History IDs

Diffusion

the spread of traits, language, culture, etc. through trade, communication, travel, witnessing, etc.

• direct: elements spred through close, frequent contact between two distinct societies through trade, intermarriage, or warfare

• Indirect: traits pass from one society to another through an intermediary 3rd party, without direct contact between the original and resulting cultures

• Forced: dominant culture conquers or limits another by forcibly imposing its own customs and values

Syncretism

a blending of beliefs and practices from different religions into one unified system

• Combination of discrete traditions, merging of mythologies, rituals, worldviews, cultural practices, etc

• Infuses, not borrows, elements to create new practices

Upper Paleolithic (Old Stone)

The last part (70,000 BP to 10,000 BP) of the Old Stone Age, featuring tool industries characterized by long slim blades and an explosion of creative symbolic forms.

• First behaviorally modern humans

• Explosion of new types and variety of tools

• Modern Humans leave Africa

Neolithic

Final section of the Stone age from about 10,000 BP to 2,000 BP

• Humans transitioned from nomadic hunter-gatherers to permanent agricultural settlements/ were in all habitable continents

• all at similar levels of technological development

• New tools were shaped and polished, not simply chipped

• Pottery and weaving became widespread for storage, cooking, and clothing

• Societies built permanent housing and dwellings as well as large megalithic monuments like Stonehenge

Hunter-Gatherer (Foraging)

survived mostly on hunting wild animals, fishing, and gathering wild plants, seeds, herbs, and nuts

• Egalitarian, mobile, few material possessions, no government/ taxation

• had great mobility, remained mobile enough to maintain egalitarian bands of related families instead of hierarchical societies.

• Coexisted with farmers of this time, as well as traded with them for goods and resources

• They didn’t change their lifestyle to a more static on because being mobile enable a diverse diet with wild fish, fruits, game, and poultry. Settled farmers relied heavily on one particular crop succeeding, and if it didn’t they were in danger of starving.

• Because of the low labor needs, less children were needed, and being moved around a lot meant children would needed to be carried if they weren’t old enough to walk. Farmers were somewhat forced to have more children because they needed the labor and they could afford them because of their sedentary lifestyle.

Gender Division of Labor

Males associated tasks:

• skeletal activity reveals men were typically buried with tools associated with hunting, butchery, heavy woodworking, and interpersonal conflict like battle, war, or disputes

• Men also dealt with heavy field work

Female associated tasks:

• women were frequently buried with specialized tools used for working animal hides, leather-working, and processing cereal grains.

• in charge of child rearing but cooperated in larger familial groups

Some scholars debate the social impact of the roles. There’s some evidence to support that strenuous physical labor was shared and flexible between genders. Some models suggest that sedentary farming and private property gradually laid the groundwork for increasing patriarchy and gender inequality over time.

Agricultural revolution

Neolithic agricultural revolution shifted human cultures from a lifestyle of hunting and gathering to one of agriculture and permanent settlement.

• Beginning in 10,000 BCE to 12,000 BCE in the Middle East’s Fertile Crecsent

• Independent cultivation of multiple different crops at the same time in different places (China had rice and millet, Africa had sorghum, and Mesoamerica had squash and maize

Neolithic Farmers

Fertile Crescent- roughly 11,000 years ago. Domestication of not just animals but also plants and various wildlife. Coexistence with hunter gatherers and interbreeding rather than complete replacement.

proposed explanations are:

• environmental stress

• social demand

• slow entanglement

Grain Gathering

11,000 BCE roughly

• Ground collecting meant that instead of cutting stalks completely where they stood, they would rather gather grains directly off the ground as plants naturally ripened. The approach ensured they’d have daily crop collection and only the most ripe grains and fruits would be selected.

• By grabbing grains and collecting them into bags or baskets, they were also accidentally spreading seeds, sowing future plants for harvest

Neolithic Hand Axe

Produced during the final period of the stone age

• finely shaped/ sharpened tool made from hard rocks like flint or granite

• used grinding and polishing to refine the shape

• Mass produced for daily use and often included in trading

Slash and Burn

started roughly 10,000- 12,000 years ago

• early farmers cut down trees, bushes, and forested areas, let some of the biomass dry, then burn it to clear the land and enrich the soil with the nutrient-rich ash.

• Showed a very refined understanding of the connection between fire, ash, and soil.

Plow

• Usually carved from a single piece of wood

• used to break up, scratch, and loosen topsoil to prepare fields for planting seeds

Irrigation

• simple water carrying and ditch-dipping methods that allowed farmers to grow crops in dry areas

• Allowed for cities to grow far larger and sparked the transition into settled societies

• Flood management consisted of low walls (levees and ditches) to trap seasonal floodwaters, allowing nutrient rich moisture to soak into the soil without flooding certain areas

Mesopotamia

10,000 BCE

• human societies shifted from mobile bands to more dense sedentary civilizations and societies

• because of the growth of major cities, major cultures and language systems were far more easily spread and developed

• agriculture soared in this region through the cultivation of wheat, barley, legumes, and the domestication of sheep, goats, pigs and bulls.

• architecture- circular mud brick houses evolved into multi-room rectangular houses with lime-plastered floors

• food surpluses led to population growth, early trade networks, and the beginnings of social stratification

Sumer

Urban Copper Age civilization (founded in the Neolithic Age)

• Domestication of founder crops in Mesopotamia allowed for livestock and human groups to go from nomadic hunting to permanent farming

• In 3500 BCE, true cities started to take shape as literacy, temples, social stratification, and early record-keeping become prominent parts of life

• The Sumerians developed their own particular language and identity in written records by the late 4th millennium (3,000 BCE)

Fertile Crescent

10,000 to 9,000 BCE

• Stretches from the Persian Gulf through to Palestine and often down to the Nile River

• Water sources provided rich deposits of silt and fresh soil, water systems like the Tigris, Euphrates, and the Nile enabling farmers to grow crops in fertile areas

• Founder crops (world’s first cultivated crops): emmer wheat, einkorn wheat, barley, flax, chickpeas, peas, lentils, etc

• Cradle of civilization: the food surpluses allowed for large population influxes, ushering in the need for government and thus, social stratification ensued. Saw the rise of early civilizations like Sumer and Mesopotamia.

Semites

anyone who speaks a language from the semitic family (Arabic, Hebrew, or Aramaic)

• Today it is considered an obsolete racial and ethnic category, typically being used for the study of languages

• Ancient groups included the Akkadians, Phoenicians, Hebrews, Arameans, and early Arabs who lived across the Near East

Akkad

City founded by Sargon the Great in 2334 BCE after rising from humble beginnings to unite the independent Sumerian civilization with the Akkadian city-states

• Mesopotamian city and capital of the Akkadian Empire

• First known unified empire in the world, lasted from 2334 to 2154 BCE

• Believed to be somewhere near the River Tigris and Euphrates in central Iraq

• Sargon had a very centralized government, standardizing weights, measures, and taxes while building and protecting reliable trade routes.

• Sumerian cuneiform dominated their writing system and recording styles in laws, stories, and royal messages

Mesopotamian City-States

flourished between 4,000 to 2,000 BCE in the Tigris-Euphrates River valley

• each state had its own independent rule and functioned like a modern sovereign country, complete with its own government, king, and army.

• Large Ziggurats sat at the core of each city and functioned as religious centers, dedicated tot eh community’s specific patron god or goddess

• Highly influenced by irrigation and defensive walls

• Uruk was a major city state and home of King Gilgamesh, the heroine in the Epic of Gilgamesh

Sargon the Great

King and founder of the Akkadian Empire (2334 to 2279 BCE)

• uniter of the Akkadian city-states with Sumer

• unified Mesopotamia through conquering all of southern Mesopotamia and defeating the King of Uruk, along with others

• Credited with establishing the regions first professional standing army and advancing tactical formations

• The installation of Akkadian governors in conquered cities made Akkadian the official administrative language

• Standardized weights across his empire to improve commerce across the multi-ethnic empire

• Appointed his daughter Enheduanna, as high priestess of Ur, she’s is celebrated as the first named author in history

Gilgamesh (The epic of…)

First recorded story, written on clay tablets using cuneiform script, and originating from Sumerian poems dating back to around 2100 BCE

• reveals the Mesopotamian view of the gods-human relationship and what they expect from each other

• serves as a window into the Mesopotamian view of mortality, life, expectations of human-life, etc.

Enlil

Mesopotamian supreme king of gods who was angered by humanity’s loud nature and excessive growth. Flooded the earth tp destroy humanity but was thwarted by Enki/ Ea by saving Utnapishtim

• represents ultimate cosmic order and the strict boundaries of human mortality which even a legendary king like Gilgamesh must obey and ultimately respect

Enkidu

Companion of Gilgamesh

• created by the mother goddess Aruru/ Anu from a handful of clay in the wilderness

• Designed to temper the arrogance and tyranny of Gilgamesh

• Eventually learned about civilization from a temple prostitute and afterwards the animals of the wild rejected him

• Blocked Gilgamesh’s path and challenged his oppressive rule, then a wrestling match broke out and it ended in a stalemate, leading the two to embrace each other and become inseparable brothers/companions

• Together, they undertook several legendary quests and slayed Humbaba, the guardian of the Cedar Forest, and the Bull of Heaven

• Because they killed the Bull of Heaven and Humbaba, the angry gods decreed that one of the heroes must dies, Enkidu was struck down by a fatal, painful illness

• This pushes Gilgamesh to search for a secret to eternal life, ultimately prompting him to discover that humanity’s true legacy lies immortal achievements and stories

Urban Revolution

Roughly 3000- 1200 BCE

• Large-scale shift from agrarian, village societies to communities with complex, stratified urban civilizations and city-states

• Bronze and metallurgy: discovery/ spread of bronze sparked long-distance metal trade routes and hubs which then grew into early cities and trading hubs

• Agricultural surplus led to the vast influx of populations in fertile areas, enabling larger-scale societies to thrive from the additional labor force

• Concentrated wealth, trade checkpoints, state and trade taxation, and organized labor lead to a rise of ruling elites, taxing authorities, and rigid social systems

• Monumental architecture: ziggurats, temples, defensive ramparts, fortified walls, and palaces became commonplace in may advanced areas and cities

• Literacy and Numeracy: managing trade, food storage, and state taxes required writing and record-keeping systems, meaning more and more people required literacy and numeracy skills

Civilization's Attributes

• advanced cities: large urban centers that act as hubs for populations, trading, and economic activity

• Stable food supply: intensive agriculture and the domestication of plants and animals, made possible by the nearby rivers and innovative irrigation techniques

• specialized workers: increase in population allowed for increased degrees of skilled labor like merchants, artisans, carpenters, and other professionals to produce goods and services instead of everyone relying on farm work

• record keeping: advancements in language and record-keeping methods allowed for greater degrees of recording stockpiles of goods, purchase amounts for various merchandise, etc.

• Standardization: large trading hubs along major waterways and rivers championed standardization of measurements and common economic language, making trading and communication in these areas far easier and more accessible

• social structure: hierarchal classes ranked by wealth, job specialization, or political power (such as rulers, priestesses/ priests, merchants, and laborers)

Barbarians

Linguistic label for a foreigner, over time in the Persian Wars, the Greeks changed the word to be and insult; meaning uncivilized, uncultured, and inferior

• derives from the concept of the “dangerous other”: dominant group portrays an individual/ out-group as a fundamental threat to the safety, morality, or order of society

• The term is an onomatopoeia of “bar-bar-bar” which mimics the foreign speech the Greeks couldn’t understand

There are three distinct stages of cultural evolution (according to Lewis H. Morgan)

1. Savagery: Nomadic hunter-gatherers (Paleolithic/Neolithic Eras)

2. Barbarism: Societies that had developed agriculture and pottery (Neolithic era) but had not yet developed a written language or large urban states

3. Civilizations: Societies with writing, advanced technology, unique systems of language, and city-states.

Lugal

Sumerian term for “big man” or king

• Used in ancient Mesopotamian around 2700 BCE

• Denoted to a king, master, or head state

• Ranked than Ensi, which was a local city governor or prince

• King Lugalzagesi of Uruk, overthrown by Sargon the Great during the establishment of the Akkadian Empire

Egypt

First river valley civilization alongside Mesopotamia

• developed side by side around 3500 to 3000 BCE

• Because of the flooding of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers in Mesopotamia, and the flooding in the Nile River, the land around ther areas was regularly, and predictably flooded with nutrient rich waters and silt deposits

• Mesopotamia formed a collection of independent city-states ruled by local kings. Power shifted later to larger empires like the Akkadian Empire and Babylon. Ancient Egypt united early into a single, centralized state ruled by pharaohs who were viewed as living gods

Nile River

Lifeblood of ancient Egypt

• annual flooding ensured constant

Pharoh

Old Kingdom

Ancient Egypt spanned from roughly 2700-2200 BCE

• Included the 3rd- 6th Egyptian Dynasties

• “Age of the Pyramids”

• Centered around Memphis in Egypt

• Royal authority gradually weakened because of local district governors (nomarchs) gaining their power through hereditary means

Middle Kingdom

Roughly from 2030- 1650 BCE

• triggered by the reunification of Upper an Lower Egypt under Mentuhotep II of the 11th Dynasty

• Includes the 11th- 13th dynasties (some scholars include the 14th dynasty)

• 12th dynasty brought widespread stability, economic prosperity, and major cultural achievements like art, architecture, and literature

• ended in roughly the 13th dynasty as centralized authority weakened, leading to the fragmentation of the country and rise of the Hyksos

New Kingdom

roughly 1550-1070 BCE

• includes the 18th- 20th dynasties

• Famous Pharaohs in lude, Hatshepsut, Ramesses II

• Shifted royal burials to the Valle of the Kings and constructed temples like Karnak and Luxor

• Declined due to rising military costs, internal corruption by priests, climate shifts, and invasions by “sea peoples”

Indus River

major bronze age civilization (3300- 1300 BCE)

• included parts of Pakistan, northwest India, and northeast Afghanistan

• 
  

• 
  

Harappa

Mahenjo-Daro

Indus River Valley civilization in modern-day Pakistan

Yellow River

Xia

Shang

Zhou

Mandate of Heaven

The Bronze Age

(Think of the Odessey)

Chariots

Iron Age

Sanskrit

The Vedas

Rig Ved

Vedic Age

Roughly from 1100- 500 BCE

• Create a society that is based on dispersed settlement and pastoralism

• Warrior sky gods

• 
  

Indra

Vedic God

Varna/Caste

hereditary class system

• Brahmins- priests

• Kashatriyas- warriors

• Vaishya- farmers later merchants

• Shudras- servants/ slaves later farmers

• Dalits- casteless

Each caste has its own Dharma

Kshatriya

second highest of the four traditional social varnas (classes)

Brahmin (in the caste system)

Vaisya

Sudra

Mycenaeans

Bronze Age civilization

• Cyclopean Architecture- the use of abnormally large stones had historians of their era convinced the Mycenaeans has used cyclopes to lift the boulders into place along the city walls.

Dorians

Ahura Mazda

The God in Zoroastrianism

• Zoroaster claims the Indo-European religions of Persia are false religion

• Ahura Mazda is good and Ahriman (the Liar) is bad

• There is a struggle between Good and Evil

• Your choices make a difference

• Eventually Ahura Mazda will prevail

• Evil will be defeated and thrown into the cosmos, good live on in a world without death

• Evil are cast into a lake of fire

Ahriman

Evil devil in Zoroastrian faith

• The Liar

Zoroaster

Creator of Zoroastrianism and principal prophet

• claimed the Indo-European faith of Persia was a false religion

• Received revelations/visions in the form of Avesta and Gathas, which instructed him to spread word of Ahura Mazda and Ahriman

Monotheism/ Monolatry

Ethical Monotheism

• Single, personal god

• Demands a high degree of moral behavior of their followers

• ., historical religions

• God makes the world, affects the world, sends messages to the world, at some point ends the world

Monolatry

• many gods, but one for a people

• “You shall have no other gods before me” this doesn’t claim there are no other gods, it simply states you can have no other gods above him

Hebrews

Yahweh

Babylonian Captivity

Judiasm

Upanishads

New scripture which supplements the Vedas in roughly 7000 BCE

• Sets out new vision of reality and human place in the world

• Co-exists with Vedas and Vedic practice, doesn’t negate it

• Tangible world is not real

  • Brahman (world soul) is real

  • Atman: real self

  • Jivatman- ignorance

  • Samsara- transmigration of souls (circle of life, death, rebirth, etc)

  • Kharma- Action

  • Dharma- Laws and the preordained path

  • Moksha- Release (freedom from samsara)

Brahman

Atman

Samsara

the never-ending cycle of life, death, reincarnation, and suffering

Karma

Dharma

life purpose, goal, or achievement needed to reach moksha and be free from samsara

Moksha

liberation/ freedom from the endless cycle of birth, death, and reincarnation (samsara)

Hinduism

Buddhism

No caste

• one dharma for all

• not theistic

• Buddha makes no claims about the afterlife

• Buddha is Guatama d. 485 (just before Socrates is born)

  • Kashatriya

  • Lives sheltered prince life, goes out of palace with charioteer and learns that life is actually rough for those outside of luxury and royalty

  • Discovers the four noble truths and becomes the Buddha

    • Life is suffering

    • Suffering is caused by desire

    • You can end these desires

    • It is possible by following the Eight fold path

  • Founds Buddhism

Four Noble Truths

1. Life is suffering

2. Suffering is caused by desires/ cravings

3. You can put an end to these desires

4. The way to end cravings is to follow the eight fold path

The Eight-Fold Path

Right:

• Views

• Aspirations

• Speech

• Conduct

• Livelihood

• Effort

• Mindedness

• Rapture

Dorian

time period and people group in ancient Greece

• spans from roughly 1100 BCE to around 30 BCE

• Migrated from northwestern Greece into central Greece, coinciding with the collapse of the Mycenaean Bronze Age

• Greek dark ages (1200- 800 BCE)- rise closely tied to the transition from the Bronze Age tot he Iron Age

• Classical period (600- 323 BCE)- became one of the main four ethnic groups of Greece alongside Ionians, Aeolians, and Achaeans. Prominent Dorian city-states included Sparta and Corinth

• Hellenistic Period (323-30 BCE)- Dorian culture, dialects, and architecture persisted across Greece, Sicily, and parts of Asia Minor

marks a critical transition in ancient history, witnessing the collapse of the Bronze Age Mycenaean civilization and laid the cultural, political, and technological groundwork for classical Greece

• Dorian Invasion- traditional historical framework describing the migration or conquest of the Peloponnese by Dorian tribes roughly 1100- 1000 BCE, contributing to the Greek Dark Ages

Mycenaean

First advanced and distinctly Greek culture on the mainland of Europe from roughly 1700- 11000 BCE

• Heavily inspired by the older Minoan civilization of Crete

• Around 1400 BCE, the Mycenaean took dominance of the Aegean and became a dominant military power

• Cyclopean Architecture- mastery of maneuvering large, unreasonably sized boulders and stones into towering city walls lead historians and contemporaries to believe their city walls were built by Cyclopes

Polis

large cities

Solon

630- 560 BCE statesman and lawmaker

• Born in Athens, died in Cyprus

• helped lay the groundwork for Athenian democracy

Lycurgus

Socrates

Athens

Sparta

Zhou/Chou

Longest last dynasty in ancient Chinese history

• 1046-256 BCE

• Agriculture: introduction of iron-working, ox-drawn plows, horseback riding, crossbows, and large-scale irrigation, road, and canal projects

• Introduced the Mandate of Heaven (the idea that rulers gained their right to rule from divine approval) and also banned human sacrifice

• Birthed schools of thought like Confucianism, Legalism, Daoism, with philosophers like Confucius

• Introduced metal coinage, expanded Chinese writing system, and produced fine works made of bronze, jade, and lacquer

Confucius/Confucianism

Legalism

Warring States Period

Civilization- differences from Neolithic societies + Barbarian, how does barbarian societies' history affect the history of civilization?

Technology- relationship between technology and political, economic, and social change? To what extent?

Civilizations- are they inherently coercive? Do people always live in them because of some benefit to themselves, or are they forced to/ made to be?

No they aren’t always coercive. People don’t always live in them because of some benefit to themselves, sometimes they are forced by where they are, or are made to be somewhere.

• they are coercive by nature, seeing as complex societies rely upon mechanisms like laws, taxation, policing, and social stratification to maintain order and manage large populations

• early modern civilizations formed purely by voluntary social contract; they emerged alongside territorial control, taxation, and hierarchy

Human Society- how do changes in the scale of society affect the religious beliefs of its people? What about social and politic beliefs?

Religious:

• From local to universal: religions were typically local, ancestor-to-land based, and exclusive to a specific lineage or clan. As societies scale up into larger chiefdoms and states, religions evolve into “universalizing” faiths

• Moralizing high gods: deities who actively monitor human behavior, pass judgement, enforce ethical codes (honesty, fairness, strength, etc.), and punish wrongdoing to maintain large-scale cooperation

• Institutionalization and Specialization: small societies have part-time shamans or priestesses but large scale societies need professionalized, bureaucratic religious institutions with full-time clergy, formal written scriptures, standardized dogma, and permanent temples, churches, altars, and/or places of worship and congregation

Social:

• Mechanical to Organic Solidarity: Durkheim says that small, low-scale societies rely on mechanical solidarity- unity based on shared likeness, identical values, and face-to-face conformity. Large- scale societies rely on organic solidarity;

• Expanding circles of Empathy (and anonymity): small-scale societies are founded in social trust and are based on personal acquaintance and kinship. Scaling up forces societies to develop abstract social trust- belief in impersonal rules, human rights, and institutional fairness

Political:

• Centralization of authority: small-scale civilizations are usually egalitarian, consensus-driven, or based on personal charisma/ familial ties

• Bureaucracy and rule-based governance: mass populations cannot be governed by informal custom alone. Political beliefs shift towards codified legal systems, universal citizenship, bureaucratic administration, and state-enforced order