History (Ancient Mesopotamia)

What is the difference between pre-history and history?

the difference between pre-history and history is, pre-history is before written history and history is a record of the past

what is the mean (BC, AD, BCE, CE)

BC: Before Christ

Ad: After Death

BCE: Before Common Era

CE: Common Era

What is Legacy?

Legacy refers to the mark someone/something as left on history

what two categories are artifacts broken down in to?

Organic remains: remenent from living things

Inorganic: stone tools and pottery

When did humans begin using rocks as tools?

Around 2 millions year ago (Homo Habils)

The human developments form the four main groups (time period)

Homo Habils (2 million years ago)

Homo Ecretors (1million years ago)

Neanderthals (100 000 years ago)

Cro-magnons (50 000 years ago)

Describe the Great Leap Forward

The Great Leap Forward occurred 35 000 years ago when changes brought about innovation and creativity of humans

What were 2 fundamental changes that occurred in the Great Leap Forward?

1. Development of modern anatomy

2. Beginning of innovative behaviour

Describe the 3 effects of the G.L.F

1. production of crafted tools and more sophisticated weapons

2. development of trade for raw material and ornaments

3. emergence of sculptures, paintings, and crafted objects (beauty and religion)

what do “lithos”, “paleo'“, and “neo” mean

Lithos: stone

Paleo: old

Neo: new

Describe the main difference between the social structure of the Palaeolithic and the Neolithic age

Palaeolithic: closer social relationships, social stratification (emerge of leadership), social roles (men were big game hunters), woman captured small game and made clothing

Neolithic: increasing knowledge, end of ice age (agriculture), population grew and so did competition of land, shifted form semi-nomadic to permanent cities, demystification of animals

How does a banter system work?

Most valued traded material (obsidian) traded for farm produce

good exchanged - none monetary value

The Stonehenge is viewed as being mysterious place … why?

The exact purpose is unknown. Was it religious ritual or was it an agriculture marker or was it for astronomical observations. Many debates about the positions of the stone and how they were put there. Still wonder was it for astronomy and math or a gift to the sun and moon god. Built of 1300 years.

What were the innovations of the Stone Age?

• more complex human societies

• development of hierarchies

• development of alliances and cooperation

• marriage customs

• development of trade goods

• religious rituals

• sense of artistic beauty

The people of the fertile crescent were the first to do…

irrigate fields, system of writing, developed mathematics, invented the wheel, and leaned to work with metal

Describe the geographic shortcoming of Mesopotamia

little rainfall, hot and dry climate, catastrophic flooding, arid, no stone of timber

How did the natural levees solve the problems of the geographic shortcomings of Mesopotamia?

creates a high and safe flood plain, provides protection, make irrigation and canal easy, sweeps were full of fish and waterfowl, build up and helps settle sediments

What was the name given to the great temple of Mesopotamia?

Ziggurats

The religious system of Mesopotamia

• position of king was enhanced by religion

• kingship believed to be created by God and king’s power was given

• each God had control of certain things and places

• king and priests acted as interpreters of Gos

• Polytheistic religion (3600)

Name and describe the five most prominent Gods

Enlil: supreme God and of air

Ishtar: fertility and life

An; God of heaven

Enki: God of water an the underworld

Shamash: God of son and giver of law

What were the 3 main crops grown in Sumeria?

barley, date, and seasemee seeds

Hammurabi’s law (woman’s rights, social order, and individual rights)

Woman’s rights: Code 10 shows that woman and children were partly still viewed as objects, although code 12 shows they still held some sort of respect

Social order: Code 24 tells us that slave had no rights. There are also no law mentions the king, priests, and his court which implies they are us the highest rank. Then man/workers, woman and children.

Individual rights: Code 5 shows that back than there were still rights to some form of property and have the right to own

How many laws codes did Hammurabi have?

282 laws

How large was the professional army of Assyria?

200 000 professional soldiers

What is the Epic of Gilgamesh?

The epic of Gilgamesh is an ancient story (human and animals, cities and ruler, and the great flood) written in Mesopotamia more than 4000 years ago. First known work of great literature

Legacies of Mesopotamia

• wheel

• writing

• mathematics

• trade

• irrigation

• transportation

• cuneiform

• ziggurats

Describe the development and importance of writing to Mesopotamia?

• writing is the greatest contribution of Mesopotamia to civilization

• allowed transmission of knowledge, codification of law, and records to facilitate trade/farming

• wrote on wet clay tablets with the point of reed than dried

• scribes were the only now who could write and read (served priest, accountant and record keeper)

• first form of writing (cuneiform) dating back to 3500 BCE

• cuneiform spread to Persia and Egypt, then became the vehicle of growth for exchange of culture

Sumer

wheel, trade, writing, irrigation techniques is what’s Sumer is know for

Babylon

production of food (farming), private ownership vs ownership of god, the development of mathematics and the calendar system is what Babylon is know for

Assyria

king conquered land, wide climate, development of the use of iron and a effective military force is what Assyria is known for