2010 1. Give
the meaning of history
Þ
The study of man’s past events/activities 1
x 1 = 1 mark
2013 p2 1 Give the
relationship between “History” and “Government”. (1 mark)
-
History is the study of
man’s past activities while Government is the study of how people are governed.
1
x 1 =1 mark
Ø
History is the study of the past events and
developments of man.
Ø
History is the study of Man’s past
chronological account and record of events in relation to his environment. Or:
Ø
It is a social science concerned with past
human actions, pursued by interpretation of evidence for the sake of human
self-knowledge.
Ø
Pre- history- Pre-history are the activities in which human beings engaged before the invention of writing and drawing for storing information.
Period before the development of
writing where we depend on unwritten sources to reconstruct History e.g.
archaeology. It relies on scientific and laboratory examinations to excavate
materials and fossils. .
Ø
History- this is the study of man’s recent
times. This is the time within the memorable past
· Contain elements of truth either from first-hand information or
from second-hand information.
· Dwell on past happenings.
· Must concern man. This implies that they must somehow be
connected with man.
· Historical
information may exist in either written or oral form.
· All
historical events must have evidence for them to qualify to be true.
2009 p1 qn 1. Identify
one branch in the study of History and Government of Kenya
Ø
Social
Ø
Economic
Ø
Political
Political history
This is the study of
people’s way of ruling, their leaders and the system of administration.
2011 p2 qn 7 What was the main function of the Council of
elders among Africa societies during the Pre-colonial period?
(1 mark)
·
They mediated/settled disputes/made peace in
the community.
Social history
This is study and
understanding of people’s way of life and culture. This includes their mode of dressing, language, inheritance, marriage, religion etc.
Economic history
This is the study of
how people make a living, their occupations and modes of production e.g.
peasantry, hunter-gatherer, pastoralism, trade, industry, transport and
communication.
Ø
Enables learners to understand the cultural,
economic and political organizations of different people of the world.
Ø
Helps learners appreciate the values of other
people and their contribution to civilization hence respect to other peoples of
the world.
Ø
Enables people to appreciate and understand
their past way of life and use it to predict the future and to solve the
present problems.
Ø
Enables learners to develop the capacity for
critical analysis of historical data, hence develop the ability to question,
acquire and argue rationally.
Ø
Enables the learners to develop a sense of
patriotism and national pride is developed, making them responsible citizen.
Ø
Fosters empathy by appreciating human
achievements and aspirations.
Ø
Provides intellectual fulfilment and an
interest in further learning as it is pleasurable and interesting.
Ø
History leads learners to respected
professions such as, law, business management, teaching, administration and
many others.
2013 p1 1 State two ways in which
the study of History and Government promotes a sense of patriotism in the
learner.
(i)
It enables one to
acquire a positive attitude towards the country.
(ii)
It enables one to be a responsible
citizen.
(iii)
It enables one to
become loyal to his/her country.
(iv)
It helps one to develop
positive values.
Ø
Refers to the way of ruling, administering and
controlling people.
Ø
A political organisation, structure and
authority.
Characteristics of
government
Ø
Rules, which govern members to ensure that
life runs smoothly for the benefit of all.
Ø
Sovereignty i.e. the supreme authority of the
government to exercise its powers within its boundaries.
Ø
Jurisdiction i.e. the geographical area within
which the government exercises powers and rules.
Ø
Legitimacy I.e. being acceptable to the people
over whom it exercises power.
Ø
Law enforcement i.e. ability to take action
against those who break the law.
MAIN ARMS OF GOVERNMENT
Ø
The Legislature (Parliament), which makes
laws. The Legislature is made up of the national assembly and the President.
Ø
The Executive, which is made up of the
President, the Cabinet and the Civil Service. It implements laws.
Ø
The Judiciary (Court system), which ensures
that laws made are constitutional, are followed and those who break them are
punished.
They include:
- Dictatorial Government
- Democratic Government
- Aristocratic government
- Monarchical government-Absolute monarchy and Constitutional monarchy
Ø
Dictatorship
Here, the ruler has total power over his/her subjects.
Dictators are the sole authority where they rule. They make the law and execute
justice. They exercise their rule forcefully, suppressing their subjects at
will. They impose their will over others and interfere with or limit the
freedom of their subjects. Examples of dictatorship include Germany during the
rule of Adolf Hitler, Italy
under Benito Mussolini and
Uganda during the rule of Idi Amin
Dada.
Ø
Democratic Government,
Here rulers regularly seek public mandate by popular
vote, based on free and fair election and on the fact that elected officials
represent the wishes and aspirations of the people. In such a government, matters of national
importance stem from freedoms and rights provided for in the Constitution,
which governs the law of the nation.
Ø
Aristocracy
In this, a group of people from the highest social
classes in a society rule over others. The queen or king is the head of
government, whose senior positions are held by privileged members of the royal
family, who are considered as a rear breed of people and who are considered
superior to other human beings because of the wealthy family background they
are born into in addition to their superior education.
Ø
Monarchy
In this, democracy is practised, but aristocratic
power is respected. In such government, Parliament is the supreme organ, but
the king and the royal family are retained in power as a tradition. The King or
Queen is therefore respected as head of state.
Types of Monarchical
government
Ø
Absolute Monarchy,
whereby the head of state is dictatorial since his/her power is unrestricted.
Ø
Constitutional Monarchy,
whereby the power of the King or Queen is restricted, based on the provisions
in the constitution.
2007 p1 qn 1. Give two reasons for studying government.
i.
To understand how different organs of
government function.
ii.
To understand how laws are made/enforced
iii.
To have knowledge of the
duties/responsibilities of citizens.
iv.
To enable citizens know their rights.
v.
To be able to compare political systems of the
world.
Ø
Learn how development projects are designed
and implemented.
Ø
Learn how conflicts in society are solved
peacefully.
Ø
Understand how the government raises revenue
and the checks and balances on government expenditure.
Ø
Understand how laws are made.
Ø
Learn the democratic principles that govern
most countries
Identify the sources
of prehistoric information.
Ø
Songs,
Ø
Myths,
Ø
Stories,
Ø
Artefacts,
Ø
Fossils,
Ø
The language of a people.
1996 p2 qn1 Identify
two sources of information which historians use to write the History of Africa
i.
Archaeology
ii.
Oral traditions
iii.
Anthropology
iv.
Botany/Zoology /biology/Genetics
v.
Written records
vi.
Geology
vii.
Local paintings/sculpture
2006 p1 qn 1 Identify
two source of Kenyan Historic
i.
Archaeology/ Palaeontology
ii.
Anthropology ( Myth & Legends)
iii.
Linguistics
iv.
Oral tradition
v.
Written sources
vi.
Geology
vii.
Rock paintings/ art
viii.
Genetics
ix.
Electronic sources
2007 p2 qn 1Give two
sources of information in history and government
i.
Archaeology / palaeontology.
ii.
Oral tradition, Linguistics.
iii.
Anthropology
iv.
Genetics / Botany / Zoology / Biology
v.
Written records,
vi.
Geology.
vii.
Electronic sources.
2011 p1 qn 1 Give two unwritten sources of information on
History and Government.
(i)
Oral traditions/oral source
(ii)
Archaeology/palaeontology
(iii)
Genetics
(iv)
Linguistics
(v)
Anthropology
Any 2x1 = 2 marks
Oral Traditions
2001 p2 qn 1. What is oral tradition as a source of History?
i.
Oral tradition as a source of History involves
the study of historical information based on what has been handed down from one
generation to another by word of mouth/ verbally.
Forms of oral
traditions
Ø
Myths
Ø
Legends
Ø
Proverbs
Ø
Songs
Ø
Folktales
Ø
Poems
Advantages of oral
traditions
Ø
It is important in the study of history within
other social studies
Ø
They integrate the study of history with other
social studies
Ø
It is cheap since it doesn’t require experts
or special equipment.
Ø
It compliments other sources of history.
Disadvantages of oral
traditions
2000 qn 1 Give two
shortcomings of oral traditions as a source of History.
i.
They may contain biases and exaggerations
ii.
They may be inconsistent and inaccurate due to
handling down from one generation to another by word of mouth
iii.
It may be difficult to distinguish what was
real from what was imaginary
iv.
Omissions of facts due to failure in memory
Ø
It is difficult to give correct dates and
chronology of events.
Linguistics
Ø
This is the scientific study of languages
Ø
People who speak similar languages are assumed
to be from the same family.
How the form, content, vocabulary and the
historical experience of the people who speak a given language could be illustrated.
Ø
Distribution of languages. The smaller the
distribution, the less influential or younger the language. The more widespread
it is, the stronger or older it might be.
Ø
Relationship between languages. People who
speak related languages might have a common origin, be connected, or have close
contact sometime in the past.
Ø
Variations between languages of the same
family indicate how long ago the break in contact occurred. Greater variations
show longer periods of separation.
Advantages
Ø
Makes it easy to trace peoples interactions
and course of movement
Ø
It is easier to identify groups with similar
language traits e.g. Khoisan
Ø
Information is easy to obtain as language is a
cultural phenomenon.
Ø
It is cheap since only needs to travel to an
area of study.
Disadvantages
Ø
Some words could be omitted or distorted while
translating the language.
Ø
It is time consuming. Delayed acquisition of
information since it takes long to learn a particular language.
Ø
Where loan words corrupt the parental
language, inaccuracies may occur. Various languages may have similar words but
with different meanings.
Ø
The borrowing of words might corrupt or
interfere with the parent-language.
Ø
Some languages have become extinct.
Archaeology
Ø
Archaeology is the study of the antiquity, is
the study of material remains from the past human life and culture.
Ø
These materials can be artefacts or Eco facts.
Ø
Artefacts are material remains of what early
man used or that influenced his way of life. They include the following:
1999 p2 qn 17(a) What
things do archaeologists use to reconstruct the activities of people who live
in prehistoric time.
i.
The remains of the weapons that they used
ii.
The remains of the tools that they used
iii.
The remains of humans bones
iv.
The remains of animals found at the prehistoric sites
v.
The remains of plants the lived
on
vi.
The remains
of their dwelling places
vii.
The remains
of their artwork e.g. rock
painting
viii.
The remains of traditional craft e.g. pottery
ix.
The remains of beads
x.
The remains of cans
xi.
The remains of garments
xii.
The remains of churred tree trunks/ charcoal
and carbonized seeds.
Any 5 points, 1 mark
2012 p2 qn 1. Identify one type of artefact that is likely
to be found in an archaeological site
i.
Tools
ii.
Weapons
iii.
Pottery
iv.
Garments
v.
Coins
Ø
Eco facts are remains of the plants and animal
especially the pollen grains, bones, coprolites etc.
2008 p1 qn 1 Identify
two ways through which archaeologists obtain information on the history of
Kenya.
i.
Excavating the sites
ii.
Dating the fossils
iii.
Recording the findings
iv.
Locating pre-sites
2011 p2 qn1 Give two archaeological sources of
information on History and Government.
i.
Tools/utensils/ornaments/onions used by man
ii.
Weapons used by man
iii.
Settlements/ruins of the past/rock paintings
iv.
Remains of human/animals
v.
Plant remains.
vi.
Garments/ornaments
vii.
Coins used by man
How archaeologists and
palaeontologists discover historical sites.
Ø
They look for areas where faulting or erosion
have occurred, exposing surfaces that may give some clues to the point of
finding fossils and artefacts. Sometimes they have to dig deep to find physical
remains.
Ø
Identification or differentiation of the
physical features of an area from those of the ground in places around. For
example, a small part of an early settlement, such as a few stones in a regular
pattern may be seen on the surface in such an area.
Ø
Enquiries on sites mentioned in a historical
document or an oral narrative of the geography and other historical features of
the area cited. This may lead to important insights to past civilizations, such
as Troy, Ur, Babylon, Omo River valley and Olduvai Gorge.
Ø
Long experience in identifying a potential
site for archaeological excavation.
Ø
Accidental exposure of ancient objects during
cultivation and building construction, which could arouse the curiosity of
researchers.
How Archaeological
study and analysis is done.
Ø
The Archaeologist studies what evidence
remains of the material culture of a people’s past.
Ø
Activities of prehistoric people are
reconstructed from various evidence, e.g. traces of weapons and tools they
used, clothing, bones, earthworks, dwelling-places, etc.
Ø
Concepts or understanding of a people’s
civilization at the time the artefacts were in use are formulated. E.g. hunting
and pastoralism could be indicated by rock paintings of certain animals on
cave-walls.
Ø
Man’s relationship with his environment is
interpreted and dated. Here, the archaeologist works with Palaeontologists,
Geologists, Ecologists, Chemists, Physicists and other natural scientists.
Methods of dating fossils.
Ø Geological periods,
characterised by climatic changes and the successive types of plants and
animals found.
Ø Chemical dating. This
is of two kinds i.e. Radio-Carbon dating and Potassium-Argon method.
Radio-Carbon dating measures organic substances and the rate of decay of
carbon-14 in fossils. Potassium-Argon method measures the amount of potassium
and the amount of Argon-40 to assist in dating volcanic ash and minerals.
Ø Stratigraphy i.e. the
study and interpretation of the layers of rock successively deposited at one
place. It is useful in determining dates for areas affected by sedimentation.
Ø Fission Track dating.
This is useful in dating Pleistocene samples. The age of glass and other
mineral objects is determined through this method.
Ø Statistical dating.
This helps in determining the length of a generation for a particular society
by estimating dates for events associated with certain generations.
Ø Lexico Statistics
dating. This is the statistical study of the vocabulary of languages to
determine their age and historical links with other languages. It is based on
the assumption that all languages have a basic vocabulary that will gradually
change at a common rate for all languages at all times.
Ø Glotto-Chronology,
which is a subdivision of Lexico Statistics, attempts to establish that
languages are historically related. It helps in expressing rates of language-development
by formulae precise enough to enable dates when change occurred to be
calculated.
Why excavation and analysis of artefacts is an
expensive venture.
Ø Labourers have to be
hired to excavate a site.
Ø Transportation of
artefacts to laboratories for analysis is often a cumbersome, complex and
delicate venture.
Ø Archaeological
equipment’s are often costly and scarce.
Ø The cost of
staff-upkeep is very high.
Ø Analysis of and dating
artefacts is very hard.
Advantages
2004 p2 qn 1 Give one
contribution of archaeology to the study of History.
i.
It provides information on the origin of human/ cradles/ earliest human beings
ii.
It provides information on the people’s way of
life
iii.
It helps
people to locate historical sites
iv.
It provides information on the chronological
order of historical events/ dating
Ø
It provides pre-history information
Ø
It gives accurate information
Ø
It links history to laboratory-based sciences
Ø
It has a sense of reality as artifacts can be
seen or touched.
Ø
It gives a sense of time through dating of
artifacts.
Disadvantages
Ø
It requires experts
Ø
Limited to study of the antiquity. One cannot
study present materials or events.
Ø
Archaeological information could be inaccurate
as it is often based on conclusions and reconstructions.
Ø
It is difficult to trace archaeological sites.
Ø
Archaeology estimates but does not provide
precise dates.
Ø
It is a time-consuming venture since
preparation for an excavation and transportation of artefacts to laboratories
for analysis is long and laborious processes.
Ø
There are few archaeological experts to
interpret data.
Ø
Some materials are fragile and could easily
break, thereby misleading analysts.
Ø
It is expensive to excavate and analyse
artefacts.
Anthropology
This is the study of a person’s origins, development,
customs and beliefs.
Explain why anthropologists must live among the people
who they study.
Ø
One would experience the people’s way of life.
Ø
One understands and explains social and other
structures within their society of study.
Ø
One explains aspects of the economy on which a
given community depend.
Ø
One is able to determine a people’s cultural
past.
Ø
One has a deeper understanding of a particular
aspect of a people’s culture.
Advantages
Ø
It enables historians determine the cultural
past of a community.
Ø
Information is easily obtained from the
surrounding.
Ø
It compliments others sources.
Disadvantages
Ø
It is expensive as it involves living with the
people on who research is conducted.
Ø
It is time-consuming.
Ø
Researchers may not adapt to new environments.
Ø
The researcher may miss vital information as
the people being studied may behave differently in the presence of the
researcher.
Ø
The researcher risks losing his or her own
culture on adapting to the environment of study.
2012 p1 qn 1. Give any two limitations of using anthropology
as a source of information on History and Government.
i.
It is time consuming
ii.
It is an expensive method
iii.
Information collected may be
inaccurate/distorted
iv.
Information collected may be biased
Genetics
Genetics is the scientific study of heredity and the
variation of inherited characteristics.
Advantages
Ø Information is
accurate as real materials and remains are analysed.
Ø Information can be
obtained for millions of years ago.
Ø Enables Historians to
trace the origin of domestication and spread of crops and animals.
Ø Compliments other
sources of History.
Disadvantages
Ø It is expensive.
Ø Researchers may not
adapt to new environments due to health and other risks.
Ø It is technologically
demanding as it requires a lot of sophisticated material and equipment.
Ø It is time-consuming.
Apart from much fieldwork, one spends a lot more time training before becoming
a Genetics specialist.
These are audio-visual
media which are operated by electronic power.
Name any three
Electronic sources of information on history & Government.
Ø Microfilms,
Ø Films,
Ø Videos,
Ø Radio,
Ø Television
Ø Computerised
data-bases.
Advantages
Ø They can be clearly
read when magnified.
Ø They capture words and
emotions of an event as it happens.
Ø They combine sound,
picture and motion.
Ø They facilitate
instant retrieval of and access to information.
Ø Most are not bulky.
Limitations
Ø They are subject to
bias as they mostly contain foreign (European and American) material.
Ø They are too expensive
to buy and run. Many people cannot afford to buy radios, television sets and
videos. The cost of electricity for operating this equipment is high.
Ø Some acted films are
unrealistic for they contain exaggerated information.
Ø There is a lot of
permissiveness, largely caused by improper use of electronic material.
2009 p2 qn 1. Name two
types of written materials used by historians as a source of history and
government
i.
Books/ charts/
maps/ scrolls/ painting/ clay labels/ stone table
ii.
Newspapers/ magazines
iii.
Diaries/ biographies
iv.
Journals/ periodicals
v.
Official/ government records
Advantages of written materials
2002 p2 qn . State one
advantage of written materials as a source of history
i.
Written materials ensure relatively permanent
storage of Historical events/for future reference.
ii.
Written materials can be easily translated to
different languages relatively accurate storage of historical events.
iii.
They relatively provide accurate storage of
historical events.
iv.
Written materials cannot be easily
distorted/interfered with/not easily changed.
Disadvantages of written materials
2008 p2 qn1. Identify two limitations of using
written records as a source of information on History and Government.
i.
May contain biases/exaggerations
ii.
Information may be
misinterpreted/misunderstood by readers
iii.
There may be factual
errors/omissions/contradiction by the authors
iv.
These sources are limited to literate members
of the society
v.
They are expensive to obtain/procure
1997 p2 qn 1 Give two
limitations of using written records as source of African History.
i.
Most of the written records on African History
were by foreigners who built their biases in the records.
ii.
Some written records on African History
contain inaccurate information
iii.
Some of the records are not reality available
for case of reference
iv.
Written records are limited only to those who
can read and write.
Revision questions
1.
What are the characteristics
of historical events?
2.
What do you understand
by the following terms:
i)
History
ii)
Government
3. Explain
the methods historians use to obtain historical information.
4. Give
the limitations of:
i)
Oral tradition
ii) Archaeology
iii) Linguistics
5. Give
reasons why written records are regarded as the best sources of historical
information.
6. Explain
why history and government is studied in Kenyan schools and some colleges.
7. What
are the limitations of using written records?
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