According to Lewis Henry Morgan, which stage comes first in cultural evolution?

In Lewis Henry Morgan's framework of cultural evolution, the earliest stage is referred to as savagery. This stage represents a period of human development characterized by lower levels of social organization, technology, and subsistence strategies. Morgan divided human society into three broad stages: savagery, barbarism, and civilization.

Savagery typically encompasses the initial stages of human existence where people lived in small, nomadic groups, relied on hunting and gathering for sustenance, and did not practice agriculture or complex social structures. As societies evolved from savagery, they moved into the stage of barbarism, which saw the advent of practices like agriculture and the establishment of larger, more structured communities. Civilization then follows, representing a stage where societies become distinctly advanced with complex political institutions, written language, and significant technological advancements.

This progression reflects an anthropological perspective on cultural development and illustrates how societies change over time based on technological innovations and social organization. Understanding this framework helps grasp the broader theories of cultural evolution that have shaped anthropological discourse.