1. Chapter 1 – From Human Prehistory to Early Civilizations

2. With members of your POD discussion the following: (if I do NOT hear and see groups talking about the answers, I will require written responses)(Goal is for everyone to talk!)
What advantages does an agriculturally based society have over a hunter gatherer based society?
Compared to non-civilized societies, what are the major drawbacks of civilization?
Why is the development of writing important in the history of the river valley civilizations?
Why was Jewish monotheism a significant development in the religious history of early civilizations?

3. Rise of Civilization 4th Millennium BCE
New discoveries transformed permanent settlements into civilizations
Bronze
Writing
First civilization emerged in Mesopotamia (modern day Iraq) c BCE

4. The 4 Initial Centers of Civilization
Starting around 3500 B.C.E., major civilization developed in 4 initial centers:
3500 BCE - Mesopotamia – Tigris & Euphrates Rivers
3000 BCE - Egypt – Nile River
2500 BCE - India - Indus River
2200 BCE - China - Huang He (Yellow) River
These were the most densely populated parts of the world.

5. Other Areas Of Civilization
The Americas:
Olmecs, Mayans, & Aztecs
Located in Mesoamerica (present day Central America Mexico)
Incas
Located in South America in/near the Andes Mountains (present day Ecuador & Peru)

6. The Initial Centers

7. Mesopotamia Mesopotamia means “land between rivers.”
Refers to this area being between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.
Also referred to as the “Fertile Crescent”
Farming in this area required communication & coordination between communities, thus leading to beginnings of complex political structure.
Mesopotamia was familiar w/ bronze and copper (metals); also had invented the wheel for transportation

8. Mesopotamia Sumerians were first to invade this region .
Developed a cuneiform alphabet (first known case of human writing)
alphabet used pictures to represent objects; later shifted to geometric shapes to symbolize spoken sounds.

9. Cuneiform Writing

10. Mesopotamia Sumerians: Developed complex religious rituals
Massive towers were the first monumental architecture for this civilization
Sumerians were polytheistic – they believed in multiple gods. (monotheistic = belief in one god).
They believed in the divine force of “natural” objects (nature; examples: trees, mountains, rivers)

11. Ancient Sumerian Ziggurat
Ziggurat – temple; “mountain of the Gods”

12. Mesopotamia Sumerians:
Political structure: tightly organized city-states ruled by a king who claimed divine authority.
Sumerian states had strict boundaries.
Government helped regulate religion.
This region was hard to defend from outsiders

13. Mesopotamia Babylonians:
Extended their own empire into the Middle East.
King Hammurabi introduced the most famous early “code of law” (Hammurabi’s Code).
Hammurabi’s Code established rules of procedure for courts of law, regulated property rights, and regulated the duties of family members.
Example: “If the slave of a free man strikes the cheek of a free man, they shall cut off the slaves ear.”
Other examples on page #18 of your textbook

14. Babylonian Empire

15. Hammurabi’s Code

16. Babylonian Numbers

17. Egyptian Civilization
Northeast Africa along the Nile River
Civilization formed by 3000 B.C.E.
Egyptians benefited from the trade and influence of Mesopotamia  DIFFUSION of ideas/technology!
Egypt not as open to invasion as Mesopotamia.

18. Egyptian Civilization – cont.
Political strutcure:
Pharaoh (king) had immense power = “god-like” status
Pharaoh’s built tombs for themselves (The Pyramids!)
Government controlled the economy
Egyptian science or alphabet was NOT as elaborate as Mesopotamia, though mathematics was more advanced.
Egyptians produced the idea that a “day” was divided in to 24 hours.

19. Ancient Egyptian Pharaohs

20. Ancient Egyptian Pyramids

22. Indian & Chinese Civilizations
Civilization emerged along the Indus River by 2500 B.C.E.
Several large cities, including Harappa & Mohenjo-Daro
Trading with Mesopotamia
Had own alphabet and art forms
Invasions by Indo-Europeans resulted in destruction of this culture, so we know little about their ancient nature or influence on India! 

23. Indian & Chinese Civilizations
China:
Civilization along the Yellow River (Huang He River)
Isolated from the rest; though there was some trading w/ India & Mesopotamia
Learned how to ride horses and were skilled in pottery.
Already were using bronze (metal) and by 1000 B.C.E. were using iron.
Most people lived in small houses made of mud bricks.
By 1500 B.C.E. the Shang dynasty ruled over this area.

24. Conclusion
By 1000 B.C.E. most river valley civilizations had declined.
Introduced us to: invention of the wheel, monuments (Pyramids), taming of the horse, alphabets and writing (communication), mathematic concepts, functional calendars and divisions of “time,” and the development of organized monarchies and bureaucracies. 