Ancient Civilizations Review
Paleolithic & Neolithic Civs. Paleolithic (old stone age): No written records Followed seasons (nomads) Plants most vital food source Men hunted, women gathered no gender discrimination Spears, bow/arrow, knives, wore disguises, calculated attacks Very little human environmental impact (if any) Cave paintings of animals found in Europe
Paleolithic & Neolithic Civs. Neolithic (new stone age): 12,000 years ago Refined tool making Hunting and gathering still happen, but more of a focus on breeding and cultivating Agricultural Revolution aka Agricultural Transition Slash and Burn technique
Early Neolithic Settlements Jericho (Israel) 8000 BCE Farmed wheat, barley. Traded salt and obsidian. built a wall for protection Catal Huyuk (Turkey) Manufactured lots of stuff 3 earliest industries: Pottery/metallurgy/textile industry
Fertile Crescent Two rivers: Tigris & Euphrates Cradle of civilization Irrigation for crops Widespread animal breeding City-States self contained Lots of different groups: Phoenicians (traded in Med. Sea), Assyrians (warriors), Sumerians, Babylonians, Amorites, Akkadians, etc Wrote with cuneiform Religion?
Hammurabi Retaliatory legal system (lex talionis) Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth. Unequal punishments social class! 6. If any one steal the property of a temple or of the court, he shall be put to death, and also the one who receives the stolen thing from him shall be put to death.
Rise of Judaism Monotheistic different from any other belief system of the time Abraham, Moses, Red Sea, 10 Commandments Religion of Salvation Fight for homeland constantly: Babylonians, Romans, Muslims, etc.
Nile river Egypt Source of life fertile muck irrigation/flooding cycle Cataracts (can t travel past) How different than Mesopotamia? Pyramids Purpose? When? How long did it take? Egyptian religion Pharaoh living god Polytheistic Many dynasties/kingdoms
Egyptians Hieroglyphics Written on papyrus and other places Rosetta Stone (discovered 1796 CE) 3 languages: Hieroglyphic, Demotic (Greek/Hieroglyph mix), Greek Did good things.
India Harappan Society (Dravidian language) Indus river valley river flooded yearly 1 st with poultry Mohenjo-Daro How did they fail? Drought, invasion Vedic Age Oral traditions, Rig Veda Social distinctions between rich and poor
Hinduism/Caste System Developed from Vedic Civilization Hindu beliefs: dharma, karma, samsara, moksha Class system emerged: Brahmin (priests) Kshatriya (warriors) Vaishja (professionals) Shudra (farmers) Dalits (untouchables)
Buddhism Founded by Siddhartha Gautama Searched for enlightenment, meditated under tree 49 days. Preached 4 Noble Truths: In life there is suffering that is caused by desires which is ended by following the Eightfold path Eightfold Path a way of leading a proper life in order to reach enlightenment
Ancient China remember the map? Major rivers Yangtze, Yellow Siltly milky loess Xia little known Shang, monopolized bronze, political allies, controlled 1000+ towns. Mandate of Heaven earthly events linked to heavenly affairs. Ruler served as link b/w heaven and earth (explains dynastic cycle) Chou (Zhou), gradually took over Shang, decentralized administration of law, couldn t control bronze supply, rise of iron led to downfall. Period of warring states.
New Schools of thought Emerged during PWS Confucianism creating harmony in society Ren: kindness and compassion Li: respect to elders Xiao (filial piety): respect parents, take care of them Daoism (founded by Lao Tzu) Hoped to understand principles of nature detachment Yin (dark)/yang (light)
Chin (Qin) Short, but powerful Han Feizi founder Legalism Strict laws and swift punishments Fa: laws must be public Shu: must have strong tactics Shi: position of ruler has power, not the person Collective responsibility Powerful leader: Shi Huang-ti (Terracotta Army)
Han Dynasty Followed Qin Dynasty 206 BCE 220 CE Period of stability in China Silk Roads established during this era Expansion of civil service examinations Confucian tradition Controlled vast amounts of land in central and southern China
Greece Minoans: earliest of Greek settlements. Crete. Named after King Minos. Arthur Evans. Knossos. Minotaur. Labyrinth. Blah blah blah. Mycenaeans: strong warriors, extended control throughout the Medit. Heinrich Schliemann, Trojan Horse. Fall of Troy
More Greeks Polis: autonomous political unit. Central point of Greek life. Athens. Sparta. Athens: wealthy. Political/social strain. Solon s reforms (cancel land debt, forbade selling self 4 slavery, divided citizens by class ). Direct democracy
Spah-ta Controlled the Peloponnesus Militant and brutal For more, watch the two 300 movies tonight. Greeks fought the Persians a lot. Marathon, Thermopylae, Salamis, etc.
Famous Greeks Homer: Iliad, Odyssey (remember Brad Pitt s destruction of Hector?) Pericles: developed democracy in Athens (5 th C. BCE) Delian League = Athenian Golden Age! Euclid: geometry guy Archimedes: science and math nerd (calculated pi)
Last Greek Slide Started Olympics 776 BCE They were fun Greek architecture: columns 3 types Alexander doms. Hellenistic Age
Roman Phase Remus/Romulus. She-wolf. Foundation of Rome Etruscans: north of Rome, present day Tuscany 509BCE monarchy replaced with republic. 2 groups of people: patricians (wealthy, privileged class) plebeians (commoners)
Roman-ness Consuls: civil, military power. Elected every year Senate: 300 members Tensions between pats & plebs led to change in Roman republic more rights for plebs.
Threats to Republic Later years of Republic: latifundia, slavery (%?), other issues? Servile wars: I am Spartacus! Brothers Gracchi, both wanted more land for pleb class, one clubbed to death, other decapitated. Punic Wars Rome vs. Carthage. Hannibal and the Elephants. Scipio. Rome wins.
Republic to Empire Marius and Sulla Julius Caesar Octavian and Marc Antony defeat Caesar s enemies Octavian defeats Antony (and Cleop) Octavian becomes Caesar Augustus (Exalted one) Peace ensues Pax Romana (about 200 years)
Roman Empire Peaks during Pax Romana Ultimately too big, begins downfall Economic problems too Diocletian splits empire Constantine moves capital to? Constantinople. The gateway to the Black Sea Rise/Spread of Christianity Western Roman Empire falls in 476CE to Germanic Invaders