Unraveling the mysteries that surrounded the human past through research on the origin of the first peoples of the Earth is a challenge that instigates many researchers. To carry out research on the prehistoric period of humanity, scholars developed two basic types of studies. THE Paleontology and the Archeology. Paleontologists generally study fossils, which are the toughest parts of the body, such as bones and teeth. Archaeologists study the creations of prehistoric man, such as stone and metal instruments or pieces of pottery, which help to interpret the way they lived.
These two techniques are preponderant in the field of research and it was through archeology that a group of scholars found on the African continent some archaeological sites that helped to understand a little more of the prehistory of this continent. Through the analysis of the objects found, archaeologists came to the conclusion that the place that today is South Africa was inhabited by nomadic groups who lived by hunting and fishing for over 100,000 years.
the peoples called Berbers, for example, were considered one of the first peoples to inhabit North Africa. This group was also known by the name Caucasoid. The term caucasoid was created by the scholar Christoph Meiners which, through studies of the skull, deciphered the region in which certain groups developed. Thus, Caucasoids were those who lived in different regions of the planet, such as Europe, North Africa and Western Asia.
In North Africa, the Berbers developed along the Mediterranean coast, from Egypt to the Atlantic. Even today there are peoples descended from this group who, according to specialists, are a mixture of different ethnicities. However, the term Berber currently refers more to the language than to a specific ethnic group, as it is a language spoken by millions of Algerians and Moroccans.
You bantu they were also one of the first peoples to inhabit the African continent. The current regions of Nigeria and Cameroon were the locations where this group that lived in the Iron Age period emerged. They were responsible for introducing new techniques that contributed to the formation of the first agricultural communities. The development of metallurgy and ceramics were specific examples of the inventions of the Bantu, which helped in the escalation of human evolution.
By Fabricio Santos
Graduated in History
Source: Brazil School - https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/historiag/primeiros-povos-africanos.htm