Download - History Notes
Harapan Civilization (3000-2000 BCE)
Rivers Developed along Ravi River, tributary to Indus
River (flows into Indus)
Geography Indus River Valley
small cities, civilization covered large area
Afghanistan north, nomads east, traders west
not cut off from other civilizations
Expansion
Agriculture Granary (store grain/other crops)
crop surpluses→population growth
ox drawn carts
Trade jewelery, gem stones, carnelians
trade inspired expansion of civilization
control resource mines
Major Cities Harappa and Mohenjo Daro
2500 BCE extremely dense/urban
Architecture public buildings- granaries, bath houses
city layout- well planned pattern
uniform structure
suggests centralized/structured state
main streets had coverage drainage (sewers)
used bricks extensively (used ovens)
center of cities- public institutions
fortified citadels- housed public facilities
likely centers of political and ritual activities
surrounded by residential houses
different size residential houses (hierarchy)
center of Mohenjo Daro- Great Bath
incredible brick structure at heart of the city
public bathing rituals?
Language language has been unidentified
(script might not represent spoken language?
Nonlinguistic symbol system?)
little known about this culture, heavy flooding less
evidence
Religion concerned with fertility
other natural forces (river)
were some deities incorporated into later
civilizations, ultimately culminating in Hinduism?
deities mothering qualities, blend human/animal
characteristics, trees animals were sacred
procreation theme
Rulers no history of who were the rulers,
no evidence to suggest there were kings
little knowledge of political history
Politics
social classes unlike Egyptians/Mesopotamians
more palaces and tombs?
collapse 1900-1700 BCE
Indus River Valley drought
environmental factors cause decline
special Harapan shows how urbanized parts of the world
were divergent from one another even as they
borrowed from and imitated their neighbors
history based on evidence we have
Vedic Civilization (1500-500 BCE) Yellow River Basin (5000-2000 BCE)
Nomadic Indo- Aryans (1500 BCE)
aryans = "respected ones" (linguistic group?)
Yangshao Culture (4000-3000 BCE)
best known of early yellow river cultures
traveled through Hindu Kush
expands southeast, eventually covering modern
Pakistan, Bangladesh, northern India
reaches Ganges River
moved frequently after exhausting soil
constructed new villages
borrows knowledge from those of previous
culture (Harapan)
kept cattle, pastoral
slash and burn agriculture
horses were important to trade
horse and chariots- military superiority in warfare,
challenged political systems of Egypt and
Mesopotamia
copper and bronze metallurgy, wheel making
sophisticated crafts → surplusses
houses built around central square
sanskrit (perfectly made) manipulated signs symbols early as 5000 BCE
Beliefs known as Veda (Veda=knowledge)
Rig Veda- chants, eventually written in sanskrit
sacrafice livestock to gods
upanishads- philosophical writings of Brahmans
"supreme knowledge" (existentialism)
divination
oral tradition, cosmology, understanding of
universe, elaborate rituals, hymns/rhymes,
explanations, wisdom, knowledge
culture unifies the people
"conquest through culture"
animals were important (animal sacrafices)
Indra- chief god (important symbol)
(no sculptures or temples)
politically fragmented
fought fiercely among themselves
"chieftainship"
clans→lineages
Lunar and Solar
Mahabarta and Ramayana (mythologies)
Varna- Stratified Society
Brahmans- priests
Kshatriyas- warriors
Vaishyas- commoners
Shudras- laborers and servants
lives were hard
excavated cemeteries, 20% were of children 15
and younger, only a little over half lived past the
age of 40
Ramses?
barbarians vs civilized?
Longshan Culture (3000-2000 BCE) Shang Dynasty (1600-1045 BCE)
drought around 2000 BCE
bounced back fast with irrigation
center was Shandong province
communities became centralized → contact
between regions increased → trade increased
→link between north/south China
rulers promoted agricultural development
mainly agricultural society
rulers controlled their own farms, provide food straight
to royal family, wealthy surplusses
signature black pottery
jade
metal indsutry (copper)
pottery making
bronze metallurgy
bronze vessels were huge, wealthy royal family
could be made in pieces
inscribed images of importance
(usually pertains to certain ruler)
material culture
rulers supported craftworkers, controlled own lands
with resources
silk worms, raised pigs, dogs, sheep, oxen
walled villages
stories written on bamboo strips
→ bamboo annals
writing on tortoise shells
(oracle bone inscriptions)
burned deer bones- divination
rituals with jade axes
rituals- receive insight from ancestor
ancestoral worship
death rituals- sacrafice humans to accompany deceased
(family importance, patriarchy)
interpret tortoise shells, oracle bones
Di- founding ancestor
made calendars
marked stars (astronomy)
theocracy- leader derives authority through guidance of
ancestors and gods
Yu the Great- Xia Dynasty
evidence is sketchy
Tang- first ruler of Shang Dynasty
hereditary rulers
buried with chariots
territorial states centralized government
tributes government (feudalism-esque)
bureaucrats used written records oversee large
expanding population
wealthy powerful elite
intelectual achievements, particular aesthetics
received tribute from Elite, Allies, Commoners
commoners held lands as fiefs (under nobility)
surplus→royal families
artisians- valued, miners- laborers
ultimately crumbles, cannot escape invasion
bronze weapons- control access to bronze production,
prevented rivals from creating weapons
1200 BCE- chariots (status, wealth, power)
civilization- agriculture, settlement, surplusses,
division of labor, division of society
development of rulers, laws, cities
Mesopotamia "place between two rivers" Hunter Gatherers→Stone Age
Birth of Civilization
Bronze Age (3000-1200 BCE)
Tigris and Euphrates Rivers
wild and unpredictable, floods (rainfall)
dry in summer months
political protection for traders
safe trading routes
Stone Age (use of tools):
→ Paleolithic (old stone age) before 8000 BCE
→ Neolithic (new stone age) rise of agriculture
after 12000/8000 BCE
→Bronze Age (cities, birth of "civilization")
3000 BCE-1200 BCE
irrigation system- revolutionary
built levees, ditches, canals
Euphrates drained into the Tigris
Agricultural Revolutions- Neolithic Age
Early Settlements: (9000-8000 BCE)
shift to controlling , manipulating nature
produce food for themselves
domesticate animals- pastoralism(~5500 BCE)
bring within human domain (human control)
eventually settled agriculture
farmers and herders
development of mathematics
60-3-1-0-12 (legacies of Mesopotamia math)
hunted and gathered on a need basis
had tons of leisure time
only took around 3 hours to find food
gathering was important → women (at least)
valued equal to men
used stone tools to work fields
clay and stone pots, vessels to collect, store crops
(surplusses, trade)
woven baskets
city states of Sumer
cities were very large
cities were famous for temples- Ziggurat
center of cities
were built larger and larger
cave paintings- conscience of self
appreciation of beauty
manipulate information symbolically
spiritual purpose?
man living alongside animals/natural world?
artifice →art (human made, not natural)
learned irrigation
learned how to build walls with stones, etc.
started to settle in (permanent) villages,
expanded numbers
early homes, open spaces, communal spaces
circular→more egalitarian structures
rectangular→divided and separate
cuneiform, written on clay tablets
written records, laws, transmitted knowledge
gods rule over the cities, man was created to
serve gods
more female artifacts of females
fertility goddesses, etc.
celebrate rituals for good weather
→ successful harvest
sang, dance, sacraficed animals
each city had a patron/guardian deity
owned the city
Venus of Willendorf, Austria
25,000 years old
"original affluent society"
man vs nature- back and forth battle
division of labor- men do virile work (heavy
lifting), women do drudgery (repetitve tasks)
king is not divine (serves god)
nobes and priests
commoners
slaves
had a lot of time to relate to others
egalitarian society (even men/women)
women might have made larger contributions to
society then men
agricultural revolution→egalitarianism eroded
surplusses → specialization→social division
Neo-Assyrian Empire (912-612 BCE)
Rivers
Geography
Expansion ideology glorifying masters (themselves)
propoganda- justify its expansion
120k soldiers, annual campaign to west
brute force conquering, opposition was futile
brrutal exploitation of subjects, use of terror,
intimidation to crush adversaries
Agriculture deportations
conquered subjects relocated (undermine
rebellions) and forced to work the lands
Crafts and Trade iron age
chariots, siege towers, battering rams
Architecture
Land of Ashur- core of empire
king governed directly
inhabitants lived well, supply food, work at
temples, work as state officials
Land under Yoke of Ashur
outside of Assyria proper
inhabitants not considered Assyrians
local rulers hold power as subjects of Assyrians
had to provide massive amounts of tribute
program of forced Assyrianization
subordinates forced to accept culture
Language texts glorifying the king
Religion Ashur- god
images glorifying king and Assyrian army (success
of the empire)
deities
Rulers
Politics perfected techniques of imperial rule
raw military- constant/harsh warfare
much effort was put into maintaining military
appointed officials as provisional governments
overlooked territories, keep empire orderly
social classes
collapse empire overextends, territory too large
special
Ancient Israel(1200-587 BCE)
supposedly 2000-500 BCE
much of history from Hebrew Bible
nomadic people
story of nomadic people who occupied a part of
land between desert/Mediterranean Sea
periodically raided farms and villages of settled
people, eventually settled down, created a state
storied "Conquest of Canaan" (modern day
Israel/Palestine) 1250-1200
more likely no opposition
Abraham born in Ur in southern Mesopotamia
(2000 BCE), disgusted with idol worship
Settlement in Israel, drought, migration to Egypt
enslavement by Egyptians (1300 BCE)
Exodus and nomadic life in the desert
Ten Commandments
Israel promised to Abraham in covenant with
Yahweh
Yahweh makes coveneant with Israelites
become his chosen people, worship him
exclusively, development of monotheism
10 Commandments
early Israelites, belief in a god morphed over time
from cult of particular god into one god
Abraham, Isaac, Jacob leaders of early group
(nomadic herders)
Monarchy: Saul- first king of Israel (1020 BCE)
David- second king of Israel (1000-960 BCE)
unifies Israel, captures Jerusalem (capital)
Solomon- third king (960-920 BCE) even better
texts of hebrew bible are compliation of several
compliation of materials
originated with different groups, employed
distinctive vocabularies, offered particular
interpretations of past events
texts of today compiled 500 BCE
Cain and Able- nomadic herders vs farmers
Coalition of people invent common ancestry:
"children of israel"- divided into 12 tribes
descendents of Jacob/Joseph
history of ancient isrealites reflects a familiar
pattern in ancient middle east