1. Ancient Near East: The First Civilizations
Chapter 1
Ancient Near East:
The First Civilizations

2. The First Humans
Historians primarily use documents to create their pictures of the past, but no written records exist for pre-history
Prehistory relies on archeological & biological findings
Earliest human-like creatures (hominids) existed in Africa as early as 3-4 million yrs ago (Australopithecines)
1.5 million yrs ago Homo Erectus (upright human being) appeared
Used more varied tools & 1st hominid to leave Africa for Europe & Asia
250,000 yrs ago Homo Sapiens appear
100,000 B.C. – Neanderthals & Homo Sapiens Sapiens (1st anatomically modern human)
By 30,000 B.C., Homo Sapiens Sapiens had replaced Neanderthals
10,000 B.C. – H.S.S could be found all over the world

3. Hunter Gatherers of the Old Stone Age
Paleolithic (Greek for “old stone”) Age is the name for the earliest period of human history (2.5 mil – 10,000 BC)
Spent most of their time hunting, migrating with the herds of wild animals
500,000 BC – estimated beginning of systematic use of fire
Food can be cooked & used for light & warmth
The Neolithic Revolution (10,000 BC – 4,000 BC)
The last ice age ended 10,000 BC and with it came great change in the living patterns of early man
Shift away from hunting-gathering
Development of systematic agriculture
Taming of animals
Once sustainable food sources developed, permanent settlements appear & more complex societies develop

4. Emergence of Civilization
civilization – a complex culture in which large numbers of human beings share a variety of common elements
Characteristics of a civilization:
An urban focus
Distinct religious structure
Political & military structures
Social structure (usually based on economic power)
Development of a system of writing
Development of new forms of intellectual & artistic activity
Egypt & Mesopotamia were the forerunners of Western civilization but 4 other civilizations developed in other regions around the world 4,000-5,000 yrs ago
Indus River Valley, Yellow River (China), Central Asia (modern Turkmenistan) & Supe River Valley (Peru)

5. Civilization in Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia – valley between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, Greek for “land between the rivers”
The founders of Mesopotamian civilization were the Sumerians
~3000 B.C. – several independent cities had formed; as the cities grew, they held economic & political power over the surrounding countryside (forming city-states)
Sumerian cities were walled to protect from invasion, buildings were formed from mud bricks
Each city was believed to be owned by a specific god or goddess
The ziggurat (stepped temple) dominated the city
Sumerian city-states were effectively theocracies
As time passed, the priests’ ruling power was shared with a king

6. Empires of Ancient Mesopotamia
~2340 B.C. – the Akkadian king, Sargon, attacked the Sumerian city-states from the north
The Akkadians are referred to as the Semitic people b/c of the languages they spoke (p.9)
Sargon conquered all of Mesopotamia and west to the Mediterranean
After his death, Semitic lands were conquered by 2100 B.C.
Hammurabi’s Empire
Babylonian king, Hammurabi ( BC) reunited Sumer & Akkad
Best known for his code of law (The Code of Hammurabi p10)
“Eye for an eye”
Religion (p.12) polytheistic, poor outlook of the afterlife

7. oldest examples of Sumerian writing date to 3000 BC
Called cuneiform, used pictograms
Only a very few were trained to write since it took so long to master
Literature was used for instructional purposes
Epic of Gilgamesh
Gilgamesh, historic Sumerian ruler 2700 BC
Seems to be part historical truth, part legend
Very pessimistic work
Projects the gods as vengeful and enemies of man
Raises questions about man’s mortality
Part of the story shares similarities with the biblical story of Noah

8. Egyptian Civilization
Ancient Egypt developed along the same time as Mesopotamian civilization along the Nile River
The Nile runs out of central Africa north for 1,000 miles to the Mediterranian
Flooding of the Nile was gradual & predictable, making farming and living easier than in Mesopotamia
Roughly 75% of the pop of Egypt existed in the Nile Delta
Because of the predictability of the annual flooding, Egyptians had a more optimistic outlook on the stability of life

9. The Old & Middle Kingdoms
Basic framework of Egyptian history provided by Manetho, an Egyptian priest of the 3rd cent BC
Divided the history of the civilization into four periods
Old Kingdom – ( BC)
Middle Kingdom – ( BC)
New Kingdom – ( BC)
Late Period – ( BC)
3100 BC – Upper and Lower Egypt united under Menes
Old Kingdom (3-6 dynasties)
age of great prosperity
greatest of the pyramids were built
pharaohs seen as gods
Had absolute rule but had to rule by ma’at (justice & truth)
Vizier ran the bureaucracy & nomarchs served as governors

10. Nomarchs could sometimes amass power that rivaled that of the pharaoh
The first Intermediate period resulted from rivalries
The Middle Kingdom (dynasties 11-12)
Egyptians viewed the Middle Kingdom as a “golden age” of stability
The view of pharaoh changed from god-king to a guide/shepherd of the people
Period when Egypt begins imperial expansion (Nubia, Near East)
Society & Economy
Pharaoh – theoretically owned all of Egypt
Nobles and Priests – ran the govt & performed religious rituals
Merchants & Artisans – traders and craftsmen that sold goods all up & down the Nile
Farmers – paid taxes through crops & provided military service & labor for building projects

11. Culture of Egypt Spiritual Life Pyramids
Egyptians had no word for religion b/c it was such a big part of all other aspects of life
Sun and land gods were especially revered
Re – sun god, pharaoh referred to as “son of Re”
Osiris – judge of the dead; Book of the Dead (p. 20)
Pyramids
1st pyramid for Djoser (3rd Dyn)
Giza for Snefru, Khafre, Khufu
Tomb & symbol of royal power

12. Egyptian art was functional, not just decoration
Art & Writing
Egyptian art was functional, not just decoration
Wall paintings and statues of gods & pharaohs strictly spiritual in purpose
Murals in tombs suppose to guide the soul into the afterlife
Writing emerged in Egypt during the 1st or 2nd dynasty
Greeks later named it hieroglyphics “priest-carvings”
New Kingdom (dynasties 18-20)
During this time, Egypt became the most powerful empire of the ancient Near East
Reached its height under Amenhotep III ( BC)
His son Amenhotep IV created religious upheaval when he closed temples and abolished the gods, declaring a monotheistic religion
Change d his name to Ahkenaten “servant of Aten”
After his death, the old religion reinstated by Tutankhamen
Daily Life (p )

13. On the Fringes of Civilization
Farming had spread into the Balkan Peninsula by 6500 BC
By 4000 BC it had spread to southern France
At the same time, Europeans were building megaliths (similar to Stonehenge) a thousand years before the Egyptians were building pyramids
Stonehenge itself was built BC
The 80 standing stones were 4 ton each & were transported 135 miles to the construction site
The term Indo-European refers to people who shared a parent tongue (Greek, Latin, Persian, Sanskrit & Germanic)
First Indo-Europeans based around modern Iran or Afgahnistan
Those that settled in Asia Minor formed the first Hittite kingdom
Hittite Empire formed around 1400 BC
First Indo-Europeans to use iron, fought with Egypt until Ramses II worked out a treaty
By 1190, Hittite power ended; but good example of assimilating aspects of other cultures into their own