Eastern Mediterranean—3500 BCE to 500 BCE
Name:
Test 1 Date:
2.1 City-States in Mesopotamia
A.
Mesopotamia Societies
a.
Mesopotamia means
b.
Fertile
i. Located between
ii. Modern day
c.
B.
The people that arrived in Sumer (3300 BCE) became
Sumerians
a.
One of the
b.
What set them apart?
i.
Advanced
ii.
Specialized
iii.
Complex
iv.
Record
v.
Improved
C. Politics
a.
City-State
i. Functioned as
ii. Ex: Uruk,
b.
Early governments were controlled by
c.
Power eventually was taken over by
d.
Hammurabi’s
D. Culture
a.
Well-defined
b.
Women
i. Worked as
ii. Wealthy learned to
E.
c.
Housing
d.
Well-
Religion
a.
Polytheism
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b.
Ziggurat
i.
c.
“The land of no return”
i. Lived their lives
F.
ii. However, no help from
Empire Builders
a.
b.
Akkadian Empire
i. World’s first
iii. Controlled the majority
ii. Sargon of Akkad
iv. Only lasted
Babylonian Empire
i. 2000
iii. Established
ii. Amorites invaded
iv. Hammurabi’s
2.2 Pyramids on the Nile
A.
Egyptians
a.
Egyptians has been called the
b.
United under a single
c.
Enjoyed unity, stability,
d.
Nile River
i. Annual
B.
ii.
iii.
Politics and Religion
a.
Pharaohs
i.
ii. Bore full responsibility for the kingdom’s
b.
Theocracy
i. Rule is based on
c.
“ka”
i. Pharaohs continued to take part in
d.
Pyramid tombs were more important than
i. Granite and
iii. Over 2 million
ii. Each stone weighed
e.
Great Pyramid of Giza
i. Covered over
ii. 481
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f.
Polytheistic
i. Worshiped over 2,000
g.
1.
Re-
2.
Osiris-
3.
Isis-
Afterlife
i. Anubis god of the
h.
i.
Placed items in
i. Clothing, food,
C. Egyptian Culture
a.
King, Queen, Royal Family
i. Landowners
1.
Middle-class
a.
i.
b.
Change status through
c.
Women’s rights
i. Equal to
D. King Tut
E.
a.
Pharaoh of
b.
Came to power at age
Discovering King Tut’s Tomb
a.
Howard Carter
i. May 9, 1874 ii. English
iii. Most famous for discovering the tomb of King Tutankhamen in the Valley of the
b.
Lord Carnarvon
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F.
Cleopatra
a.
Came to
b.
Julius Caesar
i.
c.
Mark Antony
i.
d.
Suicide
i.
Geography Application: Egypt and the Nile Delta—read the paragraph below and the use the map to answer the
questions that follow.
A delta is a flat, triangular-shaped deposit of land found at the mouth of a river that empties into a normally still
body of water. Deltas are formed when branches of a river carry soil downstream; the river’s flow is slowed at the point of
emptying, and soil is allowed to build up. Egypt’s Nile River reaches its destination by first splitting into two main branches
and then into numerous canals and streams, forming a delta out of an area that was once part of the Mediterranean Sea.
Egypt’s famous Nile Delta is notable for more than being just the northern limit of the Nile River. The Delta is
extremely fertile and thousands of years ago provided an environment for the formation of one of the world’s first
civilizations. The Nile Delta has long been considered an agricultural “fantasy” –containing more than one half of Egypt’s
farmable land. Today the Delta is like a spider web of nearly 54,000 miles of canals. These canals provide water for the
approximately 15 million Egyptians who live in the Delta’s thousands of villages. The people grow everything from food and
flowers, to cotton.
However, the Nile Delta region is not without some problems. In contrast to Upper Egypt of the south, with its more
durable building stones, little of the Delta’s ancient past survives. The Delta’s structures were built primarily with mud bricks.
As a result, today most all of its ancient sites have been reduced to mere piles of mud. Also, drainage problems have arisen.
Salts are coming to the surface and the Delta’s fertility is declining. Pollution from untreated waste is increasing. In addition,
the polar ice cap is slowly melting, causing the level of the Mediterranean Sea to rise. This process threatens to someday
“drown” the Delta. Concrete dikes are now being built to try to hold back the Mediterranean.
1.
Into what body of water does the Nile River empty?
2.
In what direction does the Nile River flow?
3.
The place where the river begins is known as its source. From Memphis, in which direction is the source of the Nile?
4.
About how many miles long is the Delta’s shoreline with the Mediterranean?
5.
Describe the importance of the Nile Delta to Egypt.
6.
What problems does the Nile Delta region face?
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Cleopatra: Wily Queen of Egypt—read the handout and answer the questions below.
1.
What was unique about Cleopatra’s family?
2.
Where was her family from?
3.
What did Cleopatra do that the rest of her family never bothered (having to do with communication)?
4.
How did Cleopatra and Julius Caesar meet?
5.
Why did Cleopatra not become queen of Rome?
6.
Why did Cleopatra commit suicide?
7.
Why did Octavian have Caesarian killed?
2.2 Writing
A.
Egyptian Hieroglyphics
a.
Picture stood for an
b.
Rosetta
c.
Numbers
i. Counting, adding,
d.
Calendar
i. 365 days, 12 months,
B.
Cuneiform
a.
Sumerians
C. Phoenician Alphabet
a.
Method of
b.
Phonetic one sign =
c.
Introduced alphabet to
i.
3.3 Phoenicians
A.
Phoenicia
a.
1100
b.
Present day
c.
Created
d.
Major cities in
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B.
Trading Networks
a.
Phoenicians were remarkable
i. Traded goods such as, wine,
ii. Cultural Diffusion:
3.4 Hebrews
A.
Palestine/Canaan
a.
Think strip that connects
b.
Hebrews settled
c.
Torah
d.
Abraham “father of the Hebrew people”
i. Moved people from Ur 
B.
Monotheism
a.
b.
Covenant
i. Promise between Yahweh and the Hebrews of
C. Exodus
a.
Hebrews fled Egypt
b.
Ten Commandments
i. Civil/
c.
Upon return to Canaan the Hebrews
i. Divided into
D. Hebrews become Jews
a.
Tribes united into one,
i. New Kingdom of
b.
Saul
i. Suffered from
c.
David
i. Popular,
d.
Solomon
i. Most powerful, built trading
1.
high taxes and forced labor  division following Solomon’s death 
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4.3 Zoroaster
A.
Zoroastrianism
a. Persian
b.
Earth is a battleground of
c.
i. Judge everyone according to how well one
d.
Traces in Judaism
i. Satan,
e.
Today
i. Iran,
3.4 The Origins of Judaism
Person, place, or event
Canaan
1.
Significance
Hebrews
2.
Torah
3.
Moses
4.
Ten Commandments
5.
Write your answer in the blank provided.
1.
Considered the father of the Hebrew people: _____________________________________________________
2.
The belief in a single god: ________________________________________________________________________
3.
The god of the Hebrew people: __________________________________________________________________
4.
A group of people who threatened the Hebrew’s position in ancient Palestine: _____________________
5.
Name for the new Hebrew kingdom united under Saul, David, and Solomon: _______________________
6.
First religion to teach monotheism: ________________________________________________________________
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Lost Civilizations: Mesopotamia
1.
Mesopotamia was in modern day ________________. (country)
2.
Why were the Dead Sea Scrolls an important find?
3.
Why did people look for the Tower of Babel?
4.
What is “The Ordeal”? Where did the idea for it come from?
5.
What were the Assyrians known for?
6.
What kind of power did ordinary woman have over their husbands?
7.
What was found in the Assyrian Queen’s tomb?
8.
What was the first civilization in the world?
9.
What happened at the King’s funeral?
10. Where do historians believe the Garden of Eden may have been?
11. What were the people like there?
Lost Civilizations: Egypt
1. Approximately, how long did the greatness of Egypt last?
2. What was the name given to the kings of Egypt?
3. In what year did Dr. Howard Carter find the tomb of Tutankhamen? What was significant about his find?
4. Why did pharaohs store useful items in their tomb?
5. How did ancient Egyptians view life and what body of water was a factor in the afterlife?
6. What was the main building material used in Egypt?
7. When ancient Egypt ended, what group ruled Egypt?
8. What great French leader invaded Egypt and what did his soldiers find there?
9. What was significant about their find?
10. What is the most famous image of immortality in Egypt?
11. Briefly describe the interior and exterior of the pyramids of the Giza Plateau.
12. In medieval times, what were Egyptian mummies used for?
13. Why do you think the world is so fascinated with Egypt today? Why do we still talk about it?
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MAP: The Fertile Crescent, 2500 BC
On the map on the next page, label the following items using the appropriate color.
Bodies of water (blue)
Caspian Sea
Euphrates River
Mediterranean Sea
Nile River
Persian Gulf
Red sea
Tigris River
Fertile Crescent (green)
Label in black
Anatolia
Egypt
Mesopotamia
Sumer
Mountains (brown)
Taurus Mountains
Zagros Mountains
Deserts (orange)
Arabian Desert
Syrian Desert
City-states (red)
Agade
Ur
Akkad
Uruk
Babylon
Kish
Lagash
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Study Guide
SSWH1 The student will analyze the origins, structures, and interactions of complex societies in the ancient Eastern Mediterranean from
3500 BCE to 500 BCE.
a. Describe the development of Mesopotamian societies; include the religious, cultural, economic, and political facets of society, with attention to
Hammurabi’s law code.
b. Describe the relationship of religion and political authority in Ancient Egypt.
c. Explain the development of monotheism; include the concepts developed by the ancient Hebrews, and Zoroastrianism.
d. Describe early trading networks in the Eastern Mediterranean; include the impact Phoenicians had on the Mediterranean World.
e. Explain the development and importance of writing; include cuneiform, hieroglyphics, and the Phoenician alphabet.
Mesopotamia
Fertile Crescent
Sumerians
5 characteristics of a civilization
City-state
Hammurabi’s Code
Culture
Mesopotamian women
Polytheism
Ziggurat
Akkadian Empire
Babylonian Empire
Egypt
Nile River
Pharaoh-“God King”
Theocracy
Pyramids
Afterlife
Mummification-purpose
Social classes
Egyptian women
Cleopatra/King Tut—basic info
Cuneiform
Hieroglyphics
Phoenician alphabet
Phoenician culture
Trading networks
Cultural diffusion
Hebrews
Palestine/Canaan
Moses
Abraham
Yahweh
Covenant
Ten Commandments
King Saul, David, Solomon
Zoroastrianism
Monotheism
Essay topic: 5 characteristics of a civilization
(know the 5 characteristics and an example of each)
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