Early Humans and Beginning of Civilisation — Practice

Question 1

Name the three phases of the Stone Age.

Accepted Answer

✦ Answer: Palaeolithic (Old Stone Age), Mesolithic (Middle Stone Age) and Neolithic (New Stone Age).

Question 2

Name one Harappan site located in Rajasthan.

Accepted Answer

✦ Answer: Kalibangan.

Question 3

Give two uses of fire for early humans.

Accepted Answer

✦ Answer: warmth and protection from wild animals; cooking food (any two).

Question 4

What was the Neolithic Revolution?

Accepted Answer

Step 1 — It was the change during the New Stone Age when humans learned to grow crops (agriculture) and domesticate animals.

Step 2 — This let them settle in one place instead of wandering, marking a turning point in human history.

✦ Answer: the shift to farming and domesticating animals, which led to settled life.

Question 5

State two effects of the beginning of agriculture on human society.

Accepted Answer

Step 1 — People built permanent settlements and stopped wandering.

Step 2 — A surplus of food allowed some people to take up crafts and trade, creating a division of labour and growing populations.

✦ Answer: settled village life AND surplus food leading to crafts/trade (any two).

Question 6

List any four features of a civilisation.

Accepted Answer

Any four of: planned cities; organised government/administration; a writing system; specialised crafts and trade; social organisation; shared religion and culture/monuments.

✦ Answer: any four valid features as above.

Question 7

Describe the town planning of the Harappan Civilisation.

Accepted Answer

Step 1 — Cities were carefully planned, with streets laid out in a grid pattern crossing at right angles.

Step 2 — Houses were built of baked bricks; cities had a raised citadel and a lower town.

Step 3 — A remarkable covered drainage system ran along the streets, showing great concern for hygiene, along with wells, granaries and the Great Bath.

✦ Answer: grid-pattern streets, baked-brick houses, citadel + lower town, and covered drains — an advanced planned city.

Question 8

What do seals, weights and the Great Bath tell us about Harappan society?

Accepted Answer

Step 1 — Seals with an (undeciphered) script and pictures show writing, trade and possibly religious/administrative use.

Step 2 — Standardised weights and measures indicate organised, regulated trade.

Step 3 — The Great Bath and public buildings suggest a well-organised society with shared civic/ritual life.

✦ Answer: seals (writing/trade), standard weights (regulated trade), Great Bath (organised civic/ritual life) — an advanced, organised society.

Question 9

Why did early civilisations grow near rivers, and what may have caused the decline of the Harappan Civilisation?

Accepted Answer

Step 1 — Rivers provided water for drinking and irrigation, fertile silt-rich soil for farming, and a route for transport and trade — so people settled beside them.

Step 2 — The Harappan Civilisation declined around 1900 BCE.

Step 3 — Possible causes include climate change and reduced rainfall, the drying up or shifting of rivers, floods, and the decline of trade.

✦ Answer: rivers gave water, fertile soil and transport; Harappan decline is linked to climate change, drying/shifting rivers, floods or falling trade.

Practice — Early Humans and Beginning of Civilisation

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