taylor h midterm

Australopithecines/what were they? How long ago? Where? 2-4 million years ago. First human species.                                           

Homo sapiens sapiens/ When? Where? Belongs to homo sapiens around 200,000 years ago. Lived semi-nomadically.      

Neolithic Revolution/ What was it? When? 15-10,000 years ago. 1^st intellectual breakthrough. Shift from nomadic life to food production. Also, division of labor, complacency, material complexity.

Who/where were the 4 earliest river valley civilizations? Egypt (Nile), Mesopotamia (Tigris and Euphrates), India (Indus) , and China (Yellow).                                           

Sumerians/ when? Where? Main accomplishments? Cuneiform/ziggurats/math etc. Oldest civilization; between the Tigris and Euphrates. Created city-states. Built ziggurats for religious purposes, became center of city. Developed cuneiform, one of earliest forms of writing. Developed arch and dome.

Hammurabi/Babylonians/importance of code and main ideas in it. Conquers Mesopotamia around 1700 BC. Hammurabi gave 1^st written down code of law. “Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth.” No equality, social classes are held to different standards. Handled marriage, contracts, everyday behavior (not just crime).

Gilgamesh: 1^st epic. Written by the Sumerians.                

Egypt/ when? Importance and accomplishments. Geographic isolation, desert and sea. Over 3,000 years of continuity. Built pyramids, 365 day calendar, hieroglyphs, Book of Healing and Dead, colossal statues, good engineering

Importance of Nile, Osiris, and pharaoh (Ma’at)

-          Nile- “giver of life”

o   Predictable

o   River flows North, wind blows South

o   Allows Pharaoh to travel and unite region.

o   Transfixed to their godsà positive afterlife view

-          Osiris

o   Symbol of resurrection and rebirth

o   Struggle btwn Osiris and evil Seth

o   Seth cut Osiris into 14 parts; Isis (Osiris wife) put him back together

o   Osiris would judge people’s earthly deeds

Nile/Tigris-Euphrates contrast   

-          Nile was fertile and predictable

o   Floods are gentle, brings fertility and water

o   Egyptians had nice and benevolent gods

-          T-E was harsh and unpredictable

o   Violent and would dry-up

o   Irrigation and flood control projects were essential

o   Mesopotamians also had harsh and fearsome gods

Amenhotep/ Hatshepsut

-          Amenhotep: AKA Akhenaten

o   Led religious revolution (failure)

o   Changed name to Akhenaten because he “communicated with sun god Aten”

o   Egyptians hated the change

-          Hatshepsut

o   Female emperor- ruled for son then eventually took over

o   Built cool temples and increased trade

o   Overall, prosperous

Main contributions of Israel, Phoenicia, Assyria, Persia

-          Phoenicia

o   Phonetic alphabet

o   Best ships, merchants, sailors, trade routes- they ran Mediterranean

-          Assyria

o   Conquered by fear and intimidation

o   Messenger systems, forced migrations of people

o   Main contribution: war techniques- metal helmets, collapse city walls, weaponry

-          Israel/Hebrews

o   Solomon built temples

o   Ethical monotheism

o   3 great world religions: Christianity, Jewish, and Islam

-          Persia

o   Conquered Meso in 500s BC

o   Creates Persepolis and Zoroastrianism

Zoroastrianism

-          Created by Persian prophet Zoroaster

-          1^st monotheistic religion brought by the Persians

-          Neat and ethical religion- felt earth was training ground where you served truth or evil

Cyrus the Great

-          Kind and benevolent Persian leader

-          Conquered many places

-          Sensitive to other cultures and ways of life- let Hebrews return to Holy Land

Megaliths/where? When?

-          Found in England and throughout Europe

-          Constructed for sun movement, burial area significance, and spiritual connotations

-          Constructed thousands of years before pyramids

-          Show Europe was populated during Egyptian rule

Chapter 2

What was the Harappan Civilization? When? Oldest civilization in India. 4,500 years old. 2 cities are Harappa and Mohenjo-Dara along Indus. Writing systems (currently uninterpretable). No temples/ziggurats

What was the impact of the Aryan invasions? Changes? Around 1500 AD. Brings new language, different writing (Sanskrit), oral tradition (Vedas). Creates king character “raja”

Basic ideas of Hinduism: asceticism, incorporates caste system, Hindu trinity (Brahma, Vishnu the preserver, Shiva the destroyer), reincarnation, karma and dharma (accept fate).

Who were the Mauryans? Founder is Chandragupta Maurya. 1^st great Indian dynasty.

Siddhartha Gautama and Buddhism (Main ideas) Siddhartha is prince who rejects world and finds enlightenment, turns in Budda; simplicity; 5 Noble Truths (accept life’s pain and suffering; greedy desires causes pain and suffering; renounce earth to escape pain; follow 8fold path and Middle Way); caste has no impact in attaining enlightenment.

Ashoka: Greatest of Mauryans; sees wounded and suffering in battlefield; becomes kind to poor people, plants trees, gives shelter, sets up pillars, build stupas.

Bodhi/ nirvana/ 8-fold path and Middle Way: 8-fold path is 8 ethical ways of living. Middle way is understanding that going to the extremes isn’t necessary for enlightenment. Both are Buddhist beliefs.  NIRVANA

Mahabharata and Ramayana: Hindu twin epics. War between families (Arjuna and Khsna) (??)  Rama saves Sita from demon-king. Has karma, dharma, and reincarnation. Brahmans explain in Upanishads.

Stupa: built by Ashoka – Buddhist temples

Raja: Indian king character; terms brought about by Aryans. Expected to serve kingdom and be honest.

Vedas: books of Aryan rituals, practices, and myths

Sanskrit: Aryan writing

Dharma/Karma/Brahmans : dharma is good behavior. You can develop good karma by doing good things during earthly life. Brahmans are priests and carried out Vedic religion. At top of caste system.

Brahma/Vishnu/Siva: Brahma is your fate which you must accept. Vishnu is the destroyer in the Hindu Trinity. Siva is Rama’s wife that he saves from demon-king.

Caste/Pariah: caste is social structure system. Pariah is the lowest person in caste . Caste is a Portuguese word.

Sati (suttee): the ceremonial suicide of women to show their devotion to their husbands after they’ve died.

Jainism: complete rejection of the material world. No clothes. No eating animal products, only nuts and berries. No killing animals of any sort.

Know they gave us Arabic numerals

Chapter 3

Shang Dynasty/Oracle bones/great at bronze casting: Shang is 1^st recorded dynasty, around 1500 BC. Oracle bones are turtle shells with writing (this is how we know Shang existed). From oracle bones, we know they were agricultural, warlike, practiced human sacrifices, and they were talented at bronze casting.

 Confucianism: started by Confucian. Focuses on Dao (duty). Duty manifested itself in 5 relationships, all involving obedience. After “superior man” values (hardworking, scholar, serves others through government positions). Big emphasis on family.

Legalism/Daoism: Legalism was brought in and embraced by Qin dynasty. Code of Qin (harshness, cruel punishment). To them, man is bad and only responds to force or power. Daoism takes a lot of stuff from Naturalism. Connect with nature and be passive, withdrawn, and quiet. Appeals to Chinese when they’re fighting because it’s a break from the turmoil. Appeals to intellectuals and artists.

Well Field system: system under the Zhou dynasty. Land is central problem, so well-field system deals with owners and peasants.

Shi Huangdi/Qin Dynasty/Terra-cotta soldiers: only from 221-206, known for their harshness and cruelness. They win Warring States period, but brutal even after war. Code of Qin. 1^st centralized government and unified set of laws. Constructs canals, completes Great Wall (through slave labor), begins tradition of eunuchs.

Great Wall/Civil Service/Iron/ Silk/Bronze/paper making: Great Wall was completed by Qin and protected China from northern invasions (Manchuria). Civil service exams were rigorous exams that focused a lot of Confucianism to ensure that only the smartest and most qualified people landed government positions. Bronze casting was a high art (especially for Shang dynasty). Bronze replaced by iron casting (Chinese perfected the furnace).  

How is Chinese writing different/ what about music? Chinese writers focused a lot on historical writing. They used ceremonial bells and stringed instruments for their music. Used to “rectify the heart” (?)

Mandate of Heaven: Adopts this during Zhou dynasty. Believed that rulers were chosen by the ancestors, and to keep the mandate, they have to behave well and be just and honest. Trying to prove Shang wrong (they say they’re corrupt, evil, drunks and lost the mandate)

Eunuchs: government officials under the emperor who were castrated to ensure loyalty to the emperor. Started by Qin dynasty. Emperor Qin was paranoid that someone was always trying to kill him.

How are women treated? Not in good shape. Expected to be submissive, obedient, and respectful. Only few were educated and property owners. However, we do see a woman empress (Empress Wu)

NOTE: We cover the four river valley civilizations in chapters 1-3. The basic idea is to look at just what they set up and accomplish in the way of art, architecture, government, literature, religion, writing and any other measure of a civilization. A lot of your questions will be just who did what. (ex. Who build the Great Wall, or the Pyramids of Giza?)

In terms of lasting beliefs, we have looked at Egyptian religion, Judaism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Hinduism, Daoism and a couple of other lesser ones---know the basic ideas of each and where they originated and where they have made an impact.

Christianity and Islam will come later, but are also very important

Chapter 4/ Greece

Why our fathers? They gave us democracy, art, drama, modern medicine.

Minoans/Mycenaeans: Minoans were 1^st civilization in the AREA, they lived on island Crete. Many great palaces (Knossos), and also system of writing. Eventually collapsed (unknown). Stories of Icarus and Minotaur. Taken over by Myceneans. 1^st Greek civilization. Had monarchies with nice palaces. Writing taken from Minoans. Lived elegant and courtly life. Taken over by Dorians.

Homer/ Iliad and Odyssey—basic story and values: Homer wrote Iliad and Odyssey in Phoenician alphabet. Odyssey is Odysseus going home after Greek and Trojan war, takes him 14 years. Journey was made rough by Poseidon. Iliad is about last years of fighting. Homeric values are brave and courageous.

Polis: “polis” means “city.” Every polis had its own currency, temples, army, marketplace. THIS LEADS TO DEMOCRACY. Brings in a new style of fighting: farmers.

Hoplites/Phalanx: formation of the citizen army. Hoplites were farmer foot soldiers that trained together. They just listened to instructions and fought on horseback. They fought the nobles. Led to growth of polis and where farmers can defend own land. Phalanx are their tightly packed groups. Also leads to a growth in politics because now “little guy” gets a say-so.

Tyrants

Sparta/Athens contrast:

The Classical ideal in art/arch: Classical Greece from 500 BC to 338 BC.

Cleisthenes: puts Athens on road to democracy. Creates Council of 500 (Athenians into 10 tribes. Each tribe had 50 Council members. Council had financial and foreign policy power. Any Athenian citizen is eligible for Council.)

Persian Wars (cause/outcome): Persians attacked Greece because Greeks backed up the Greek colonies’ rebellions in Asia Minor. Persians slapped down rebellions then punished Greeks for getting involved. This is the Persians’ payback. 3 main attempts. Greeks beat Persians in the end. Importance is that the victory gives Greeks confidence in their way of life. Athens forms the Delian league.  

Thermopylae/Plataea: Battle of Thermopylae was fought in a mountain pass. Greeks held off the Persian army for 3 days. On the 3^rd day, Spartan leader Leonidas tells army to go home. Not enough people to hold Persians off, but they die like heroes. This gives Greeks enough time to prepare though for next battle, and they get a sense of unity. They start to see themselves as Greeks.

Pericles—When is the “Age of Pericles?”: total package: general, orator, handsome, politician. Leader of Athens at its peak. Age of Pericles was because of the Delian League. Athens rebuilt and built Parthenon, Athena statue. Had a lot of artistic growth as well.

Delian League: defense league of dozens of city-states, led by Athens. Athens turns Delian league into Athenian empire by usurping poor city-states. They would also send fleets to uncooperative city-states. Delian league leads to Age of Pericles.

Peloponnesian Wars (who fought? Who won? Importance?): Peloponnesian Wars were fights over some city-states between Athens and Sparta. Both sides saw the war as inevitable. Lasted for almost 30 years. Athens loses because their startefy doesn’t win out. Everyone was unhappy to be ruled by Sparta. The War brings a downward spiral because Greeks become quarrelsome and wear themselves out.

Herodotus: father of history. Wrote “Histories” about his travels through Asia Minor. Filled with stories and myths and accounts of the 3 Persian Wars.

Sophocles: playwright, wrote Oedipus

Parthenon: supposed to be the perfect building with its dimensions. Example of Classical Greek architecture.

Big Three in Philosophy (Socrates, Plato, Aristotle)—main ideas and beliefs:

Main Greek Gods and nature of Greek religion (Zeus, Apollo, Athena, Hera) Fate was controlled by gods. Could please gods by sacrifices, festivals, etc. Non-ethical gods. Zeus was god of everything, Apollo god of Sun, Athena goddess of wisdom, Hera goddess of women.

What happened to Greece? Decline?

Alexander the Great—dream/conquests/importance: Son of Phillip of Macedonia. Wants to accomplish Dad’s dream (beating Persia) and his own dream (conquering known world). Wants to go down as greatest general conqueror of all time. Conquers Syria, Mesopotamia, Egypt, and India. Catches a fever and dies. IMPORTANCE: ushers in the Hellenistic Age (Hellenistic age is different from Hellen age)

Stoicism/ Epicureanism: Stoicism= void of emotion. Epicureanism= best life is virtuous life. Avoidance of pain.

What happened to Alexander’s empire? After Alex’s death, his general kills his wives, kids, and mom. Generals divide empire into 4 empires. This stays like this until Rome comes in.

Hellenistic Age—just what was it? Hellenistic= kind of like Hellen. Philosophy, architecture, and art is melting with eastern stuff. Not completely Greek, and not completely eastern.

Euclid/Archimedes: Euclid was a Hellenistic scientist. Gave us Euclidian geometry. Archimedes was also a Hellenistic scientist and is considered the great scientist of this period. Spheres, cones, claims pi, pulleys, levers, mechanical gadgets.

Chapter 5—Rome

Etruscans: dominates early Romans that were living in Latium. They brought their customs. 3 main cultures influenced early Rome: Latin, Etruscan, and Greek.

The Republic—when did it start? How did it work? When and how did it end? Republic was started when last Etruscan king was run off. Took 150-200 years for Republic to work. 3 parts:

Why was early Rome so successful? Success was due to well disciplined military and roads. Roads helped in military efficiency and encouraged more trade.

Latifundias: large farms that replaced small, family farms. Led to cheaper and faster crop production. Causes landless small farmers to flood into Rome.

Gracchus Rebellion: Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus try to fix Senate problem with reforms. Met with violence. Violence turns into tool of the Roman republic.

Consuls/Proconsuls/Tribunes: Tribunes were on Council of Plebes and represented the small Plebians. Eventually gets them the right to vote.

Punic Wars (causes/outcome/importance): All are Roman victories. 1^st one ends in peace treaty. 2^nd one was started by Carthage. Ends with Battle of Zama. 3^rd one was started by Rome because they thought Carthage was preparing to attack them. Broke through Carthage’s walls and destroyed Carthage.

Hannibal: Crosses the alps with elephants in 2^nd Punic War.

Julius Caesar: Part of 1^st Triumvirate. Fighting in Gaul and winning battles—becoming legendary. Senate charges Caesar with crimes in Rome, but Caesar returns to Rome with army. Rome hails Caesar and makes him Dictator for Life. Does reforms in Rome (soldiers get land, people get grain). Expands Senate to take care of supporters—dilutes power of Senate.

Gaius Marius –vs- Sulla: Gaius Marius makes the army volunteer and paid—this changes loyalty towards the general. Sulla fight Marius which leads to a civil war. Sulla wins and is made dictator. Hands power back to Senate to avoid assassination, retires with an honorary title. Makes a trend of power shifting to one person.

Octavian (Augustus): Part of 2^nd Triumvirate. Grand-nephew of Caesar. Octavian gets Western kingdom while Mark Antony gets eastern. Octavian asks Senate to declare war on Antony. Octavian is named Augustus by Senate and is made emperor. Given control of majority of Roman legions. He becomes 1 guy with incredible power because they’ve been in a civil war for 60 years.

Augustine Age –what did it stand for? This is a glorious age for Rome. Civil wars are over, begins Pax Romana. 200 years of relative peace WITHIN Rome.  Rome is rebuilt, reinvigorating roman values. Great literary period as well.

Ovid/Vergil: Vergil= The Aeneid, myth about founding of Rome. Homeric qualities.

Nero: part of the Julio-Claudian line (all related to Caesar). Nero was especially Harsh to Christians.

Constantine: led reforms with Diocletian. Emperor of Rome. Legalizes Christianity with the Edict of Milan.

Importance of Paul of Tarsus: biggest spreader of Christianity. Says Jesus is Savior for everyone- increases “sales audience.” Travels very far and writes well.

Edict of Milan: written under Constantine, legalizes Christianity.

Rome’s Decline—when? Why? Ultimately, taken over by Germans (immigration issue). Rome held off Germans for years, but was eventually weakened by Civil War of 200s and economic problems (plague, population decimation, inflation, infrastructure breakdown) Decline starts in 180 (end of Pax Romana) and until 476 (last emperor is killed). Decline takes many years.

Rome’s legacy—what impact did they leave on the world today?

Pax Romana: 200 years of relative peace WITHIN Rome. Happens during Augustan Age.

Chapter 6

Native Americans---dominant theories on where they came from and when: Migrated over the Bering Strait and migrated all the way down into South America.

Olmecs—when? Where? Traits: “mother culture”. Oldest civilization. Around before Christ. Had crude form of rhyming, pyramids, trade networks, complex leadership and government. Built cities like Liventa.

Maya—traits, accomplishments, what happened to them? Complex characteristics with lots of urbanization. 1 of 5 original writing systems in world. Polytheistic. Impressive pyramids, warlike. Accurate calendars, ball courts, astronomy. Abandoned civilizations because of soil exhaustion (dominant theory)—fled to the jungles.

Inka—same: largest empire in Americas. Militaristic, great temples and pyramids to sun. Built highways and suspension bridges. Quipu= form of communication with knots and colored thread. Conquered by Pizzaro. Disease and civil war were also factors to decline.

Aztecs---same: largest Native empire before Spanish got here. Militaristic, calpollis (lineage group), polytheistic (Quetzalcoatl and Huitzilopochtli). Settled down in central Mexico on island Lake Texcoco. Builds city Tenochtitlan. Little art remains due to Christian missionaries destroying and melting down for money. Cortes conquers Aztecs.

Cahokia/Anasazi: Cahokia was largest north american native america area. Right outside of St. Louis, peaked at 20,000 people. Combined agriculture with hunting and gathering. Anasazi means “ancient ones”. Evolves Navajo, Zuni, and pueblos.

Major products (agricultural and animal): cocoa, squash, corn (maize).

Chapter 7

Muhammad—early life and beliefs: Was a regular person. Starting praying in caves, visited by Gabries who told him “go forth, proclaim, proclaim.” Goes and gets followers in Mecca. Protests drinking and bad behaviors. Teaches 5 Pillars of Faith. No idols or Muhammad statues, no gambling, no pork. Be truthful, courageous, and tolerant.

Five pillars: The Creed (1 god, Allah, and his prophet, Muhammad); Fast (Ramadan holy month); Prayer (5x/day); Almsgiving (poor, fellow Muslims, orphans); Pilgrimage to Mecca (aka The Hajj, look at ka’ba stone, at least once in life).

Imam: prayer leader.

Hegira: Muhammad’s flight from Mecca. Goes to Medina and then returns to Mecca in 630 AD.

Qur’an: Islam’s holy book. Has a lot of OT and Torah stuff. Includes book of Muhammad’s revelation, written by Muhammad’s followers.

Shi’ite/Sunni—difference/reasons for split: Shi’ites are followers of Hussein (Ali’s son). They want a Muhammad bloodline following for caliph. Sunnis don’t want a bloodline following.

Umma:

Umayyads and Abbasids

Caliph: successor to the prophet. 1^st caliph is Abu Bakr, then Umar. Ali (Muhammad’s cousin and son-in-law) isn’t made caliph and is quite angry.

Ulama/Shari’a: ulama was a panel of Muslim scholars. Shari’a was Muslim law code to regulate believer’s daily lives.

Jihad: zealous group of fighters who spread the faith. They believe they will be rewarded in Heaven.

Spread of Islam (map 194) just where did Islam spread and where did the spread stop? Islam spread to Arabia, Syria, Persian, and Egypt all very quickly under Bakr. To the west, spread stopped in Spain. To the east, spread stopped a little bit beyond Persia.

Saladin: Muslim hero. Unites Muslims and comes up with well-trained and sizeable army. Recaptures Jerusalem in 2^nd Crusade and defeats Richard the Lionhearted in the 3^rd Crusade.

Islamic Art—what did it focus on and how was it different? Focused on geometric shapes. Did not feature any faces or religious figures to avoid idolatry. Murals and statues of religious figures could only be kept in private, not in public or at any mosques.

Andalusia: Spain.

Ibn Sina/ Avicenna: both are authors/literature people. Ibn Sina translated Aristotle and Plato into Arabic and preserved it. Also did commentary on a lot of literature. “Kept the flame going” on literature. Avicenna wrote medical text. Correctly diagnoses certain diseases and comes up with treatment. Not 100% correct but still good.

Chapter 8

Products of Africa: gold, salt, ivory, hieroglyphs, ebony, slaves, Frankincense, animal skins.

Traditional religious beliefs and Influence of Islam: Traditional beliefs: Pantheism. God is everything. Universe is a manifestation of God. Also includes magic, drums, music, spirits. Islam is introduced and was widely accepted. People converted because converts paid lower taxes, had tolerant beliefs, and better economy.

Coptic Christianity: Ethiopia is Coptic Christianity. Looked to Egypt for text, writing, and scripture. I don’t know anything else.

Kush—where? When? Traits: oldest culture we learned about. Also called Nubia. Part of upper Egypt. Pharaoh type leaders, hieroglyphs, pyramids.

Berbers: camel masters. Nok people traded with Berbers.

Ghana, Mali—where? Trade kingdoms are Ghana and Mali. They traded feather, leather, horses, salt, and gold. Ghana has a 600-700 year until they decline. Mali ruled after Ghana. Mansura Musa ruled in Mali.

Great Zimbabwe—Where?  Same with Swahili coast: center for ceremonies and rituals. Could house 20,000 people inside. Lived on farming economy and traded with east coast cities.

Mansa Musa: Mali trade King. Led biggest and most famous pilgrimage in the world. Made Timbuktu famous.

Son Jara: African hero who is courageous and saves girls. Africans look up to this guy.

Chapter 9

Gupta Dynasty: founded by Chandragupta Gupta. They attempt to rule as Buddhists.

Islamic conquest of India (when? Kutub Minar, Delhi Sultans): Begins in 700s AD. Islamic attackers captured some things, but everything mostly stays in Hindu hands. Delhi Sultans were Islamic rulers who conquered Northern India and established Delhi as capital.

Silk Road: trade network that spread not only trade items but ideas.

Statues at Bamiyan

Caves of Ajanta: example of ancient Indian architecture.

Angkor/Angkor Wat (what? Where?): Angkor is the largest pre-Industrial city in the world. It was a hydraulic society. It was in Vietnam.

Split of Buddhism/branches

Tamerlane: invades in 1398 AD from central Asia. He is a Mongol conqueror and is a descendant of Genghis Khan. Killed a lot of people. Last of great Mongol conqueror. He killed a lot of people and conquered stuff, but that’s all his legacy left.

Raga: musical scale. Creates a lot of freedom and creativity within scale.

Sikhism: attempt to synthesize and merge Islam with Hinduism. Youngest of major religions. Only 1 God, unity, equality, honesty, avoid drugs and alcohol. Equality goes against caste system. Instead of merging Hindu and Islam, there’s now a 3^rd religion. Galvanized way to resist other religions.