mesopotamia & egypt notes guide - harrisonburg city...
TRANSCRIPT
Name __________________________ Day/Block ______
Mesopotamia & Egypt Notes Guide
SOL WHI.3 - The student will demonstrate knowledge of ancient river valley civilizations by... a) locating these civilizations in time and place
3500 to 500 BC 2000 to 500 BC
Mesopotamia = Tigris and Euphrates River Valleys (Southwest Asia)
Hebrews: between Mediterranean Sea and Jordan River Valley (Fertile Crescent in Southwest Asia)
Egypt = Nile River Valley and Delta (Africa) Phoenicians: Mediterranean coast
India = Indus River Valley (South Asia) Nubia = Upper (southern) Nile River (Africa)
China = Huang He (Yellow) River Valley (East Asia)
River Valleys offer good soil and water for farming; easily protected from invasion b) describing the development of social, political, and economic patterns, including slavery;
Social Political Economic
Hereditary Rulers (kept it in the family) = kings and pharaohs
First states (city-states -> kingdoms -> empires)
Use of metal for tools and weapons = better tools and weapons
Rigid class structure Centralized government – often based on religious authority
Better tools = farming surplus
Slavery was accepted Written law codes Increased trade = development of cities and slavery
c/d) explaining the development of religious tradition, including the origins, beliefs, traditions, customs, and spread of Judaism
Most early civilizations were polytheistic (believed in many gods)
Only monotheistic group was the Hebrews (developed Judaism = Jews)
Origins Beliefs/Traditions/Customs Spread
Abraham = first leader Monotheistic (believed in one god) Exile = kicked out of places
Moses = second leader Torah = holy book (written records and beliefs of Jews)
Diaspora = scattering of Jews from their homeland
Jerusalem = holy land Ten Commandments = written law code (moral and religious conduct)
e) explaining the development of language and writing
Pictograms = earliest written symbols
Hieroglyphics = Egypt
Cuneiform = Sumer
Alphabet = Phoenicia
SOL WHI.4 - The student will demonstrate knowledge of ancient river valley civilizations by... a) describing Persia, including Zoroastrianism and the development of imperial bureaucracy
Treated the people they conquered fairly
Developed an imperial bureaucracy (broke the empire up into provinces)
Built a road system
Practiced religion of Zoroastrianism
Timeline
5000 BC
3100 BC
3000 BC
2340 BC
2000 BC
1800 BC
1100 BC
800 BC
600 BC
538 BC
1600 BC
1200 BC
332 BC
Importance of River Valleys
River Valley = low-lying land formed by flowing water
- Offered fresh water, a source of food, good soil, system of irrigation - Locations were easily defended - Stimulated agriculture => led to first civilizations
What were the four major river valleys were civilizations first began?
Why are river valleys great places to form settlements/civilizations?
Mesopotamia (The Fertile Crescent)
Sumer was located between what two rivers?
Sumerians:
How did Sumerians use the rivers to their advantage?
Polytheistic =
What were Sumer’s temples called?
Women had some rights – property and business ownership!
Rulers
Why was the Code of Hammurabi significant? What happened to Babylon after Hammurabi died?
When Hammurabi died, Babylon lost
its power and Mesopotamia
returned to little independent city-
states
Assryian Empire
Assyrians:
What was different about the Assyrian Army?
What was Assurbanipal’s lasting legacy?
How did they make it easier to govern their large empire?
Why did the Assyrian Empire fall?
Chaldeans (NeoBabylonians): ***Neo = New!!
Cyrus the
Great
Used _________ for trade
Repleace __________ system
Made trade more
__________
How did the Persians treat the people they conquered?
Why would this make trade more fair?
Phoenicians: Instead of living in one place, the Phoenicians established _____________ around the Mediterranean
Phoenicians created the world’s first letter __________________. How did they spread their culture and alphabet?
Abraham
Hebrews:
Where did the Hebrews originate?
How did Moses help the Hebrews?
Which 2 Mesopotamian empires destroyed Israel/Judah?
**Egyptian history is divided into: Old, Middle, and New
Kingdoms
Pyramids = _____________ = Places to bury someone
How did Egyptians preserve bodies for the afterlife? What did Egyptians believe the afterlife was like?
What area to the south did Egypt expand into? What areas did they try to expand into with their military?
What was significant about Hatshepsut?