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GLOBAL HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY – 9 Dr. Afxendiou Date: ______________________________ Unit 2: Beginning of Civilization: 4 million B.C. – 200 B.C. THE FERTILE CRESCENT Agriculture and irrigation began in an area of the Middle East called the Fertile Crescent. This region was named the Fertile Crescent because of its rich soil and half-moon shape. Mesopotamia ..............Located in the modern country of Iraq, Mesopotamia is known as the "cradle of civilization" because it is here that civilization first began around 3500 BC, a date considered the beginning of ancient times. Mesopotamia is a region, not a country, within the larger region of the Middle East. ..............Mesopotamia lies between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers; the name Mesopotamia means "between the rivers" in Greek. Here farmers learned to build irrigation systems that turned the dry valley into a prosperous center of agriculture supporting many people. This is an early example of how humans can change the natural environment. The lower reaches of Mesopotamia, beginning near the point where the two rivers nearly converge, was called Babylonia. Babylonia in turn encompassed two geographical areas - Akkad in the north and Sumer, the delta of this river system, in the south. As settlements in southern Mesopotamia grew into busy cities, this area called Sumer became the world's first civilization. 1 The Sumerians built walled cities and developed the earliest-known writing called cuneiform, in which scribes (record-keepers) carved symbols onto wet clay tablets that were later dried. The Sumerians are credited with writing the world's oldest story, the Epic of Gilgamesh, about the life of a Sumerian king. The Sumerian number system was based on 12, which explains why we have 60-minute hours, 24-hour days, 12-month years, and 360-degree circles. Religion was extremely important in Sumer where originally priests were the most powerful people in society. Later, warrior kings would take control. Priests supervised the worship of seven great gods: earth, sky, sun, moon, salt water, fresh water, and storm. Sumerians believed their gods lived in statues housed in temples including large pyramid-like structures called ziggurats. Priests fed the god statues twice daily. Code of Hammurabi ..............Because the fertile valley of Mesopotamia had no natural barriers for protection, its wealth attracted many raiders and conquerors over the centuries. Civilizations came and went amid much warfare. One of the most powerful civilizations to arise in Mesopotamia was Babylon (1900 to 500 BC). ..............Hammurabi was an early king of Babylon who created an empire by bringing much of Mesopotamia under his control. (An empire is a collection of states [countries] controlled by one government.) Hammurabi helped unite the Babylonian empire by publishing a set of laws known as the Code of Hammurabi, history's first known written laws. He had the 300 laws of the code carved onto stone pillars for all to see, which meant that nobody was above the law; it applied to everyone. The goals of Hammurabi's Code included, "stable government and good rule...that the strong may not oppress the weak." Hittites Hittite culture was greatly influenced by contacts with the Babylonians. While they were less advanced than the peoples of Mesopotamia, they had learned to extract iron from ore - they were the first to make tools and weapons of iron. The Hittites heated iron ore and pounded out impurities before plunging it into cold water. The tools and weapons they made with iron were harder and had sharper edges than those made out of 2 bronze or copper. Because iron was plentiful, the Hittites were able to arm more people at less expense. The Hittites tried to keep this valuable technology secret. But as their empire collapsed about 1200 B.C., Hittite ironsmiths migrated to serve customers elsewhere. The new knowledge thus spread across Asia, Africa, and Europe, ushering in the Iron Age. Assyrians After 800 B.C. the Assyrians from northern Mesopotamia embarked on a policy of expansion. Having learned from the Hittites, the Assyrians were the first to outfit armies entirely with iron weapons. The Assyrians terrorized their enemies by deliberately employing cruelty and violence. They also employed terror in ruling their subject peoples. They had specific laws to guide behavior in their cities. The women of the palace were confined in secluded quarters and had to be veiled when they appeared in public. Assyrians founded one of the first libraries where cuneiform tablets were collected from all over the Fertile Crescent. Those tablets have given modern scholars a wealth of information about the ancient Middle East. Persians The Persians created an empire, the largest yet seen in the ancient world, extending 3,000 miles. The empire flourished for 200 years. Persia is located in present-day Iran. In general, the Persians were tolerant of the people they conquered. They respected the customs and religious traditions of the diverse groups in their empire. A new religious belief arose during the time of the Persian Empire. These religious beliefs were put forward by the Persian thinker Zoroaster. Zoroaster lived about 600 B.C. He rejected the old Persian gods. Instead, he taught that a single wise god, Ahura Mazda, ruled the world. Two later religions that emerged in the Middle East, Christianity and Islam, stressed similar ideas as Zoroaster about heaven, hell, and a final judgment day. Phoenicians From 1200 to 800 B.C. the Semitic-speaking Phoenicians lived and prospered on the Mediterranean coast north of Palestine. Their chief cities were Tyre and Sidon. They gained fame as sailors and traders. They occupied a string of cities along the Mediterranean coast, in what is today Lebanon and Syria. The resourceful Phoenicians became best known for manufacturing and trade. They made glass from coastal sand. From a tiny sea snail, they produced a widely admired purple dye, called "Tyrian purple" after the city of Tyre, which became their trademark. It became the favorite color of royalty. The Alphabet. As merchants, the Phoenicians needed a simple alphabet to ease the burden of keeping records. They therefore replaced the cumbersome cuneiform alphabet of 550 characters with a phonetic alphabet, based on distinct sounds, consisting of 22 letters. After further alterations by the Greeks and Romans, this alphabet became the one we use today! 3 Hebrews The Hebrews were an ancient people of the Middle East who established the kingdom of Israel at the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea about 1000 BC. There they founded the religion of Judaism. Judaism was unusual because it worshipped only one God (monotheism). It was also a universal religion that could be worshipped anywhere; it was not tied to a particular place like the gods of Sumer. 4 Questions: 1. Where did agriculture first begin? Where is it located? _In the Fertile Crescent located in the Middle East ______________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Explain the term ‘cradle of civilization’. ___ it is where civilization first began __________________________________________________________________________________ 3. Where is Mesopotamia located? __ in the modern country of Iraq __________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. What are the two areas that made up Babylonia? __ Akkad and Sumer _____________ 5. Which of the two areas became the first civilization? _____ Sumer _______ 6. Describe three accomplishments of the Sumerian civilization. _____________________________________ _1) built walled cities; 2) developed the earliest-known writing called cuneiform; 3) wrote the world's oldest story, the Epic of Gilgamesh; 4) the Sumerian number system _________ ________________________________________________________________________________ 7. Where is Sumerian influence seen in our lives today? __Time, we have 60-minute hours, 24-hour days, 12-month years, and 360-degree circles.______________________ 8. Describe Sumerian religion. __ worshipped seven great gods: earth, sky, sun, moon, salt water, fresh water, and storm. Sumerians believed their gods lived in statues ______________________________________________________________ 9. What is an empire? ___ a collection of states [countries] controlled by one government _______ 10. What was the most important Hittite development? ___ learned to extract iron from ore - they were the first to make tools and weapons of iron __________________________________________ 11. What was a major contribution of the Assyrians? __ founded one of the first libraries or the first to outfit armies entirely with iron weapons ____________________________________________ 12. What was the new Persian religion called and why was it innovative? ______________________________ __Zoroastrianism, believed in a single gode __________________ 13. What were some major accomplishments of the Phoenicians? __ became best known for manufacturing and trade; made glass from coastal sand; produced a widely admired purple dye from a sea snail; a simple alphabet __________________________________________________________________________________________ 14. Who were the Hebrews? _______ an ancient people of the Middle East who established the kingdom of Israel and founded the religion of Judaism ___________________________________________________________ 5