Unit notes and practice questions
Everything here is for unit 1 of the Grade 11 History textbook: what the chapter covers, the short notes, practice questions with their answers, and the lesson video where one exists.
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A short video lesson on this chapter, made by Temari. It loads only when you press play.
Why Ethiopian history leaned north · 4 min · 2 past exam questions worked through
Tap a part to play the lesson from there.
The cards filed under this chapter on the Grade 11 History page. Open one at a time.
When you use it
Reach for this when a question asks whether historians can be neutral or whether history can be fully objective.
Watch out
Do not treat historians as neutral like natural scientists, since historians often make value judgments. Do not judge the past by present values, and do not claim that history can be entirely objective.
Drafted from Grade 11 History, pages 1-21, then checked twice before it went up
| Period | Dates |
|---|---|
| Ancient | about 1000 B.C to 1270 A.D |
| Medieval | 1270 to 1855 A.D |
| Modern | 1855 to the present |
When you use it
Reach for this table when a question asks you to order or date the periods of Ethiopian history.
Watch out
Ethiopian periods do not follow the European ones. Use 1270 and 1855 for Ethiopia, not the European dates 476 or 1500.
Drafted from Grade 11 History, pages 1-21, then checked twice before it went up
10 multiple-choice questions written against this chapter, each with its answer and the reason. Try one before you open the answer.
Question 1
The term history comes from the Greek word "istoria" (historia). What does this word mean?
Answer: B Inquiry or knowledge acquired by investigation
Why
The chapter says that "istoria" means inquiry or knowledge acquired by investigation. History is built on careful inquiry into evidence, so this is the meaning to remember.
Question 2
Which ancient Greek historian is generally regarded as the "father of history"?
Answer: B Herodotus
Why
Herodotus (ca. 484 to 425 B.C.) wrote "Histories" about the wars between the Greeks and the Persians, and he is generally regarded as the "father of history". Thucydides was his famous successor, and Ranke is called the "father of modern historiography".
Question 3
The beginning of the technique of writing, around a certain date, marks the dividing line between prehistory and history. What is that date?
Answer: A 4000 B.C.
Why
The chapter says the beginning of writing around 4000 B.C. marked the dividing line between prehistory and history. Events before 4000 B.C. are studied under prehistory.
Question 4
Which early hominid made the first stone tools, known as Oldowan technology?
Answer: B Homo habilis
Why
The chapter says Homo habilis (handy human) made the first stone tools, which are called Oldowan technology after the Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania.
Question 5
Historians divide sources into primary and secondary sources. Which of the following is an example of a primary source?
Answer: B A diary written by an eyewitness at the time of the event
Why
Primary sources come directly from the period under study and are close in time and place to the event. A diary written by an eyewitness at the time fits this. Most history books are secondary sources, because they are historical reconstructions.
Question 6
The German historian Job Ludolf (1624 to 1704) wrote the first modern history of Ethiopia. In which year was it published?
Answer: B 1684
Why
The chapter says Ludolf's first modern history of Ethiopia was published in 1684. 1624 and 1704 are his birth and death years, and 1963 is the year the Institute of Ethiopian Studies was established.
Question 7
The name Australopithecine translates literally as the "southern ape". Why is it given this name?
Answer: A Because the first known fossils were found in South Africa
Why
The chapter says the name refers to South Africa, where the first known Australopithecine fossils were excavated by archaeologists. The name does not describe brain size or the place of Olduvai Gorge, which belongs to Homo habilis.
Question 8
Acheulean stone tools, known as "hand axes", are generally identified with which hominid?
Answer: C Homo erectus
Why
The chapter says Oldowan tools are generally identified with Homo habilis, while Acheulean tools are identified with Homo erectus. Homo erectus was the first hominid to make little and precise stone tools, mainly the hand axe.
Question 9
In the periodization of Ethiopian history, the chapter says the medieval period lasted from 1270 A.D. up to 1855 A.D. Which period came after it?
Answer: B The modern period
Why
The chapter says the period since 1855 A.D. is called the modern period of Ethiopian history. The ancient period ended in 1270 A.D., so it came before the medieval period. Ethiopia was not colonized, so the colonial period label does not apply in the way it does for much of Africa.
Question 10
The chapter explains why Ethiopian studies focused on the north before the 1960s. Which of these was NOT one of the advantages of the north?
Answer: D It had a larger population than the south
Why
The chapter lists four advantages of the north: a written language, writings by Greek, Roman and Arab writers, Coptic church archives, and archaeological sources. A larger population is not one of them, so it is the answer that is NOT an advantage listed in the chapter.
The app holds 12 questions on this unit, marked as you go. These are the first 10.
Unit 1 runs from page 1 to page 21 of the Ministry of Education edition.
Ministry of Education edition, English, 270 pages
Temari turns this chapter into timed practice and marks it as you go, with an AI tutor to explain anything that did not land.
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