another unit 2 early river civilizations note simplified
Large concentration of a population that is also a center for trade and artsmanship
Ur, Lagash, Uruk and Umma all had large populations of at least 10,000 people by 3000 B.C.E
These are called city-states in Mesopotamia
People who have skills in a specific kind of work, including:
Artisans - Skilled craftsmen such as potters, weavers, and metal workers
Merchants - Engaged in trade and marketing
Soldiers - Protect the community
Long lasting patterns of organization within a community including:
Government: Creates and enforces laws
Religion: Maintains religious sites (temples) and conducts rituals
Each city had one statue of a deity that was on top of the temple. People would make offerings to each deity depending on what they needed.
Education: Trains scribes
New tools and techniques that are created to solve complex problems and advance society
Ex: Sumerian metal workers combine copper and tin to create Bronze.
This ushered in the Bronze Age in c. 3300 - 3000 B.C.E
Allows for documentation of important legal, historical, and economic records
There wasn’t any currency now, instead they used bartering.
Bartering: A system of trading
Scribes were the record keepers. They used cuneiform style writing to keep records in clay tablets
Cuneiform: wedge-shaped
Mesopotamia means: “The land between two rivers”
The Tigris and Euphrates rivers deposited thick silt each year, which allowed farmers to produce large crops of wheat and barley each year
Sumerian cuneiform emerged as the first formal writing system, scribes used a stylus to make wedge-shaped marks in wet clay tablets
Sumerians followed a polytheistic system of religious belief
Polytheistic: The belief in many gods, each of whom have a controlled aspect of nature
Sumerians believed the souls of the dead passed on to a horrible afterlife. They didn’t have a concept of a release from life/a pleasant afterlife
Akkad was located in central Mesopotamia, was the first city-state to try dominate the region
Hammurabi created the first written law code called, “Hammurabi's Code”
It provided some rights for women and lower class citizens
The rules were harsh, but provided the basis a stable society
The punishments fit the crime
The phrase “An eye for an eye” came from this society. The punishment was if a man had “destroyed the eye of another man, his own eye shall be destroyed”
The Code was posted all over the empire for people to read
Since Egypt was right next to them, the Hitities created a peace treaty with Egypt so they didn’t have to worry about war
Originally under Babylonian rule, they fought their way to freedom and were their own city-state for two centuries
The Greek historian, Herodutus, referred to Egypt as the “Gift of the Nile”
achievements of ancient egypt
Added to navigational and boat building skills that were first introduced by the Sumerians
Advanced engineering and architecture
Egyptian tombs and temples are covered in art and hieroglyphics that give insight into Egyptian life
Hieroglyphics: “Sacred carvings”,Egyptian writing
Economy depended on using their goods, mostly crops including grains, in a bartering system
Bartering: trading goods through their shops and in public marketplaces
Egyptians traded gold, papyrus, linen, grain for cedar wood, ebony, copper, iron, and ivory
Egyptians had a strict and rigid social class system:
The Pharaoh, who was also considered a God, was on top
Menes is also considered the first “Pharaoh”
Pharaohs
Pharaohs were believed to be living gods and were worshiped as the sons of the Gods
Pyramids were designed as tombs to help Pharaohs ascend to the heavens and join Ra
19th Dynasty, 1279-1213 B.C.E
He expanded the Egyptian empire and secured its borders against attackers (Hittites, Syrians, Libyans, Nubians)
He outlived his 12 sons and had a long rule
He established one of the first major peace treaties in history with the Hittites
This helped to establish a peaceful Northern border throughout the rest of his rule
After Ramses II, Kush (the Kingdom in Nubia) took control of Egypt by 728 B.C.E
Kushites considered themselves of the same religion and culture and regarded their leaders as god-kings as well
Eventually the Assyrians took control of Egypt and the Nubians lost control
Kush continued to thrive as an independent empire, as they were not raided by the Assyrians
Even though it’s in the continent of Asia, the Hindu Kush, Karakoram, and the Himalayas ranges create a border on the northern part of India. It also forms its own distinct area of Asia.
It’s a series of pictograms like Sumerian cuneiform
Unlike Egypt, this flooding was unpredictable and the rivers sometimes changed their course completely
The rivers were unpredictable due to the monsoon weather pattern that India received
The Indus River Valley is now in modern-day India/Pakistan
The two important rivers for Ancient China were the Chang Jiang (Yangtze) River and
the Huang He river.
When the Huang He flooded, it left behind silt known as Loess. This stained the river yellow.
From 1600-1050 B.C.E
The first dynasty to have written records
Archaeologists have found palaces, tombs, and other artifacts from the Shang
One of the most important cities under the Shang was Anyang
Similar to Mesopotmia, city walls were important to the Shang Dynasty
Despite the isolation due to natural barriers, Ancient China still experienced massive invasion, so these walls provided further protection.
The extensive nature of this walls show how much control the Shang dynasty had over its people
The Zhou overthrew the Shang and created a dynasty that lasted from 1027-265 BCE. Becoming China’s longest ruling dynasty
Hebrews were the chosen people of God who first started the rise of Monotheism
The ancient Hebrews, led by such figures as Abraham, Moses, David, and Solomon, brought about a revolution in ancient religious beliefs and practices through the introduction of monotheism.
According to writings, between 1500 - 1200 B.C.E., God chose Moses to lead the Hebrews back to Canaan
This is known as the Exodus
During the Exodus, (which took 40 years), Moses climbed Mt. Sinai and God presented him with the ten commandments
Ten commandments: A set of moral codes that influenced the way Jews and Christians live
Traditionally, Moses is considered the author of the Torah, which is the religious text of the Jews
The Torah is also the Old Testament in the Christian bible
After the birth of Jesus Christ, these two religions diverge
Moses died during the Exodus so a leader named Joshua, (Abraham’s grandson) finished the journey back to Canaan
There, the 12 tribes were established as a loose confederation
By 1000 B.C.E, King David defeated the Philistines and made Jerusalem the capital of the kingdom of Israel
David’s son, King Solomon, built the first temple: Solomon’s Temple
Solomon’s Temple was a religious center for Jewish life and expanded Israel’s power and influence
However, he taxed the 10 northern tribes more than the 2 southern tribes to pay for this temple
The Jewish people split into 2 kingdoms after Solomon’s death around 920 B.C.E. and war broke out between the two kingdoms
Israel: 10 northern tribes
Judah: 2 southern tribes
Hebrews lived by the Torah
The Torah (made of 24 books) provided instructions on how to live a just life, eat Kosher foods, and value education and charity
Large concentration of a population that is also a center for trade and artsmanship
Ur, Lagash, Uruk and Umma all had large populations of at least 10,000 people by 3000 B.C.E
These are called city-states in Mesopotamia
People who have skills in a specific kind of work, including:
Artisans - Skilled craftsmen such as potters, weavers, and metal workers
Merchants - Engaged in trade and marketing
Soldiers - Protect the community
Long lasting patterns of organization within a community including:
Government: Creates and enforces laws
Religion: Maintains religious sites (temples) and conducts rituals
Each city had one statue of a deity that was on top of the temple. People would make offerings to each deity depending on what they needed.
Education: Trains scribes
New tools and techniques that are created to solve complex problems and advance society
Ex: Sumerian metal workers combine copper and tin to create Bronze.
This ushered in the Bronze Age in c. 3300 - 3000 B.C.E
Allows for documentation of important legal, historical, and economic records
There wasn’t any currency now, instead they used bartering.
Bartering: A system of trading
Scribes were the record keepers. They used cuneiform style writing to keep records in clay tablets
Cuneiform: wedge-shaped
Mesopotamia means: “The land between two rivers”
The Tigris and Euphrates rivers deposited thick silt each year, which allowed farmers to produce large crops of wheat and barley each year
Sumerian cuneiform emerged as the first formal writing system, scribes used a stylus to make wedge-shaped marks in wet clay tablets
Sumerians followed a polytheistic system of religious belief
Polytheistic: The belief in many gods, each of whom have a controlled aspect of nature
Sumerians believed the souls of the dead passed on to a horrible afterlife. They didn’t have a concept of a release from life/a pleasant afterlife
Akkad was located in central Mesopotamia, was the first city-state to try dominate the region
Hammurabi created the first written law code called, “Hammurabi's Code”
It provided some rights for women and lower class citizens
The rules were harsh, but provided the basis a stable society
The punishments fit the crime
The phrase “An eye for an eye” came from this society. The punishment was if a man had “destroyed the eye of another man, his own eye shall be destroyed”
The Code was posted all over the empire for people to read
Since Egypt was right next to them, the Hitities created a peace treaty with Egypt so they didn’t have to worry about war
Originally under Babylonian rule, they fought their way to freedom and were their own city-state for two centuries
The Greek historian, Herodutus, referred to Egypt as the “Gift of the Nile”
achievements of ancient egypt
Added to navigational and boat building skills that were first introduced by the Sumerians
Advanced engineering and architecture
Egyptian tombs and temples are covered in art and hieroglyphics that give insight into Egyptian life
Hieroglyphics: “Sacred carvings”,Egyptian writing
Economy depended on using their goods, mostly crops including grains, in a bartering system
Bartering: trading goods through their shops and in public marketplaces
Egyptians traded gold, papyrus, linen, grain for cedar wood, ebony, copper, iron, and ivory
Egyptians had a strict and rigid social class system:
The Pharaoh, who was also considered a God, was on top
Menes is also considered the first “Pharaoh”
Pharaohs
Pharaohs were believed to be living gods and were worshiped as the sons of the Gods
Pyramids were designed as tombs to help Pharaohs ascend to the heavens and join Ra
19th Dynasty, 1279-1213 B.C.E
He expanded the Egyptian empire and secured its borders against attackers (Hittites, Syrians, Libyans, Nubians)
He outlived his 12 sons and had a long rule
He established one of the first major peace treaties in history with the Hittites
This helped to establish a peaceful Northern border throughout the rest of his rule
After Ramses II, Kush (the Kingdom in Nubia) took control of Egypt by 728 B.C.E
Kushites considered themselves of the same religion and culture and regarded their leaders as god-kings as well
Eventually the Assyrians took control of Egypt and the Nubians lost control
Kush continued to thrive as an independent empire, as they were not raided by the Assyrians
Even though it’s in the continent of Asia, the Hindu Kush, Karakoram, and the Himalayas ranges create a border on the northern part of India. It also forms its own distinct area of Asia.
It’s a series of pictograms like Sumerian cuneiform
Unlike Egypt, this flooding was unpredictable and the rivers sometimes changed their course completely
The rivers were unpredictable due to the monsoon weather pattern that India received
The Indus River Valley is now in modern-day India/Pakistan
The two important rivers for Ancient China were the Chang Jiang (Yangtze) River and
the Huang He river.
When the Huang He flooded, it left behind silt known as Loess. This stained the river yellow.
From 1600-1050 B.C.E
The first dynasty to have written records
Archaeologists have found palaces, tombs, and other artifacts from the Shang
One of the most important cities under the Shang was Anyang
Similar to Mesopotmia, city walls were important to the Shang Dynasty
Despite the isolation due to natural barriers, Ancient China still experienced massive invasion, so these walls provided further protection.
The extensive nature of this walls show how much control the Shang dynasty had over its people
The Zhou overthrew the Shang and created a dynasty that lasted from 1027-265 BCE. Becoming China’s longest ruling dynasty
Hebrews were the chosen people of God who first started the rise of Monotheism
The ancient Hebrews, led by such figures as Abraham, Moses, David, and Solomon, brought about a revolution in ancient religious beliefs and practices through the introduction of monotheism.
According to writings, between 1500 - 1200 B.C.E., God chose Moses to lead the Hebrews back to Canaan
This is known as the Exodus
During the Exodus, (which took 40 years), Moses climbed Mt. Sinai and God presented him with the ten commandments
Ten commandments: A set of moral codes that influenced the way Jews and Christians live
Traditionally, Moses is considered the author of the Torah, which is the religious text of the Jews
The Torah is also the Old Testament in the Christian bible
After the birth of Jesus Christ, these two religions diverge
Moses died during the Exodus so a leader named Joshua, (Abraham’s grandson) finished the journey back to Canaan
There, the 12 tribes were established as a loose confederation
By 1000 B.C.E, King David defeated the Philistines and made Jerusalem the capital of the kingdom of Israel
David’s son, King Solomon, built the first temple: Solomon’s Temple
Solomon’s Temple was a religious center for Jewish life and expanded Israel’s power and influence
However, he taxed the 10 northern tribes more than the 2 southern tribes to pay for this temple
The Jewish people split into 2 kingdoms after Solomon’s death around 920 B.C.E. and war broke out between the two kingdoms
Israel: 10 northern tribes
Judah: 2 southern tribes
Hebrews lived by the Torah
The Torah (made of 24 books) provided instructions on how to live a just life, eat Kosher foods, and value education and charity
