals participate in more organized and rule-based games or interactions.
- Begin to have a holistic view of themselves that leads to a more rounded development
of behavior and personality.
- Individuals learn to cooperate and consider the maximization of interests that is
anchored on the common good.

III. TYPES OF SOCIAL INSTITUTION

• ECONOMIC – help society survive in its environment through economic production.
• POLITICAL – facilitated the balance of power and policies that respond to the needs of
the people.
• LEGAL – aid in the enforcement of rules and norms on how people should behave.
• CULTURAL PRACTICES AND INSTITUTION – ensure that traditions, values, and belief
systems are passed on.

IV. AGENTS OF SOCIALIZATION

1. FAMILY – is the primary group during an individual’s formative years.
2. PEER GROUPS – people who share similarities in age, interests, and even social status who
regularly interact with each other.
3. SCHOOL – develop values such as responsibility, discipline, and cooperation.
4. RELIGION – forms an individual’s values and belief system.
5. GOVERNMENT – ensures individuals to comply with laws and programs it formulates.
6. MASS MEDIA AND SOCIAL MEDIA – influences people through television shows, movies, and
other forms of media.