STANDARD 2

PART 1ANCIENT & CLASSICAL

CIVILIZATIONS

J. Worley

ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS Mesopotamia/Sumer Egypt India China Greece Rome Mesoamerica

Can be considered one but is looked at on an individual basis

5 CHARACTERISTICS OF A CIVILIZATION Advanced Cities

Have living areas, town hall, hospitals, farm land, etc. Record Keeping

Use of writing such as Cuneiform (Mesopotamia/Sumer), Hieroglyphics (Egypt), and Sanskrit (India).

Specialized WorkersWorkers have specific jobs that they do (Plumber,

farmer, etc.) Complex Institution

Can be anything from a Hospital to Slavery Advanced Technology

Can be anything from plumbing to irrigation to calendar

WHAT ARE SOME GEOGRAPHIC ISSUES IN CIVILIZATIONS? Topography, climate, and natural resources

in a region influence the culture, economy, and lifestyle of its inhabitants.Topography- terrain of the area/landCulture- the customary beliefs, social norms,

and material traits of a racial, religious, or social group

Economy- all the factors of production woven together with the goods & services consumed

Lifestyles- how an area lives according to its means and income

WHAT ARE SOME GEOGRAPHIC ISSUES IN CIVILIZATIONS? (CONT.) Rivers and Flooding

Earliest civilizations arose near rivers (River Civilizations) Sumer in the Fertile Crescent/Middle East (Tigris & Euphrates) Egypt in the Middle East/North Africa (Nile) India in South Asia (Indus & Ganges) China in East Asia (Huang & Chang- AKA: Yellow & Yangtze)

What were the hazards of living near rivers? Flow patterns could bring too little water (drought/famine

conditions) or too much water (flooding/crop destruction/death) How did people in these regions control the rivers & their

flood patterns? Irrigation- Digging ditches to channel river water Dykes- Slope or wall that prevents flooding Some rivers flooded predictably (Nile), while others did not (Huang)

WHAT ARE SOME GEOGRAPHIC ISSUES IN CIVILIZATIONS? (CONT.) Natural Barriers

Isolate people from contact, even within a close area The Greek city-states didn’t have one united central

gov’t because of the isolation due to mountainous territory (City-States)

Make travel and trade difficult (but not impossible) Incans built an amazing 14,000 mile road network

carved into mountains and hills Chinese under the Han Dynasty built the Silk Road while

linked China to the West Isolation causes a sense of identity

Chinese believed they were the source of civilization Greeks believed they were superior to outsiders

(Barbaroi)

WHAT ARE SOME GEOGRAPHIC ISSUES IN CIVILIZATIONS? (CONT.)NATURAL BARRIERS (cont.)

Famous Natural Barriers Mountains

Hindu Kush & Himalayas in South Asia (India)Tian Shan in East AsiaAndes in Latin America Rocky & Appalachian in North America

DesertsGobi in East AsiaSahara in Africa

Hindu Kush & Himalayas AndesNorth America Gobi Sahara

WHAT ARE SOME GEOGRAPHIC ISSUES IN CIVILIZATIONS? (CONT.) Limited Fertile Land

Neolithic Revolution Change from Hunting & Gathering to

Agriculture/FarmingResponses to the challenges of limited fertile land

Incans built terraces to farm on steep mountain hills Phoenicians and Greeks became active sea traders due

to their proximity to the sea and lack of arable (farmable) land

Seasonal Rains In South Asia (India), monsoons rule their way of

lifePeople adapted to the timing of the rains in India

Some of which would come too late or too heavy

WHAT ARE SOME GEOGRAPHIC ISSUES IN CIVILIZATIONS? (CONT.) Nomads vs. Settlers

Nomads move regularly, following animal herds and patterns, and don’t stay in one place very long Nomads still have religion and trade, they just don’t do

it in one place. Nomadic religion is normally based on animism (spirit forces)

Settlers live off the land, usually as farmers and traders, but usually stay in one place

WHAT ARE SOME GEOGRAPHIC ISSUES IN CIVILIZATIONS? (CONT.) Location affects a society’s economic

development Societies with greater abundances of certain

resources develop differentlyBuilders and architects construct structures based on

materials in ready supply: Carved Stone in the Americas (Olmecs, Mayan, Aztecs) Clay Bricks in the Fertile Crescent (Sumer) Limestone and Granite in Egypt Adobe (clay & plant fibers) in the Americas Anasazi carve houses into the mountain rock in the Americas

Metalworking knowledge spreads throughout certain regions Bronze in the Middle East, East Asia (Shang Dynasty, China) Iron (Hittites in the Middle East, Bantu in Sub-Saharan Africa,

Zhou Dynasty in East Asia)

WHAT ARE SOME GEOGRAPHIC ISSUES IN CIVILIZATIONS? (CONT.) Location along water sources and lead to

trade wealthUr, Babylon in the Middle East (Fertile Crescent)Memphis, Thebes in Middle East (Egypt)Meroe in Sub-Saharan AfricaRome in Western Europe (Italy)Adulis & Axum in Africa

River Map

WHAT ARE SOME GEOGRAPHIC ISSUES IN CIVILIZATIONS? (CONT.) Geographic issues can lead to migration of people &

result in the spread & adaptation of ideas, customs, & technologies from one group to another

Phoenicians spread Middle Eastern civilization customs from cities in modern-day Lebanon all around Mediterranean Sea (MAP) Manufactured glass Alphabet- 22 symbols standing for consonant sounds

Greeks adapted it to theirs, & ours is derived from it Bantu Migrations (MAP)

Migration of farmers & herders in reaction to the desertification (drying out) of the Sahara

They spoke a variety of languages that all traced back to a root language called Bantu

In addition to linguistic diversity, they also brought skills in farming, domestication of animals & ironworking

Human response to the physical environment comes with consequences for both the environment & human interdependence

WHY HAVE A GOVERNMENT? As society increases in complexity & interacts

with other societies, the complexity of gov’t increases

Ancient civilizations developed into empires of large size & diversity by creating large centralized gov’ts, commerce, & common culturePersians (Middle East)

Ruled by Cyrus the Great & later Darius I Darius I built the Royal Road system and coined some of

the first money used in economic transactions to standardized commerceShift from a barter economy (trade) to a

money/traditional economy (based on the use of currency, paper, or coins to represent value)

WHY HAVE A GOVERNMENT? (CONT.)Rome (Western Europe)

Went from a kingdom to a republic to an empire through organized government & disciplined military mightWith the formation of a republic, the Roman Consul

and Senate were introduced Reached its height in the empire period under Augustus Declined when Constantine split the empire into East &

WestFormed the Byzantine Empire in its wake

China (East Asia) During the Qin Dynasty, Shi Huangdi unifies China into

a central empire & it continues into the Han DynastyGreat Wall was built during this time to keep out

invaders Reached its height during the Han Dynasty under Wahl Han Dynasty instituted a civil service system based on

merit & studying Confucius that lasted until the 1900s

WHY HAVE A GOVERNMENT? (CONT.)

Mesopotamia/Sumer Sargon the Great (Akkadians) conquered the

Mesopotamian city-states United them under one ruler for the first time

The more complex the gov’t, the stronger the leader is required to keep it functioning effectively

Persian Empire (Royal Road)Roman Empire

WHY HAVE A GOVERNMENT? (CONT.) Distribution of power in gov’t is often the

result of how it is organized, combined with contemporary values & beliefs

Culture and society shape and change how a gov’t is organized & carries out responsibilities.Gov’t in early river civilizations were led by

religious figures (Egypt, Sumer) that were seen as divine.

Government Types & StructuresTheocracy

Led by a religious figureMandate of Heaven

Egypt had a theocracy (Rule gov’t, military, & religion)King Menes united Upper & Lower EgyptQueen Hatshepsut was the 1st Female Pharoah

WHY HAVE A GOVERNMENT? (CONT.)

Democracy Led by people

Representative Democracy People elect or choose their own representatives The United States has a representative democracy

Direct Democracy Every citizen has a say in gov’t matters Athens had a direct democracy

Oligarchy Led by a small group or council Sparta had an oligarchy

Sparta is a military-minded Greek city-statesTyranny

Led by a person who gains power by force (tyrant) Has come to have a negative connotation

Aristocracy Led by a rich ruling class

WHERE DID LAWS COME FROM? Written codes of law establish legal rules &

regulations that govern a society as well as informing those in the society of acceptable & unacceptable behaviorHammurabi’s Code (Babylon, Middle East) &

Justinian Code (Byzantine Empire, Eastern Europe) reinforced gov’t responsibility for behaviors & consequences for unacceptable behavior

Unifying laws into a written “code” can be a unifying factor for a society while reflecting also duties & obligations of those in the societyDraco’s law & democracy in Greece

WHERE DID LAWS COME FROM? (CONT.) Both effective distribution of power in gov’t

and order within a society can result from the creation of a written code of lawsCodifying laws centralized power for rulers

(Hammurabi)The Twelve Tables were written down in Rome to

address social inequalities between the poor plebeians and the rich patricians who used the unwritten laws to their advantage

Hammurabi’s Code Draco’s CodeJustinian Code Twelve Tables