Western Asia and Egypt, 3500-500 BCE

Civilization Begins in Mesopotamia

Objectives: 1.Explain how geography affected the civilizations in Mesopotamia 2. Describe Sumerian city-states and Sumerian forms of communication that affect our lives today

The Impact of Geography

The *Tigris and *Euphrates Rivers create the *Mesopotamia river valley (between the rivers) The land was at the eastern end of the *Fertile Crescent Little rain in the region, but its soil had been enriched over the years by layers of silt The Tigris and Euphrates often overowed their banks and deposited fertile silt

People in the valley could not predict the ooding of the river Farming could only be accomplished through irrigation and drainage ditches Abundance of food enabled the development of large civilizations in Mesopotamia: Assyrians, Akkadians, *Sumerians

The City-States of Ancient Mesopotamia By 3000 BCE, independent cities emerged in southern Mesopotamia in Erifu, Ur, and *Uruk *citystates, the basic units of Sumerian civilization

Sumerian Cities Although Mesopotamia had little stone or wood for building purposes but used mud brick They invented the arch and the dome

Gods, Goddesses, and Rulers

The most prominent building was the temple, dedicated to the chief god or goddess of the city *ziggurattemple atop a massive stepped tower The temples and related building served as the center of the city physically, economically, and politically *theocracya government by divine authority; Kings derived their power from the divinities

The peoples of Mesopotamia were well known for their metalwork woolen textiles, and pottery The Sumerians imported copper, tin, and timber in exchange for dried sh, wool, barley, wheat, and metal goods The invention of the wheel, around 3000 BCE, led to wheeled carts 90% or more of the people were farmers

Economy and Society

Empires in Ancient Mesopotamia

As city-states expanded, new conicts arose, ghting over control of land and water. Due to the at land of Mesopotamia, the region was open to invasion from all directions To the north, the *Akkadians, a semitic people, expanded under *Sargon c. 2340 BCEoverrunning Sumerian city-states, establishing the rst *empire (a large political unit or state under a single leader)

Attacks from neighboring hill people led to the collapse of the Akkadian Empire, leading to a warring city-state period By 1792 BCE, new leadership emerged from *Babylon and the ruler *Hammurabi

Code of Hammurabi *The Code of Hammurabi was based on a system of strict justice. Penalties for criminal offenses were were severe, and they varied according to the social class of the victim an eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth The largest category of laws in the Code of Hammurabi focused on marriage and the family *patriarchal Mesopotamian society

The Importance of Religion

The physical environment strongly affected the way Mesopotamians viewed the world Powerful spiritual beings permeated all aspects of the universe3,000 gods and goddesses (*polytheistic) Humans were created to serve the gods

The Creativity of the Sumerians The Sumerians created many inventions that still affect our lives today Around 3000 BCE, the Sumerians created a *cuneiform (wedge-shaped) system of writing impressions made on clay tablets Writing was important because it allowed a society to keep records and to pass along knowledge

Development of Writing

Writing also made it possible for people to communicate ideas in new ways. This is especially evident in *The Epic of Gilgamesh The narrative and effort of nding immortality

Sumerian Technology The Sumerians were the rst to make bronze out of copper and tin, creating nely crafted metalwork Mathematics and astronomy were also major areas of study

Objectives: 1.Explain how geography affected the civilizations in Mesopotamia 2. Describe Sumerian city-states and Sumerian forms of communication that affect our lives today

Egyptian Civilization: The Gift of the Nile

Objectives: 1.Specify why the Nile was crucial to the development of Egyptian civilization 2. Identify the three major periods of Egyptian history

The Impact of Geography

The *Nile is the longest river in the world (more than 4,000 miles) The Nile Delta is called *Lower Egypt and to the south *Upper Egypt Egypt is important cities developed at the delta The miracle of the Nilethe river rose in the summer from heavy rains in central Africa, reaching its zenith in September and October black land and red land

The Nile was the fastest way to travel through the land, making transportation and communication easier Natural Barriers surrounded Egypt, protecting it from external invasion (unlike Mesopotamia) The regularity of the ooding of the Nile created a sense of security and changelessness

The Importance of Religion

Religion was inseparable from normal life and the entire structure of Egyptian society The Sun, often seen as the source of all life, was worshiped Osiris, Isis, and Seta narrative of resurrection

The Course of Egyptian History

Modern division of Egyptian historyOld Kingdom, Middle Kingdom, and New Kingdom Between the period of stability, political chaos and invasion dominated The history of Egypt begins in 3100 BCE, *Menes united the upper and lower kingdoms of Egypt through battle A *dynasty, a family of rulers whose right to rule is passed on within the family, emerged in Egypt

The Old Kingdom, From 2700 to 2200 BCE Egyptian monarchs, called *Pharaoh (great house or palace) emerged Kingship was a divine institution and the pharaoh possessed absolute power During the Old Kingdom, a government of *bureaucracy (an administrative organization with ofcials and regular procedures) developed *vizier (steward of the whole land of ran the government bureaucracy

The Pyramids
The building of pyramids in the Old Kingdom served as burial sites for pharaohs and their families and servants Stocked with supplies, including chairs, boats, chests, weapons, and foods for when the pharaohs spiritual body (ka) returns to his physical body To preserve the physical body, Egyptians practiced *mummication

The largest and most magnicent of all the pyramids was built under King Khufu *Giza Guarding the Great Pyramid at Giza is a huge statue carved from rock called the Great Sphinxthese served as important symbol of royal power

The Middle Kingdom

After a collapsed, a period of stability emerged from 2050 to 1652 BCE Egypt began a period of expansion, conquering Nubia to the south, Palestine, and Syria Major trade emerged with Kush, Syria, Mesopotamia, and Crete In the Old Kingdom, pharaoh was seen as a god-king. In the Middle, he was seen as a shepherdcaring for his people and provided public works

The New Kingdom

The Middle Kingdom came to an end in 1652 BCE with the invasion of Egypt by the *Hyksos They used horse-drawn war chariots dominated the Egyptian soldiers From the Hyksos, the Egyptians learned to use bronze for farming tools and weapons The new dynasty, in the wake of the Hyksos, used these weapons to reunite Egypt; This expanded empire lasted from 1567 to 1085

*Hatshepsutthe rst woman to become pharaohbuilt a great temple at Deir el Bahri, though she was not well received Amenhotep IV introduced the worship of a new and monotheistic god named Aton, changing his name to *Akhenaton and closed the old temples *Tutankhamen, after his fathers death, restored the old gods

Religious revolution weakened the Egyptian empire. Under *Ramses II (1279-1213), the Egyptians expanded once again Sea-peoples attacked Egypt at this time and ended the Egyptian empire Egypt was dominated by Libyans, Nubians, Persians, and Macedonians conquered Egypt during the following 1000 years

Society in Ancient Egypt

Egyptian society maintained a simple structure with pharaoh at the peak with the rest supporting him Agriculture, heavy trade, and Egyptian artisans dominatedstone dishes, papyrus paper, linen clothes Most of the lower classes were peasants who farmed the land

Daily Life in Ancient Egypt Monogamy was the general rule, but polygamy occurred Womens property and inheritance stayed in the hands of women Parents arranged marriages for their childrenthe chief purpose was to produce children 12 to 14 was the common age of marriage

Writing and Education Writing in Egypt emerged around 3000 BCE*hieroglyphics (priest-carvings or sacred writings) *Hieratic script emerged a highly simplied version of hieroglyphics Of these were carved into stone and written on papyrus

Achievements in Art and Science

The human body was often portrayed as a combination of prole, semi-prole, and frontal view to accurately represent each part The Egyptians developed an accurate 365-day calendar by basing their year not only on the movements of the moon, but also the bright star Sirius The practice of embalming led to medical expertise in human anatomy

Objectives: 1.Specify why the Nile was crucial to the development of Egyptian civilization 2. Identify the three major periods of Egyptian history

New Centers of Civilization

Objectives: 1.Explain how the decline of the Hittites and Egyptians allowed a number of kingdoms and city-states to emerge 2. Discuss the world religion of Judaism, which inuenced the later religions of Christianity and Islam

The Role of Nomadic Peoples

On the fringes of these civilizations lived nomadic peoples who depended on hunting and gathering still *Pastoral nomads domesticated animals for both food and clothing. They moved along regular migratory routes Nomads often passed on new technological developments, such as the use of bronze and iron

The *Indo-Europeans were one of the most important nomadic peoples; languages Greek, Latin, Persian, Sanskrit, and the Germanic language One group, the *Hittites, created an empire in western Asia between 1600 to 1200 BCE The Hittites were the rst of the Indo-European peoples to make use of ironstronger and cheaper due to the widespread availability of iron ore

The Sea Peoples destroyed the Hittite Empire This allowed a number of small kingdoms and citystates to emerge With the collapse of the Hittite kingdom allowed a number of small kingdoms and city-states to emerge

The Phoenicians
Trade was the basis of Phoenician prosperity, establishing port cities along the eastern Mediterranean cost Purple dye, glass, and lumber from the cedar forests of Lebanonmajor items of trade They charted new trade routes into the Atlantic Ocean, Britain, and down the coast of Africa Carthage, in North Africa, is their most famous colony

The Phoenician alphabet, symbols which represented sounds which, when combined together created words, was the foundation of language for the Greeks and Romans

The Children of Israel

Abraham called out from Ur in Mesopotamia Nomadic husbandry, drought, and Egypt Moses and the Exodus The establishment of the Hebrew kingdom

Kingship, Expansion, and Collapse as the Assyrian empire expanded into Palestine The Chaldeans defeated Assyria, conquered the kingdom of Judah, and destroyed Jerusalem in 586 BCE Babylonian captivity and the return from the exile

Objectives: 1.Explain how the decline of the Hittites and Egyptians allowed a number of kingdoms and city-states to emerge 2. Discuss the world religion of Judaism, which inuenced the later religions of Christianity and Islam

The Rise of New Empires

Objectives: 1.Describe the rise of the Assyrian and Persian Empires, which eventually overshadowed the Hittites and Egyptians 2. Summarize how the Persian Empire brought many years of peace to Southwest Asia, increasing trade and the general wellbeing of its people

The Assyrian Empire

The *Assyrians were a Semitic-speaking people who exploited the use of iron weapons to establish an empire by 700 BCE The *Assyrian Empire included Mesopotamia, parts of the Iranian Plateau, sections of Asia Minor, Syria, Palestine, and Egypt down to Thebes In 612 BCE, the empire fell to a coalition of Chaldeans and Medes

The Assyrians also developed an efcient system of communication to administer their empire. A network of posts was established throughout the empire that used relays of horses to carry messages The Assyrians had the rst large armies equipped with iron weapons The Assyrians used terror as an instrument of warfare, laying waste to the land, smashing dams, burned crops, deforested fruit trees

The Persian Empire The Assyrian Empire collapsed under the Chaldeans
Nebuchadnezzar II rebuilt Babylon as the center of his empire but this resurgence never lasted

The Rise of the Persian Empire

The *Persians were an IndoEuropean people who lived in modern day Iran *Cyrus created a powerful Persian state that stretched from Asia Minor to western India Cyrus the Great (559-530 BCE) had a reputation for mercy. Medes, Babylonians, and Jews all accepted him as their ruler

Cyruss successors extended the territory of the *Persian Empire *Darius (521 to 486 BCE) added a new Persian province in Western India that extended to the Indus Riveralso making conquest in Europe, Thrace, and Greece

The Structure of the Persian Empire

Darius strengthened the Persian government, dividing the territory into 20 provinces (*satraies) and governed by a *satrap The *Royal Road stretched from Lydia to Susa, the chief capital of the empire The Persians set up way stations that provided food and shelter

The Great King held the power of life and death The Persian army was unmatched in size, commanding tens of thousands *Immortalsan elite infantry force

The Fall of the Persian Empire

After Darius, the Persian kings became more and more isolated at their courts Struggles over the throne weakened the *monarchy Persian kings had many wives and many childrenArtaxerxes had 115 sons Due to many heirs, bloody struggles for the throne weakened the empire

Persian Religion
Zoroastrianism was founded by *Zoroaster in c. 660 BCE, having received a vision which made him a prophet of the true religion Zend Avestathe sacred textbook of Zoroastrianism Ahuramazda was the supreme god who created all thingsa monotheistic god Ahriman, an evil spirit over whom Ahuramazda would triumph over

Objectives: 1.Describe the rise of the Assyrian and Persian Empires, which eventually overshadowed the Hittites and Egyptians 2. Summarize how the Persian Empire brought many years of peace to Southwest Asia, increasing trade and the general wellbeing of its people