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Chapter 1 Notes
The First Civilizations
Section 1
Early Humans
This section describes the world’s earliest humans and relates their change from nomadic hunters to
farmers.
1.) In the Neolithic Age, people started farming, building communities, producing goods, and trading.
2.) History is the story of _________ in the past, and _________ are the people who study and write
about humans of the past. __________________ hunt for evidence buried in the ground and
__________________ study how humans developed and related to each other.
3.) The early period of human history is called the _________. The earliest part of the Stone Age is
called the __________________.
4.) Paleolithic people were _________, traveling from place to place to hunt and search for _________.
Paleolithic _________ cared for children and gathered _________, nuts, and _________. Paleolithic
_________ hunted animals using _________, spears, _________, and bows and _________.
5.) The Paleolithic people adapted to their _________ very well. Those in _________ climates wore
little clothing and had little need for shelter. Those in _________ climates used _________ for shelter.
Over time, they learned to create shelters from animal _________ and _________ poles. They also
discovered _________, which kept them warm, lit the _________, and _________ food.
6) Long periods of extreme cold are called the _________. During the Ice Ages, thick sheets of ice
covered parts of _________, _________, and __________________.
7.) Paleolithic people developed _________ language and expressed themselves through _________,
which may have had _________ meaning. During this time, humans created _________ such as
_________ and hand axes using stone called _________.
8.) In the beginning of the __________________, people began to _________, or tame, animals.
Domesticated animals provided _________, milk, and _________.
9.) People in many parts of the world began to grow crops about the same time. Historians call this
change the _________ _________. Because farmers needed to stay close to their fields, they built
permanent _________ in villages.
10.) One of the oldest _________ is _________ in present-day _________ and Jordan. Another
Neolithic village is _________ _________ in present-day _________. Permanent villages provided
people with _________ and steady _________. The surplus food led to a larger _________.
11.) However, not all people in a village were _________. Some made _________, mats, and
_________. Then they traded these goods for things they did not have.
12.) People continued to create new _________. They created better farming tools and began working
with _________, copper, and _________. They also began working with bronze.
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Chapter 1 Section 1 Review Questions
A.) How did spoken language help the Paleolithic people?
B.) Why was farming important to the Neolithic people?
C.) Who are archaeologists and what do they study?
D.) How did domesticating animals help the Neolithic people?
E.) Why were Paleolithic people nomads?
F.) Compare the technology of the Paleolithic Age with that of the Neolithic Age?
G.) Why was the ability to make a fire so important?
H.) Summarize the impact of farming on the human race.
Section 2
Mesopotamia’s Civilization
This section describes Mesopotamia, one of the regions where the world’s earliest civilizations
developed.
1.) Civilization in _________ began in the valleys of the _________ and _________ Rivers.
2.) _________ invented _________ and made other important contributions to later peoples.
3.) Sumerian city-states lost _________ when they were conquered by _________.
4.) _________ are complex societies with cities, _________, art, _________, class divisions, and a
writing system.
5.) _________ were important because they made for good farming _________. They also made it easy
for people to _________ and _________.
6.) _________ would be formed because someone had to make plans and decisions for the _________
good.
7.) Mesopotamia is a flat _________ bounded by the _________ and _________ rivers. Therefore
_________ in Mesopotamia were frequent and unpredictable. Thus farmers learned to control the rivers
with _________ and _________. They also used the rivers to _________, or water, their crops.
8.) Many cities formed in a southern region of Mesopotamia known as _________. Sumerian cities were
_________, with their own governments. Sumerian cities often fought each other. So to protect
themselves, the city-states built walls around themselves.
9.) Sumerians believed in many _________. This is known as _________. Each city-state had a
ziggurat, or grand temple, to honor the gods.
10.) Most Sumerians were farmers, but some were _________, or skilled workers. Others were
merchants and traders.
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11.) Sumerian city-states had _________ classes. The _________ class consisted of _________, priests,
and government officials. The _________ class consisted of _________, merchants, _________, and
farmers. The _________ class consisted of _________.
12.) Mesopotamia has been called the _________ of _________ because of the influence of Sumerian
ideas on other areas.
13.) Writing helps people keep _________ and pass on _________. Sumerians developed a writing
system called _________. Only a few people, called _________, learned to write. The Sumerians also
produced the oldest known story, the ___________________________.
14.) The Sumerians also invented new technology such as the wagon wheel, the _________, and the
plow.
15.) The Sumerians developed many mathematical ideas, including _________, a number system based
on 60, and a 12-month _________.
16.) _________, the king of the Akkadians, conquered all of Mesopotamia and set up the world’s first
empire. An _________ is a group of many different lands under one ruler. After Sargon, another group
of people became powerful and they built the city of _________ on the Euphrates River.
17.) The Babylonian king, __________________, conquered lands north and south of Babylon to create
the _________ Empire.
18.) The ________________________ was a collection of laws covering _________, farming, business
activities, and _________ and family. Many punishments in the code were _________, but the code was
an important step in the development of a _________ system.
Chapter 1 Section 2 Review Questions
A.) What effect did irrigation have on the people of Mesopotamia?
B.) Why did Sumerians study the skies?
C.) What were some of the benefits of living in Hammurabi’s empire? What were some of the
drawbacks?
D.) What is civilization?
E.) What was the Code of Hammurabi?
F.) How was the geography of Mesopotamia suited for the growth of population and creation of a civilization?
G.) Why did the Sumerians record the positions of stars and planets and develop a calendar?
H.) Review, list, and describe the Sumerian technologies that changed the world.
Section 3
The Assyrians
This section discusses the Assyrian and Chaldean Empires.
1.) Assyria’s military power and well organized government helped it build a vast empire in
Mesopotamia by _________ B.C.
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2.) The _________ Empire built important landmarks in Babylon and developed the first calendar with a
_________ -day week.
3.) The _________ empire arose about 1,000 years after the rule of Hammurabi. The Assyrian army was
the first large army to use _________ weapons. Their weapons were stronger than those of _________
and _________. They fought with _________, daggers, bows and arrows, _________ and soldiers on
horseback.
4.) The capital of the Assyrian empire was _________ and the empire was divided into _________,
which are political districts. Each province was governed by an official who collected _________ and
enforced _________.
5.) The Assyrians built large _________ and palaces, with statues and wall carvings. One of the first
_________ was in Nineveh and held 25,000 _________ of stories and songs.
6.) However, people began to rebel because of Assyria’s _________ treatment. The Chaldeans rebelled
and took control of Nineveh in 612 B.C.
7.) __________________ was the king of the Chaldeans. The Chaldeans, who were descendents of
Babylonians, rebuilt Babylon. The city became the _________ of the Chaldeans’ empire.
8.) The city was surrounded by a huge wall. Inside the wall were palaces, temples, and a huge _______.
9.) Nebechadnezzar ordered the _________ Gardens to be built for his wife, who missed her green,
mountainous homeland. The Hanging Gardens were one of the _______ Wonders of the Ancient World.
10.) The Chaldeans were _________, artisans, and _________. Babylon was on a major trade
_________ and profited from trade.
11.) The Chaldeans studied the _________ to understand the gods. Their _________ (people who study
the heavenly bodies) mapped the _________, planets, and _________ of the moon.
12.) The Chaldeans lost control of their empire to the _________.
Chapter 1 Section 3 Review Questions
A.)How were the Assyrians like other Mesopotamians?
B.) What made Babylon the world’s richest city?
C.) Why was the Assyrian army a powerful fighting force?
D.) What were some of the accomplishments of Chaldean astronomers?
E.) How did the Assyrians set up a well organized government?
F.) Why do you think the Assyrians took conquered peoples from their lands and moved them to other places?
G.) What different types of knowledge and skills would the Babylonians need to build the Hanging Gardens?
H.) Describe two main points about the Assyrians and Chaldeans.