Early Empires of the Mediterranean

Pastoral Nomads Outside of Mesopotamia & Egypt lived nomadic peoples who still depended on hunting and gathering. Most important were the pastoral nomads. They domesticated and herded their own animals, but moved them throughout the year to places where there was more food.

Pastoral Nomads Pastoral nomads carried goods and products between different civilizations, thereby helping the spread of ideas and technology. - Example: bronze and iron weapons, that were then used to strengthen other civilizations. Bronze swords Iron swords

Hittite Empire Created their empire between 1600BC-1200BC. Located in present-day Turkey. They threatened the power and trading abilities of the Egyptians. Known for being the 1 st civilization to use iron for weapons. – Unfortunately ~1200BC the Hittites were attacked by the “Sea Peoples” and were destroyed.

The Phoenicians Located on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. – Very thin area of land that is present-day Jordan. After the downfall of the Hittites and Egyptians the Phoenicians were independent of restrictions and able to expand their trading empire.

The Phoenicians Most important cities were on the coast – Byblos, Tyre, and Sidon. They built great ships and were famous international traders. – They dominated trade routes in the whole Mediterranean. Their most famous trading colony was at Carthage, which is on the North African coast.

The Phoenicians Goods they produced for trade: – Purple dye – Glass – Lumber – Metals – Wine – Slaves Greeks & Romans called them the “traders in purple” since they had most of the powder and dye required to make the color.

The Phoenicians Best known for their alphabet! Used 22 signs to represent the SOUNDS of their speech. – Put them together to spell the words of the language. Their alphabet eventually passed on to the Greeks, and the Greek alphabet went on to the Romans. – We still use the Roman alphabet today!

The Israelites Lived south of the Phoenicians in what is present-day Palestine & Israel. Known for their religion – Judaism – which will later influence Christianity & Islam. Their history and religious beliefs are recorded in the Hebrew Bible (the Torah), which is called the “Old Testament” by Christians. - Believed to be the descendants of a man named Abraham. Because of drought they moved to Egypt, but were enslaved due to their rejection of Egyptian religion. They remained enslaved until they were led out of Egypt by Moses. - Then they wandered the desert for 40 years until returning home.

The Israelites After returning to their homeland the Jews made the Kingdom of Israel and placed the city of Jerusalem as the capital. After the death of King Solomon the kingdom split in two, and Jerusalem was eventually destroyed in 586 BC. – The Jews were once again forced to move about the Middle East at the mercy of powerful empires. A Persian king will allow the Jews to return to their homeland and rebuild Jerusalem.

The Israelites - Judaism The world’s first monotheistic religion (believing in one God). The name in Hebrew is “Yahweh.” Sacred Texts – Torah (Old Testament) – Ten Commandments are found in the books of Exodus & Deuteronomy.

The Israelites - Judaism Beliefs: – There is only one God. – God is always right and always good. – It is your responsibility to have a relationship with God and live a proper and appropriate life. – The Ten Commandments are a covenant (contract) between humans and God. Impact: – The Ten Commandments are the basis for most modern laws – Influenced Christianity and Islam