Early Civilizations Essential Questions :
How did ancient civilizations develop? What were similarities between various early civilizations? Civilizations began in certain parts of the world with many similarities even though vast distances separated them. Mesopotamia (present day Iraq) India China Egypt The Americas MESOPOTAMIA CHINA INDIA EGYPT AZTEC Mayan INCA Geographic similarities
Civilizations grew around areas where a stable food source could be found River valleys are common among these early civilizations Annual flooding of the rivers left rich deposits on the surrounding soil Tigris and Euphraties Rivers: aka the Fertile Crescent (Mesopotamia) Nile River (Egypt) Indus River (India) Yellow (Huang He) River (China) Agriculture flourished as a result Surplus of food led to expansion of population C. Characteristics of civilizations
Social structure All societies have different classes of peoples Some people are considered more important than others due to their wealth or job In ancient times, rulers, nobles and priests were considered most powerful The next class was typically made of military, civil workers, merchants, farmers, laborers, doctors, educators, etc. The bottom class of people were slaves and outcasts Example of Egyptian Social Structure Characteristics of Civilizations
Stable food supply Before civilization, people hunted and gathered their food These people tended to be nomadic, following herds as they migrated Societies became more settled with the advent of agriculture Crops were farmed and animals were domesticated Cause and effect throughout all civilizations Population expansion Specialization/trade Growth in wealth/expansion/conquests Sharing of ideas/technology/belief systems Characteristics of Civilizations
Religion Societies developed polytheistic religions Nature and mystic notions were attributed to gods who controlled these unseen forces Rising and setting sun, phases of the moon, rain, drought, flooding, wind, natural disasters, etc. A few did develop monotheistic religions Israelites developed Judaism Persians developed Zoroastrianism Various sun gods Characteristics of Civilizations
Government Several reasons for development of governments Somebody needed to lead Rules have to be made Rules have to be enforced Code of Hammurabi 1st set of written laws Based on eye for an eye principle Societies have general welfare needs Roads, water systems, protection from foreign invasions King of Ancient Babylon
Hammurabi King of Ancient Babylon Tutankhamen Chinese Emperor Shun 4. Government (continued)
Most early civilizations were theocratic and/or dynastic Leaders were seen to rule because of the will of the gods or they were seen as demi-gods Some ruled because of wealth or military power Hammurabis Code Characteristics of Civilizations
Writing systems Societies used forms of writing to record events, keep records and transmit information Early forms of writing consisted of pictures and symbols Egyptian hieroglyphics Chinese pictographs/ideographs Sumerian Cuneiform Incan Quipu Hieroglyphics Ideograph Cuneiform Quipu Characteristics of Civilizations
Culture Societies developed art, music, literature and other forms of entertainment Characteristics of Civilizations
Technology Inventions made life easier Shaduf wheel plow Empires Certain civilizations became powerful and conquered others, creating empires
Akkadian 2340 BC(Present-day Iraq) 1st known empire Conquered their Sumerian neighbors in Mesopotamia Babylon 1792 BC (Present-day Iraq) Under Hammurabi, the Babylonians took control of Mesopotamia Hittites 1600 BC (Present-day Turkey) 1st Indo-Europeans to use iron Egypt 1550 (New Kingdom period)
Because of its wealth, became the richest and most powerful state in the Middle East Existing at the same time as the Hittites, they were also fighting against them for the area around present-day Syria They were both weakened and eventually their empires were destroyed by peoples known only as the Sea Peoples Very little is known of these peoples After the fall of Egyptian and Hittite Empires
Some independent kingdoms arose Phoenician Kingdom Great sea-traders Influential alphabet that was adopted by the Greeks This led to the Roman alphabet which our current alphabet is based on Israelite Kingdom Minor in the political arenaof the area Major contribution to the world is their monotheistic religion Judaism Assyrian 700 BC(Present-day Iraq)
Ruled by kings with absolute power Brutal conquerors Network of posts relayed information from across the empire Established one of the worlds first libraries Persian 539 BC (Present-day Iran)
Cyrus the Great Widely respected by those he ruled over Considered very wise and just Darius BC Created worlds largest empire to that time Divided empire into provinces to be managed more easily 9. Greek 330 BC (Greece/Macedonia)
Under Alexander the Great, Greece conquered the Persian Empire After Alexanders death, the Hellenistic period followed Greek culture was spread throughout Southwest Asia 10.Mauryan 324 BC (India) After retreat of Alexanders forces from India, Candragupta Mauryan established Indias first empire The empire really flourished under the leader Asoka Considered greatest Indian ruler 11. Qin221 BC (China) Qin Shihuangdi defeated and unified the warring Chinese dynasties, thus creating Chinas first empire He was very brutal though and his dynasty fell after his death