world civ midterm

Oracle bones

• Who: Shang dynasty

• What: fortune telling based on cracks on turtle shells

• Why: form of religion and to create own writing

• When: 1750-1045 BCE

• Where: east/ north China, yellow river

• How: drill/ chisel hollows into bones + inscribe questions+ heat up. Cracks from and reveal an answer from ancestral spirits/ deities

Significance of oracle bones

Showed us the early forms of a religion in China and their own form of writing

Daoism

• Who: Zhou dynasty/ Laozi

• What: type of religion

• Why: way for ppl to seek comfort during the struggles of the warring states period

• When: 6th century BCE/ warring states period

• Where: China

• How: practiced the idea of one needing to be in balance with nature in order to prosper

Significance of Daoism

Shows which type of values ppl in China had around this time. These values would eventually greatly influence Chinese culture

Warring states period

• Who: Zhou vs Qin dynasty

• What: time period of warfare, bureaucratic/ military reform, political changes

• Why: Zhou dynasty was losing authority, surrounding dynasties then wanted to take over the land and become king

• When: 475-221 BCE (final years of Zhou dynasty)

• Where: China

• How: decline if Zhou dynasty’s authority

Significance of Warring States Period

Changed military tech (Iron Age), shift in rules of war (fought during the harvest time)

• Cuneiform

• Who: Mesopotamians/ akkadians

• What: ancient writing

• Why: economic purposes

• When: 10,000 BCE

• Where: Mesopotamia

• How: wedges for reds carved into papyrus

Significance of cuneiform

First form of writing/ language

Confucianism

• Who: Confucius

• What: ethical philosophies abt social harmony through respect of elders

• Why: to address social chaos/ political instability during the warring states period

• When: warring states period (551-479 BCE)

• Where: China

• How: revives past traditions in order to establish a society w/ ethical, virtuous, and stable ppl. Structure built on respect to elders, benevolence, and righteousness

Significance of Confucianism

Established a moral/ ethical framework that greatly shaped how east Asia is today

Neolithic Revolution

• Who: humans after Ice Age (Homo sapiens)

• What: period where humans started to use tools, farming, and domestication of animals

• Why: to settle down and create a civilization instead of being nomadic

• When: after Ice Age

• Where: everywhere (technically Mesopotamia)

• How: started to plant things and domesticate animals

Significance of Neolithic Revolution

Marks the first sign of humans trying to settle and create civilizations and make use of their tools/ animals

Hammurabi’s code

• Who: Hammurabi

• What: ancient writing of laws

• Why: to promote justice and strengthen the king’s authority

• When: Mesopotamia

• Where: Mesopotamia

• How: carved on stone tablet

Significance of Hammurabi’s code

One of the most earliest forms of written text and law

Indus seals

• Who: Indus Valley Civilization

• What: small/ square rectangular stamps of animals

• Why: for commerce and trade, to authenticate goods and mark ownership

• When: ancient India

• Where: Indus Valley

• How: stamp seals carved from stone and fired for durability

Significance of Indus Seals

Represented social, cultural, and ideological content time period

Specialization of Labor

• Who: any civilization/ early humans

• What: ppl doing different jobs

• Why: to cover all needs of a civilization

• When: Mesopotamia up to current day civilizations

• Where: every civilization

• How: ppl figure out how to do different things using tools/ animals

Significance of Specialization of Labor

shows that not everybody needs to farm/ can trade/ barter

Abraham

• Who: the creator of the origin of the monotheistic religions

• What: a guy from Ur

• Why: had children with a maid and his wife, each kid is the start of the monotheistic religions What

• When: 18th Century BCE

• Where: Mesopotamia

• How: had kid with Sarah (wife) which was Issac, foundation of Judaism, and had kid with Hagar, foundation of Islam

Significance of Abraham

The starter of the three monotheistic religions and is the patriarch of the Hebrew ppl

Bhagavad-Gita

• Who: Maharishi Ved Vyasa

• What: Hindu Scripture

• Why: to provide ethical and spiritual guidance in how to live a righteous and spiritually engaged life

• When: 1st or 2nd BCE

• Where: India

• How: 18 chapters; 3 sections with 6 chapters each that build upon each other (worldly condition to spiritual self to supreme lord)

Significance of Bhagavad-Gita

Serves as a religious text that unified the philosophical transition of ancient India (Vedic + Upanishadic religions)

Vedas

• Who: indo aryans

• What: ancient scared Hindu texts, one of the oldest scripts of Hinduism

• Why: to serve as a foundational text for Hinduism; believed to contain the fundamental knowledge of the universe, moral duty, and spiritual paths

• When: ancient India

• Where: ancient India

• How: written in Sanskrit

Significance of the Veda

One of the earliest forms of Sanskrit, provided insight into ancient Indian life

Jihad

• Who: Muslims

• What: Arabic word for Struggle/ exertion in the path of God

• Why: as a way to justify the killings during the Crusades

• When: Crusades

• Where: Middle East

• How: “bigger” Jihad = internal struggles to live a virtuous life, “lesser” Jihad = physical struggles to live a virtuous life

Significance of Jihad

Justified the when it were okay to break religious beliefs

Reincarnation

• Who: The Hinduism Religion

• What: Samsara, a core belief of the process to self enlightenment

• Why: must be reborn as part of the cycle to self enlightenment

• When: Ancient India

• Where: Ancient India

• How: must first go through birth, life, and death as a constant cycle

Significance of reincarnation

Offers opportunity for spiritual growth and achieve liberation (moksha)

Legalism

• Who: Han Feizi

• What: political philosophy

• Why: As a response to the chaos and instability caused during the warring states period

• When: Warring States Period

• Where: Ancient China

• How: you live your life according to the law, very strict (fear/ order is better) with harsh punishment

Significance of Legalism

Was the basis of the Qin dynasty and helped unify China under the Qin dynasty

Mandate of Heaven

• Who: Zhou dynasty against Shang Dynasty

• What: Philosophical idea that gave ppl a reason to follow the Zhou dynasty and not the Shang Dynasty

• Why: to help the Zhou Dynasty overthrow the Shang dynasty

• When: when Zhou dynasty overthrew Shang dynasty (1046 BCE)

• Where: Ancient China

• How: said that heaven favored the Zhou dynasty more than the Shang

Significance of Mandate of Heaven

Marked the overthrow of the Shang Dynasty, switching to the Zhou Dynasty

Zhou Feudalism

• Who: Zhou Dynasty

• What: system of governance where the king granted land and titles to regional lords in exchange for loyalty and military services

• Why: to be able to properly reign over large amount of land/ ppl

• When: Zhou dynasty’s reign

• Where: Ancient China

• How: the king grants land and titles to regional lords in exchange for loyalty and military services

Significance of Zhou Feudalism

Established a decentralized but cohesive state structure that helped control big amounts of land

• groundwork for future Chinese political thought

Battle of Yarmuk

• Who: Caliphates vs Byzantine Empire

• What: a fight between Caliphates and Byzantine Empire over political ideas

• Why: to resolve the expansion of the Islamic Caliphate

• When: 636 CE

• Where: Israel/ Palestine area

• How: Islamic Caliphate kept on expanding to many different places, making the Byzantine Empire upset, Muslims won and Byzantine empire fell apart

Significance of the Battle of Yarmuk

Marked an expansion of the Islamic Caliphate as a major power in the Middle East

Umayyad Dynasty

• who: Muslims

• What: first Islamic Caliphate that expanded their rule from Spain to India

• Why: to Spread Islam

• When: 661 CE- 750 CE

• Where: Spain to India

• How: conquered many different countries and kept expanding

Significance of the Umayyad Dynasty

Largest empire in the world, made Arabic the official language, changed the Capital to Damascus, Dome of the Rock and The Great Mosque of Damascus

Silla Kingdom

• Who: Silla ppl/ Koreans

• What: a Kingdom in Korea that helped the Tang (China) dynasty fight against the Goguryeo. Also made deal with Baekje dynasty, resulting in the fall in both the Tang dynasty, the Baekje, and the Goguryeo dynasties; adopted Confucianism and Buddhism

• Why: to take over most of Korea

• When: ancient Korea

• Where: Korea

• How: fought alongside Tang dynasty to get rid of the Goguryeo, made deal with Baekje dynasty and defeated Tang Dynasty, eventually became ruler of most of Korea

Significance of Silla Kingdom

Adoption of Confucianism and Buddhism into Korea, unified Korea under the Silla Kingdom

Varnas

India’s caste system

• Determined by your Dharma (deeds)

  1. Bhramin

  2. Ksatryia

  3. Vaishya

  4. Sudra

  5. Untouchables

Karma

• Vedic value

• Actions have consequences that can effect samsara (reincarnation)

Dharma

• Vedic value

• Duties/ deeds done to guide you towards spiritual growth

• Principle of natural order/ harmony truth

• Quran

• Central religious text for Islam

• Beloved that Prophet Muhammad is God’s messenger

• Derived from Abraham, Hagar, Ishmael

• Main message: worship Allah alone (monotheism) + Prophet Muhammad is the messenger

• Guidance for humankind for righteousness, belief in the afterlife, day of judgement

Hadith

• Reports of Prophet Muhammad’s words/ teachings/ actions

• Moral guidance, religious law, daily life practices

Sharia

• Religious LAW of Islam

  • Family matters, social conduct, finance

• Tells Muslims how to live their life

• Integrated with govt of Muslim majority countries

Aryans

• Ppl that came from Central Asia + pushed the Veda to Southern India

  • Lighter skin, so they believed they had higher authority

• Brought Vedic Sanskrit + Religion (Karma, Dharma, Samsara) into India

Confucianism Hierarchy

Ruler Father. Husband. Elder Brother

Subject Son. Wife. Younger Brother

• Respect elders + male over female

• Ppl must be educated

Buddhism

• Philosophy religion from India

• Follow the spiritual path to personal development, leads to enlightenment + end of suffering through morality, meditation, and wisdom

• Siddartha Gautama is the Buddha (not a god)

• Shows: we need to find a common medium in life

4 Noble Truths of Buddhism

1. Life is suffering

2. Suffering comes from giving into desires

3. The solution to end suffering is to limit desires

4. You can limit desires by follow the eightfold path (helps you reach Nirvana)

The Abbasid Caliphate

• Major Islamic Dynasty that governed the Middle East (Islamic Golden Age)

• Controlled big trade ports and Holy spots

• Translated many different texts, made a bunch of paper, mathematical ideas

• Religion and politics become equal in power

Tigris and Euphrates River

• Where Mesopotamia was created

• Modern day Iraq

Nile River

• where Egypt civilization was created

• Very predictable = Egyptian gods were benevolent

Yellow (Huang Ho) River

• Where the first Chinese civilizations were created

• Carries yellow silt through the River, creates very fertile soil

• Shang dynasty

Yangtze River

• Tibetan plateau to East Asia

• Shang Dynasty

• Large agricultural potential

Indus River

• Home to the Indus Valley Civilization

• Grid like planning of their cities (city states)

• River had much changes/ unpredictable bc of monsoons. Led to much flooding

Mauryan Empire

• Indias Golden Age

• Founded by Chandragupta Maurya

• Known for its bureaucracy, army/ war strategy, standardized script (Brahmi)

Officially United India as a subcontinent under 1 rule

Qin Dynasty

• Ruled with legalism (contrasted the existing Confucianism and Taoism that was popular in China)

• Officially used weights of things to trade/ as currency

• Increase in training, literacy, language

• Had a bureaucracy

• Always fighting with the mongols

• Terracotta warriors made to protect Qin Shi Huang in the afterlife

Islamic Caliphate

• Form of govt + political-religious state ruled by a Caliph (Person considered the successor of Prophet Muhammad)

• Centralized almost all of the Middle East

Bureaucracy

Type of hierarchy of a govt w/ specialized roles/ rules

• Helps to keep large civilizations/ govts organized