Download Ancient Civilizations

City-States of Mesopotamia
Geography of the Fertile Crescent
 Fertile Crescent – land between Persian Gulf and
Mediterranean
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Mesopotamia – fertile “land between the rivers”
Tigris and Euphrates rivers flood once a year
Sumerians began farming area around 3300 B.C.
Created first complex society (civilization)
Challenges included: unpredictable floods, no natural
barriers, few natural resources
 Solutions included: irrigation, walled cities, trading
Fertile Crescent
Characteristics of Civilization
 Advanced cities
 Specialized workers
 Complex institutions
 Record keeping
 Improved technology
Sumerians Create City-States
 City-state – an independent, political unit
 City-states had temple, ziggurat, priests
 Priests controlled government
 Patriarchal society
 Economy build on division of labor, extensive trade
 Religion was polytheistic and bleak
 Social classes had kings, landowners, priests at top
 Merchants, farmers in middle, slaves at the bottom
 Women had many rights, could own property
Sumerian Culture
Advancements and Empire Building
 Inventions included wheel, sail, plow, use of bronze
 Advances in math, science, medicine, engineering
 Cuneiform – complex writing system using wedge
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shaped characters
Growth and military rule led to kingdoms
Epic of Gilgamesh based on real king
Sargon of Akkad created first empire c. 2350 B.C.
Amorite warriors built Babylonian Empire c. 2000 B.C.
Empire at it’s peak under rule of King Hammurabi
Hammurabi’s Code
 Law code for the Babylonian Empire
 282 laws on all aspects of life
 Engraved in stone and made public
 Not equal, but based on social class and gender
 Also known as “an eye for an eye”
The Nile River Valley
The Geography of Egypt
 Arose along the 4,100 mile Nile River
 Called “The Gift of the Nile” (Herodotus)
 Predictable, yearly floods leave fertile soil - silt
 Challenges included light or heavy floods, desert
isolation
 Solutions included irrigation
 Unification under King Menes was turning point
 Upper and lower Egypt united from first cataract to
delta
The Nile River Valley
Pharaohs
 Egyptian god-kings called pharaohs
 Controlled all aspects of society
 Government based on religious authority – theocracy
 Believed to rule after death(ka)
 Built elaborate tombs – pyramids
 Kingdoms strong in leadership, government, economy
Egyptian Religion and Life
 Polytheistic with gods of nature
 Life after death, people judged by deeds
 Mummification – process or preserving the body
 Book of the Dead – prayers, spells guide the soul after death
 Social classes with elites, commoners, slaves
 Women have many rights
 Trade along the Nile with Nubians and Kush
 Picture writing system on papyrus called hieroglyphics
 Accurate calendar, geometry, engineering, medicine
Egyptian Culture
The Indus River Valley
Geography of India
 Subcontinent – landmass that includes India,
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Pakistan, and Bangladesh
Tallest mountain ranges, Himalaya, separate it from
rest of Asia
Indus and Ganges rivers form fertile plain
Monsoons – seasonal winds – dominate climate
Challenges include unpredictable floods and rainfall
The Subcontinent
Civilization Emerges
 People farming on Indus River by 3200 B.C.
 People building brick cities on grids by 2500 B.C.
 Engineers create plumbing and sewage systems
 Numerous cities in Harappan civilization – most
important were Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro
 Began to decline about 1750 B.C.
 Earthquakes, floods, soil depletion
 About 1500 B.C., Aryans (Indo-Europeans) crossed
passes, became dominant people
Culture and Religion
 Language had 400 symbols but not deciphered
 Priests closely linked to rulers
 Aryans brought what will be Hindu culture and
religion
 Thriving trade with others along Indian Ocean and
Arabian Sea, including Mesopotamia
Harappan Culture
River Dynasties in China
The Geography of China
 Oceans, mountains, deserts were barriers that isolated
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China
Huang He (“Yellow River”) in north
Yangtze River in south
Loess – fertile silt from river flooding
Challenges include deadly floods, lack of trade due to
isolation
River Systems in China
Early Civilization
 Organized and built flood control systems
 Xia Dynasty brought order to region
 Shang Dynasty was first to leave written records
 Massive walls for military defense
 Zhou Dynasty ruled through feudalism – system
where kings give land to nobles in exchange for
services
 Over time, nobles became powerful and fought each
other
Chinese Culture
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Believed China was the center of the world
Family is central social institution (respect and honor)
Patriarchal – elder males control family and property
Women expected to obey men – even sons
Religious beliefs based on ancestor veneration
Oracle bones used to consult gods
Advanced technology included silk production,
metallurgy, plows, irrigation, crossbow, and mounted
cavalry
 Trade was regional due to isolation
Chinese Culture
The Dynastic Cycle
 Mandate of Heaven – the belief that a just ruler had
divine approval
 Developed as justification for rise of Zhou to power
 Dynastic Cycle – pattern of the rise and decline of
dynasties
 Zhou brings improvements – roads, canals, iron tools
and weapons, use of coins in trade