Ancient River Valley
Civilizations
Global 2R
Spring 2009
Pre-history
• Pre-historic = before written records
• Two periods of pre-history to know
– Paleolithic
– Neolithic
Pre-history
• Paleolithic
– (Old) Stone age period
• Stone primary material for tools
– Hunter-gathers
– Nomadic lifestyle
Pre-history
• Neolithic Age
– (New) stone age
• Stone still primary tool material
• Agriculture
• Domestication of animals
• Some settlement
• Some nomadic groups
Paleolithic
Age
1st
Agricultural
Revolution
Neolithic
Age
Neolithic
Age
People
Start to
Settle
Develop
Civilization
Civilization
• A form of culture, characterized by
cities,specialized workers, complex
institutions, record-keeping and
advanced technology
Civilization
• To be a civilization, society must have a
majority of these:
– Cities
Specialized labor
– Government
Science & tech
– Religion
Art
– Taxes
Social classes
– Written language
River valley Civilizations
• Helpful Hint:
– Know one of these cold
– Be very familiar with a second
– Have heard of a third
Tigris & Euphrates
• Located in modern Iraq
• Known as Mesopotamia (land between
2 rivers)
• Known as Fertile Crescent
• Look for the only green in the
brownish Middle east on the map
• Rivers empty into Persian Gulf
Tigris & Euphrates
• The geography does not help
– Unpredictable flooding
– No natural barriers to invasion
– Plenty of fresh water for farming and
drinking
– Access to trade/travel & cultural
diffusion
– Silt deposited by rivers
Tigris & Euphrates
• Geography does not help, but problems
solved
– For defense, walls of mud bricks
were built
– Trade of grain, cloth and tools
brought in natural raw materials like
stone, wood and metal
Tigris & Euphrates
• Main crops grown were barley &
wheat
• Surpluses produced led to development
of different civilizations in the region
Tigris & Euphrates
• Cities associated with Mesopotamia
– Sumer
– Akkad
– Babylon
– Ur
Tigris & Euphrates
• Sumer
– Polytheism
– Run by soldiers
– Temples called Ziggurats
– Invented sail, plow, wheel & 1st to use
bronze
– Developed geometry & arithmetic
Tigris & Euphrates
• Sumer
– Developed arches, columns, ramps
– Developed cuneiform (wedge
writing in wet mud which was
allowed to dry)
Tigris & Euphrates
• Akkad
– Sargon of Akkad conquered Sumer
– Created world’s first empire
– Dynasty lasted 200 years
Tigris & Euphrates
• Babylon
– Based on Euphrates river
– Empire hit peak under Hammurabi
– Hammurabi’s Code
Tigris & Euphrates
• Hammurabi’s Code
– Needed single, unified code of law to
unify people
– Written in stone
– Placed throughout the empire
– “eye for an eye”
– Law applied to everyone, but applied
differently to men/women & rich/poor
Page 33
Written Law Codes
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10 Commandments
Hammurabi’s Code
Draco’s Code
12 Tables
Justinian’s Code
Napoleonic Code
Nile River Valley
• Geographic Issues
– Floods predictably (develop calendar)
– River deposits silt on banks
– Access to travel/trade
– Grow papyrus (turn into paper)
– River flows north into Mediterranean
Sea
– Egyptians forced to live close to river
(little cultural diffusion)
Nile River Valley
• Egypt = “gift of the Nile”
• Without the river there is no Egyptian
civilization
• Silt very fertile
• Desert very harsh
• Irrigation ditches to water crops
• Surpluses led to civilization
Nile River Valley
• Egypt
– Polytheism
• Kings (pharaohs were god-kings)
• Egyptian government was
theocracy (based on religious
teaching/rules)
Nile River Valley
• Egypt
– Pyramids were actually tombs for
pharaohs
– Pharaohs were mummified
– Bodies dried and preserved for use in
the afterlife
Nile River Valley
• Egypt
– Writing developed called hieroglyphics
• Glyphs are symbols/pictures
• First written on stone
• Hieroglyphics written on early paper
made from papyrus
Nile River Valley
• Egypt
– Developed very accurate calendar
– Developed arithmetic & geometry
– First to use stone columns
– Developed early medical procedures
for broken bones, wounds & fevers
Indus River Valley
• Indus = India (you cannot forget this!!)
• Indus River starts in Himalaya
mountains & flows to Arabian Sea
• Himalayas natural boundary
• Unpredictable flooding
Indus River Valley
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Indus sites not fully discovered yet
No kings/queens known
Few available records
Was largest empire until Persia
develops 1000 years later
Indus River Valley
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Two main cities of the Indus Valley
Harappa
Mohenjo-Daro
Both carefully planned & laid out in a
grid pattern
• Structures built of oven-fired bricks
• Homes had indoor plumbing
Indus River Valley
• Archaeologists believe the 2 cities had
strong organized government
• Food seemed to be in good supply
• City planning indicates development of
mathematical skills
• Indus first to cultivate cotton
• Polytheistic religious beliefs
Huang He River Valley
• China’s geography has isolated it
• Chinese developed belief that China
was the center of the Earth & source of
all civilization
• China to south & southwest hemmed in
by Tien Shan & Himalaya mountains
Huang He River Valley
• China’s history began in Huang He
Valley
• People learned to farm during the
Neolithic Age
• The yellow soil particles in the river
give it its name “Yellow”
• Also known as “China’s Sorrow”
because of the unpredictable flooding
Huang He River Valley
• The flooding is due in part to the loess
in the water that raises the level of the
river
• Flooding has often been disastrous
• First Chinese in the valley to develop
were the Shang
• Zhou overthrew the Shang
• Developed Mandate of Heaven idea
Huang He River Valley
• Mandate of Heaven says that the gods
allowed a dynasty to rule until that
dynasty got old & corrupt
• New dynasty was given new Mandate
of Heaven to over throw old
• This changing of dynasties is called the
Dynastic Cycle
Dynastic Cycle
New Dynasty
Problems
Old Dynasty
•Brings peace
•
Floods
•Builds roads
•Too many taxes
•
Quakes
•Land to peasants
•No protection
•
Revolts
•Protects people
•
Invaders
•Unfair
treatment
•No building
Huang He River Valley
• By 1000 BC Chinese had develop silk
production
• Chinese also produced first books
under the Zhou
• Also produced porcelain, writing,
coined money and cast iron
Other Civilizations to Consider
• Indo-European Civilizations
– Aryans
– Hittites
Aryans
• Developed Caste System
– Lighter skin, higher caste
– Aryans blended cultures
– Brought in Hinduism
• Believed in reincarnation
• Karma & dharma
• Cows are sacred
Hittites
• Centered in Anatolia (modern Turkey,
Asia Minor)
• Developed iron technology
• Developed the chariot which changed
warfare dramatically
Other Civilizations to Consider
• Fertile Crescent
– Phoenicians
– Coast of eastern Mediterranean Sea
– “Pop-Eyes” of the ancient world
– Carriers of civilization
– Created alphabet (“Hooked on
Phonics”)
Hebrews
• Centered in the area of modern Israel/Palestine
• Hebrews are first monotheistic people
– Torah is holy book (same as Old Testament of
Christian Bible)
– Abraham starts religion
– God is Yahweh
– Hebrews are God’s “chosen people”
– Hebrews have a covenant with God
Hebrews
• Enslaved in Egypt
– Led out of Egypt by Moses
– Moses presents Hebrews with God’s
rules known as 10 Commandments
– Settled in modern Israel
Hebrews
• Romans show up in Middle East
– Jews forced out between 75 & 135 AD
– Known as period of Diaspora (dispersal)
– Jews spread from Palestine to eastern
Europe
Final Thoughts
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How are these groups similar?
How are they different?
What did they contribute to the world?
What impact did geography have on
each society?