Warm Up
S Study the map on page 27.
S What quality makes the Fertile Crescent a region?
S List the major rivers that flow through the Fertile
Crescent.
S What are two advantages of Sumer’s location?
S
Warm Up
S Study the image of the pyramids on page 36. What
are some adjectives that describe the pyramids?
S How might the rooms inside the pyramids have
been used?
S Study the map of China on page 85. What
geographic features might have isolated China
from other cultures?
S Which rivers do you think were most important to
the development of civilization in China?
S
Warm Up
S How is it that a civilization can be so
dominate yet not last more than a 100
years?
S Explain why Mesopotamia has been given
the title of “The Cradle of Life”.
S Should Mesopotamia retain this title?
Explain why or why not.
S
Ancient Civilizations
Mesopotamia
S
S
Geography
S The first civilization began in a valley known as
Mesopotamia, which was between the Tigris and
Euphrates Rivers.
S Mesopotamia (today’s Iraq) was located in the Fertile
Crescent, an area of good farmland located between the
Mediterranean Sea and the Persian Gulf.
Geography
S The Sumerians created the first civilization in Mesopotamia
around 3000 B.C.
S Mesopotamians were polytheistic, and believed in nearly
3,000 gods and goddesses.
City-States
S Sumerian cities, such as Eridu, Uruk, and Ur, gained political and
economic control of Mesopotamia.
S The basic units of Sumerian society were independent city-states.
S Much of the wealth of the cities was dedicated to building temples
dedicated to the god or goddess of the city. These temples were
often built atop a massive stepped tower called a ziggurat
S Priests and priestesses held a great deal of power, making the state
a theocracy, a government by divine authority.
City-States
S Farming was the basis of the economy of the Sumerian city-states.
S Sumerian metalworkers used copper, gold, and silver to make
tools and jewelry.
S Sumerians discovered how to make bronze by adding tin to
copper. Bronze is a hard metal used for making tools and
weapons.
S Sumerian society was divided into three major social groups:
nobles, commoners, and slaves.
Sumer
S The Sumerians are credited with many technological
innovations that affect our lives today.
S Around 3000 B.C., the Sumerians created a system of
writing known as cuneiform (“wedge-shaped”). People used
a stylus or other tool to make wedge-shaped impressions on
clay tablets, which were then baked or dried in the sun.
Empires of Mesopotamia
S Around 2340 B.C., the Akkadians, a people north of the
Sumerian city-states, took control of the Sumerian city-states and
established the first empire in world history
S The leader of the Akkadian Empire was Sargon.
S In 1792 B.C., the city-state of Babylon took control of Sumer and
Akkad. The Babylonian ruler was Hammurabi.
S The Code of Hammurabi was a collection of written laws based
on a system of strict justice.
Hammurabi’s Code
− Criminal offenses
− Duties of public officials
− Consumer protection laws
− Marriage and family
S Mesopotamian society was patriarchal—men dominated
society.
1
Ancient Kingdoms of the Nile
S How did geography influence ancient
Egypt?
S What were the main features and
achievements of Egypt’s three kingdoms?
How did trade and warfare affect Egypt and
Nubia?
The Egyptian Empire About
1450 B.C.
1
Geography of the Ancient
Nile Valley
1
S“Egypt is wholly the gift of the Nile.” –
Herodotus
SPeople settled and established farming villages
along the Nile.
SEgyptians depended on annual floods to soak
the land and deposit a layer of silt, or rich soil.
SEgyptians had to cooperate to control the Nile,
building dikes, reservoirs, and irrigation
ditches.
SRulers used the Nile to link and unite Upper
and Lower Egypt.
SThe Nile served as a trade route connecting
SEgypt to Africa, the Middle East, and the
Mediterranean world.
1
Three Kingdoms of Ancient Egypt
OLD
KINGDOM
Pharaohs organized a
strong central state,
were absolute rulers,
and were considered
gods.
Egyptians built
pyramids at Giza.
Power struggles, crop
failures, and cost of
pyramids contributed
to the collapse of the
Old Kingdom.
MIDDLE
KINGDOM
NEW
KINGDOM
Powerful pharaohs
Large drainage project
created arable farmland. created a large empire
that reached the
Euphrates River.
Traders had contacts
with Middle East and
Hatshepsut
Crete.
encouraged trade.
Corruption and
Ramses II expanded
rebellions were
Egyptian rule to Syria.
common.
Hyksos invaded and
occupied the delta
region.
Egyptian power
declined.
1
Egypt and Nubia
S For centuries, Egypt traded or fought with Nubia.
S During the New Kingdom, Egypt conquered Nubia.
S Nubians served in Egyptian armies and influenced
Egyptian culture.
S Egyptian art from this period shows Nubian soldiers,
musicians, or prisoners.
S When Egypt declined, Nubia conquered Egypt.
S Nubians did not see themselves as conquerors. They
respected Egyptian traditions.
2
Egyptian Civilization
S How did religious beliefs shape the lives of Egyptians?
S How was Egyptian society organized?
S What advances did Egyptians make in learning and the arts?
2
Egyptian Religious Beliefs
S Belief that many gods and goddesses ruled the world and
the afterlife.
Amon-Re was the sun god.
Osiris was the god of the underworld and of the
Nile.
The pharaoh was believed to be a god as well as
monarch.
S Belief in eternal life after death.
Relied on the Book of the Dead to help them
through the afterworld.
Practiced mummification, the preservation of the
body for use in the next life.
a
Ancient Egypt: A Center of Learning &
Culture
2
Advances in Learning
Developed a form of picture writing
called hieroglyphics.
Doctors diagnosed and cured
illnesses, performed surgery, and
developed medicines still used
today.
Developed 12-month calendar on
which modern calendar is based.
Astronomers mapped constellations
and charted movement of the
planets.
Developed practical geometry.
Skilled in design and engineering.
Advances in the Arts
Statues, paintings, and writings tell
us about ancient Egyptian values
and attitudes.
Developed painting style that
remained unchanged for thousands
of years.
Wrote hymns and prayers to the
gods, proverbs, love poems, stories
of victory in battle, and folk tales.
Built pyramids and other great
buildings, such as temple of
Ramses II.
2
Class System in Ancient Egypt
PHARAOH
Earthly leader; considered a god
HIGH PRIESTS AND PRIESTESSES
Served gods and goddesses
NOBLES
Fought pharaoh’s wars
MERCHANTS, SCRIBES, AND ARTISANS
Made furniture, jewelry, and fabrics for
pharaohs and nobles, and provided for other needs
PEASANT FARMERS AND SLAVES
Worked in the fields and served the pharaoh