Download Barbarian part one

A barbarian is an uncivilized person. The word is often used pejoratively, either in a
general reference to a member of a nation or ethnos, typically a tribal society as seen
by an urban civilization either viewed as inferior, or admired as a noble savage. In
idiomatic or figurative usage, a "barbarian" may also be an individual reference to a
brutal, cruel, warlike, insensitive person.[1]
The term originates in the ancient Greek civilization, meaning "anyone who is not
Greek".
The Greeks used the term as they encountered scores of different foreign cultures,
including the Egyptians, Persians, Medes, Celts, Germans, Phoenicians, Etruscans and
Carthaginians. It, in fact, became a common term to refer to all foreigners. However in
various occasions, the term was also used by Greeks, especially the Athenians, to
deride other Greek tribes and states (such as Epirotes, Eleans and Aeolic-speakers) in
a pejorative and politically motivated manner.[3] Of course, the term also carried a
cultural dimension to its dual meaning.[4][5] The verb βαρβαρίζειν (barbarízein) in ancient
Greek meant imitating the linguistic sounds non-Greeks made or making grammatical
errors in Greek.
Egyptians…
The success of ancient Egyptian civilization stemmed partly from its ability to adapt to the
conditions of the Nile River Valley. The predictable flooding and controlled irrigation of the
fertile valley produced surplus crops, which fueled social development and culture. With
resources to spare, the administration sponsored mineral exploitation of the valley and
surrounding desert regions, the early development of an independent writing system, the
organization of collective construction and agricultural projects, trade with surrounding regions,
and a military intended to defeat foreign enemies and assert Egyptian dominance. Motivating and
organizing these activities was a bureaucracy of elite scribes, religious leaders, and
administrators under the control of a pharaoh who ensured the cooperation and unity of the
Egyptian people in the context of an elaborate system of religious beliefs.[4][5]
The many achievements of the ancient Egyptians include the quarrying, surveying and
construction techniques that facilitated the building of monumental pyramids, temples, and
obelisks; a system of mathematics, a practical and effective system of medicine, irrigation
systems and agricultural production techniques, the first known ships,[6] Egyptian faience and
glass technology, new forms of literature, and the earliest known peace treaty.[7] Egypt left a
lasting legacy. Its art and architecture were widely copied, and its antiquities carried off to far
corners of the world. Its monumental ruins have inspired the imaginations of travellers and
writers for centuries. A newfound respect for antiquities and excavations in the early modern
period led to the scientific investigation of Egyptian civilization and a greater appreciation of its
cultural legacy, for Egypt and the world.[8]
Persians…
The Achaemenid Empire (Persian: ‫( )ام پرات وری هخام ن شی‬ca. 550–330 BCE), also known as the
Persian Empire, was the successor state of the Median Empire, ruling over significant portions
of what would become Greater Iran. The Persian and the Median Empire taken together are also
known as the Medo-Persian Empire, which encompassed the combined territories of several
earlier empires.
The Persian Empire was the largest empire by geographical extent in ancient times;[1] at the
height of its power, the empire encompassed approximately 8 million km2.[2] The empire was
forged by Cyrus the Great, and spanned three continents: Asia, Africa and Europe. At its greatest
extent, the empire included the modern territories of Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, parts of Central
Asia, Asia Minor, Thrace and Macedonia, much of the Black Sea coastal regions, Iraq, northern
Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Israel, Lebanon, Syria, and all significant population centers of ancient
Egypt as far west as Libya. It is noted in western history as the foe of the Greek city states during
the Greco-Persian Wars, for emancipation of slaves including the Jews from their Babylonian
captivity, and for instituting the usage of official languages throughout its territories. The empire
had a centralised, bureaucratic administration under the Emperor and a permanent large army
and civil service, inspiring similar developments in later empires.[3]
The Achaemenid Persian empire was invaded by Alexander III of Macedon, after which it
collapsed and disintegrated in 330 BC into what later became the Ptolemaic Kingdom and
Seleucid Empire, in addition to other minor territories which gained independence at that time.
Iranian rule was re-established in the region starting from the rise of Arsacids in middle of 3rd
century BCE.
Medes…
The Medes, people of the Mada (the Greek form Μῆδοι is Ionic for Μᾶδοι), appear in Assyrian
record first in 836 BC. Earliest records show that Assyrian conqueror Shalmaneser III received
tribute from the "Amadai" in connection with wars against the tribes of the Zagros. His
successors undertook many expeditions against the Medes (Madai).
In 715 BC and 713 BC, Sargon II of Assyria subjected them up to "the far mountain Bikni"
(Damavand or Alvand) and the borders of the desert. If the account of Herodotus is to be trusted,
the Median dynasty descends from Deioces (Daiukku) a prince from Diauehi and a Median
chieftain in the Zagros, who, along with his kinsmen, was transported by Sargon to Hamath
(Haniah) in Syria in 715 BC. This Daiukku seems to have originally been a governor of Mannae,
subject to Sargon prior to his exile.
In spite of repeated rebellions by the early chieftains against Assyrian rule, the Medes paid
tribute to Assyria under Sargon's successors, Sennacherib, Esarhaddon and Ashurbanipal
whenever these kings marched against them. Assyrian forts located in Median territory at the
time of Esarhaddon's campaign (ca. 676) included Bit-Parnakki, Bit-kari and Harhar (KarSharrukin).
Celts…
The first recorded use of the word Celts (Κελτοί) to refer to an ethnic group was by
Hecataeus of Miletus, the Greek geographer, in 517 BC,[6] when writing about a people
living near "Massilia" (Marseille).[7]
The earliest archaeological culture commonly accepted as Celtic, or rather Proto-Celtic, was the
central European Hallstatt culture (ca. 800-450 BC), named for the rich grave finds in Hallstatt,
Austria.[2] By the later La Tène period (ca. 450 BC up to the Roman conquest), this Celtic culture
had expanded over a wide range of regions, whether by diffusion or migration: to the British
Isles (Insular Celts), the Iberian Peninsula (Celtiberians, Celtici), much of Central Europe, (Gauls)
and following the Gallic invasion of the Balkans in 279 BC as far east as central Anatolia
(Galatians).[3]
The earliest directly attested examples of a Celtic language are the Lepontic inscriptions,
beginning from the 6th century BC.[4] Continental Celtic languages are attested only in
inscriptions and place-names. Insular Celtic is attested from about the 4th century AD in ogham
inscriptions, although it is clearly much earlier. Literary tradition begins with Old Irish from
about the 8th century. Coherent texts of Early Irish literature, such as the Táin Bó Cúailnge (The
Cattle Raid of Cooley), survive in 12th-century recensions. According to the theory of John T.
Koch and others, the Tartessian language may have been the earliest directly attested Celtic
language with the Tartessian written script used in the inscriptions based on a version of a
Phoenician script in use around 825 BC.[5]
By the early 1st millennium AD, following the expansion of the Roman Empire and the Great
Migrations (Migration Period) of Germanic peoples, Celtic culture had become restricted to the
British Isles (Insular Celtic), and the Continental Celtic languages ceased to be widely used by
the 6th century
Diachronic distribution of Celtic peoples:
core Hallstatt territory, by the 6th century BCE
maximal Celtic expansion, by 275 BCE
Lusitanian area of Iberia where Celtic presence is uncertain
the "six Celtic nations" which retained significant numbers of Celtic speakers into the Early Modern
period
areas where Celtic languages remain widely spoken today