Pre-Ur Civ

The Pre-Ur Civilization were the original speakers of the Pre-Ur Proto-language. Although we have no confirmed, direct archaeological evidence of their existence, sociologists and linguists have used language-based evidence to suggest aspects of their culture, beliefs, and geographic location. Along with genetic studies, a few likely hypotheses have come forward pointing to particular geographic locations and paleolithic archaeological digs that may once have belonged to these people.
Currently, the most widespread and accepted theory is that the Pre-Ur speakers originated in interior of (EasternSubcontinent), in the (Highlands) highlands steppe region. This area, characterized by arid grassland, would have been ideal for pastoral nomads, and the high elevation and generally cold temperatures are consistent with the domestication of yaks and camels.

Culture

Culture and cultural heritage

There are a number of characteristics that can be inferred about the cultural customs of the Pre-Ur speakers.

Kinship and Marriage

The Pre-Ur speakers appear to have been a primarily patrilineal, patrilocal society, in which descent is reckoned through the male line, and a married couple generally lived with the husband's father. They had clan-based descent groups, which were believed to go back to a common, mythical ancestor, usually an animal of some kind, and the clan was generally named after this person or animal. The clan was headed by the chief, *(chief), who made all final decisions for the clan.
Marriage was most likely exogamous; men and women were not allowed to marry within the clan. A man wishing to marry a woman would offer a bride price to both the woman's clan chief and her father, after which he would take her back to his own clan. In many daughter languages, the word *returnaxe, "I return," is transparently related to divorce, so it is likely that women could initiate divorce proceedings of their own accord.

Gender

Despite their male-oriented kinship structures, the Pre-Ur speakers appear to have had a fairly egalitarian society, in which women owned property separately from their husbands.
Archaeological evidence from the proposed homeland of the Pre-Ur civilization mostly consist of tombs and burial mounds. It is generally believed that the more elaborate mounds belonged to chiefs of tribes. Small proportion of these mounds have been found to house female skeletons, who are buried with items that are considered symbols of feminity for the Pre-Ur culture, such as spindles and elaborate, beaded headdresses, rather than the more masculine weaponry generally associated with such mounds. Because of this evidence, it is generally believed that there were at least a few female chiefs of clans. It is not known whether these women were original members of the clans patriline (i.e. daughters of men within the clan) or married into the clan and gained prominence afterward.
In addition, there are cognates in many descendants of the Pre-Ur language for individuals who fulfilled a different gender role than that of the one they would have been assigned when they were born. The root *(ftm) was used for female-assigned individuals who lived and acted as men, and seems to likely be related to *(beardm), which means "beardless." The root *(mtf), which was used for male-assigned individuals who performed women's roles, is likely related to the root *(mare), the word for a female horse, possibly due to dosing themselves with estrogen found in the urine of pregnant mares.

Religion

The Pre-Ur speakers had a mythic figure or deity called the "Sun Horse" *Safia *Utl, who carried the sun across the sky each day. Cognates with the Sun Horse can be found in many of the descendant cultures, even those that were not as heavily reliant on the horse.
The Pre-Ur speakers practiced animal sacrifice, slaughtering yaks, camels, and horses in the worship of their various deities, including the Sun Horse. Animal sacrifice is strongly associated with cleansing and purification, and may have been a large part of the traditional marriage ceremony, as part of a ritual for the bride to remove her allegiance to her old clan in preparation for joining the new one.

Law and Government

There are a number of words for legal positions and practices which indicate that the Pre-Ur speakers had a fairly elaborate system for settling disputes and feuds. A complainant would bring a case against the accused in front of an impartial judge. At least one lawyer would be involved, though their exact role is uncertain, as the term, *advocate is used by some daughter languages to mean a defense advocate, and in others to refer to a prosecutor.
It is also believed that there was some form of taxation practiced by the Pre-Ur speakers, as words for "tax" and "tax collector" appear to be cognates across many daughter languages. Relatedly, the concept of "charity" (*charity) seems to have been prominent as well.

Average technological level

The evidence suggests that the Pre-Ur speakers were primarily nomadic pastoralists, who had domesticated houndgoats, horses, yaks, and camels. They also likely had developed early forms of agriculture, including domestication of cereal grains such as barley and wheat, and tools such as the plow and the wheel. They also had developed a number of dairy products, including milk (*milk), butter ((*butter), yogurt (*yogurt), and cheese (*cheese).
Weaponry words are well attested in the language, including words such as *mpai 'bow', *lfaan 'arrow', and *cukti, 'spear.'

Art & Architecture

From the reconstructed language itself, we know that Pre-Ur speakers were familiar with a number of crafts, including spinning, weaving, leatherwork, beadwork and other forms of jewelry, stonemasonry, and woodcarving. Additionally, we are fairly certain that, during the nomadic periods of the year, most likely the spring or summer, the Pre-Ur speakers living in square tents created from treated leather or hide.
Presuming that the speakers of the Pre-Ur language were indeed the ancient people of the (Highlands) highlands region, we have a surprising amount of evidence regarding their more permanent forms of architecture. In many parts of the highlands, the foundations of structures dating back to around 9,000 years ago have been uncovered, and some of these structures have even been found that are still standing, though most have lost their roofs. (Highlands) buildings where generally constructed as pits in the ground, to regulate temperature, with short walls interpersed with shuttered windows to let in light. The rooms were heated in the cold winter by a central stove. The chimney had a flue, which could be opened or shut depending on temperature and conditions outdoors, and the openings of these vents were designed to deter birds and other vermin from nesting inside it, with sloped sides.
These sites have also recovered evidence of pottery, including both shards and pottery manufacturing equipement, such as kilns and potter's wheels. Many of the recovered shards have been painted with red and black glazes, with figures depicting plants, animals, and other natural imagery.

Common Customs, traditions and rituals

Given its preponderance in daughter languages, scholars believe that the concept of "blood brothers" or "shield brothers" (*bloodbrother in Pre-Ur) was fairly prevalent in Pre-Ur culture, and likely had something to do with other social ties, including familial bonds and the host-guest relationship.