Early River Civilizations Review
Sumerians Create City-States
1. What is a city-state?
2. What role did the temple priests play in ancient Sumer?
3. How did monarchs gain power in the city-states?
4. Describe the process of cultural diffusion.
5. What actions did the Sumerians take to keep their gods happy?
The First Empire Builders
1. How is an empire different from a city-state?
2. What led to the decline of Sargon’s dynasty?
3. How did Hammurabi unify the diverse groups of people within his empire?
4. What does Hammurabi’s code tell historians about the Mesopotamians’ beliefs and
what they valued?
5. How did Hammurabi’s code of laws advance civilization?
Civilization Emerges on the Indus
1. Why do historians know less about the civilization in the Indus Valley than about
those to the west?
2. Describe how the cities of the Indus Valley were different from those in Mesopotamia.
3. What does the city planning of the Indus Valley suggest about the Indus people?
4. What have historians learned about the Indus people from archaeological evidence?
5. What factors may have contributed to the decline of the Indus Valley civilization?
Civilization Emerges in Shang Times
1. According to legend, how did the leader named Yu help the Xia Dynasty emerge?
2. How have historians been able to learn about the Shang Dynasty?
3. Describe the roles of the nobles and peasants in Shang society.
4. Describe the family roles of men and women in Chinese society.
5. How did writing help unite the people of China?