Download Chapter 2

Western Asia and Egypt
3500-500 BC
What was the fertile
crescent?
 Located in
what is now
southern
Iraq
 Mesopotamia- land between the Tigris and Euphrates
Rivers
 Fertile Crescent- arc of land from Mediterranean to Persian
Gulf
 Rich soil and abundant crops
 Fertile due to layers of silt deposited by 2 rivers during
flood
 Because floods unpredictable, people learned to control
river through irrigation and drainage ditches
 3 main areas: Assyria, Akkad, Sumer (Sumerians)
 Physical environment affected view of the world-
thought unreliable supernatural forces controlled
world
 People looked to religion to answer questions
 1000’s of gods/goddesses- polytheistic
 Humans were supposed to serve and obey gods
 Origins of Sumerian people a mystery
 By 3000 BC est independent cities in southern
Mesopotamia
 Surrounded by walls & built of sun-dried bricks
 City included
 Small peasant houses
 Large buildings for priests and city officials
 Living in city-state gave people sense of identity
 Sumerians created the arch and the dome
 Temple dedicated to chief god or goddess of city built atop
ziggurat- massive stepped tower
 People devoted much time and wealth to building temples
and elaborate houses for priests and priestess
 Temple served as center of city physically, emotionally,
economically and politically
 Stored surplus food for distribution
 Gov’t was a theocracy-divine authority b/c believed gods
ruled the city
 Believed kings derived power from gods
 Economy based on trade and industry
 Made woolen textiles, pottery, metalwork
 Sumerians discovered tin + copper= bronze
 Bartered wool, barley, dried fish, metal goods, ect for
imported copper, tin and timber
 Invention of wheel (3000 BC) made transportation
easier
 3 major social groups
 Nobles: royals, priestly officials and
family
 Commoners: farmers, merchants,
craftspeople fishers for palace and
temple estates
 Slaves: palace officials used in building
projects- females used for weaving and
grinding grain
What is a technological
innovation our generation will
be credited with?
Sumerians, Akkadians and Babylonians
 Cuneiform: wedge-shaped style of writing
 Made impressions on clay using reeds
 Dried out tablets in the sun-source of info
 Scribe-key to successful career
 Hold most important positions
 Went to school
 Writing allowed society to keep records
 Also communicate new ideas- ‘The Epic of Gilgamesh’
 Wagon wheel-transportation
 Potter’s wheel-shape containers
 Sundial-keep time
 Number system
 Geometry to measure fields
 Astronomy-charted constellations
 Akkadians- north of the Sumerian city-
states
 2340 BC Sargon, Akkadian leader, overran
Sumerians and set up first empire in world
history
 Empire: large political unit or state
 2100 BC Akkadian empire fell from attacks
 In Babylon, Hammurabi came to power
 Gained control of Sumer and Akkad- new
Mesopotamian kingdom
 Code of Hammurabi- strict justice
 Penalties severe and varied according to social class
 Retaliation was a fundamental part of the system
 Duties of public officials very serious
 Officials who failed to solve crimes had to make
personal restitution
 Sumer-Protection Laws
 Builders held responsible for buildings

 Marriage and Family- largest amount of laws
 Parents arranged marriages for children and then signed
marriage contract
 Man-dominated society
 Woman’s place was in the home- could be divorced or
drowned for not fulfilling duties or humiliating husband
 Fathers strict with children- could be disinherited
 Begins in Africa and flows
North
 World’s longest river
 Splits into 2 before hitting
the Mediterranean
 Nile Delta- Lower Egypt
 Land to the south- Upper
Egypt
 Yearly flooding was the “miracle” of the Nile
 Deposit of mud known as the “Black Land”
 River unified- transportation and communication
 Fastest way to travel
 Natural barriers (security)
 Deserts to West and East, Red Sea to East and
Mediterranean Sea to North
 These factors provided sense of security and
continuity
 Polytheistic
 Two groups of gods
 Sun
 Land
 Sun god
 Sun seen as source of life
 God took on different
forms and names based
on role
 Re
 Land gods
 Included Osiris and Isis
 Osiris-symbol of
resurrection/rebirth
 Egypt identified with
him in hopes of gaining
life after death
How does wealth or
social status affect
lifestyle?
 Simple structure- pharaoh at the top
 Upper class
 Nobles and priests
 Ruling class
 Ran gov’t and managed their own estates ($$)
 Middle class




Merchants, artisans, scribes and tax collectors
Middle-class homes in city were comfortable
Merchants engaged in trade on Nile and international
Artisans: stone dishes, wood furniture, gold/silver/copper
tools, papyrus paper and rope
 Lower class
 Biggest
 Worked the land
 Paid taxes in form of crops
 Live in small villages
 Provided military service and forced
labor for building projects
 Married young (girls 12, boys 14) and established homes
and family
 Monogamy was general rule but husband could have
multiple wives if first wife childless
 Husband was master of house but wife well respected
 Wives in charge of house and educating children
 Women’s property and inherence stayed in their hands-
even in marriage
 Careers and public offices closed to women BUT some
women operated business and 4 queens became
pharaohs
 Parents arranged marriages for children- mainly
concerned with family and property
 Main purpose of marriage was children- esp sons
 Tomb paintings show close and affectionate
relationships between parents and sons and
daughters
 Marriages could end in divorce with compensation
for the wife
 Hieroglyphics- “sacred writings”
 Complex- learning and writing took time and skill
 Hieratic script- simplified version of hieroglyphics
 Simplified using dashes, strokes and curves
 Used for business transactions, record keeping and daily life
 First carved in stone then written on papyrus
 Scribes
 Age 10 upper class boys went to school run by scribes
 Learned to read and write- strict and took many years
 Pyramids, temples and monuments show artistic and
architectural achievements
 Sculptors followed particular formulas in style
 Human body often portrayed profile, semi-profile and frontal
view
 Advances in mathematics
 Calculate area and volume and geometry to survey flood land
 Developed accurate calendar- 365 days based on
movements of moon and stars
 Embalming led to expertise in human anatomy-
archeologists have discovered directions from doctors
Why are residents of a
community sometimes
suspicious or hostile to
strangers?
 People who domesticate animals for food and clothing
 Moves along regular migratory routes to provide a steady
source of nourishment for those animals
 Their relations with civilized society…
 Viewed nomads as hostile and barbaric
 Traded animals and animal products for
grains/vegetables they were unable to grow
 Carried products between civilized centers- new
technology
 If overpopulation or drought disrupted normal patterns,
often attacked cities for relief
 One of most important nomadic people
 Name refers to people who spoke a language derived
from a single parent tongue (Greek, Latin, Persian,
Sanskrit, Germanic)
 Originated in Black Sea or Southwest Asia
 2000 BC moved into Europe, India, western Asia
 Created empire in western Asia and threatened
Egyptian power
 First Ind0-Europeans to use iron
 Destroyed in 1200 BC by “Sea Peoples”
 End of Hittites and weak Egypt left no dominant
powers in western Asia
 Allowed small kingdoms and city states to emerge
 Lived in area of Palestine
 After downfall of Egyptians and Hittites- newfound
political independence helped them to expand trade
 Basis of their prosperity
 Chief cities of Byblos, Tyre & Sidon were ports on eastern
Mediterranean
 Produced purple dye, glass, lumber
 Built ships-strong in sea trade
 Eventually created trade empire
 Charted new routes- reached Britain and west coast of Africa
 Best known for their alphabet
 Simplified writing by using 22 different signs to
represent sounds of their speech
 All 22 could be used to spell out all the words in the
Phoenician language
 Important because passed on to the Greeks
What are pastoral nomads?
How did they affect settled
peoples?
How did the Phoenicians
influence Americans today?
 South of the Phoenicians
 Minor political factor BUT religion flourished and
influenced Islam and Christianity
 History and beliefs written down in the Hebrew Bible
(Old Testament)
 Descendants of Abraham-migrated from Mesopotamia
to Canann
 Lifestyle based on grazing animals rather than farming
 Because of drought moved to Egypt and were enslaved
until Moses led them out
 King David (1010-970
BC) est control over
present day Israel and
made Jerusalem capital
 His son, King Solomon,
expanded army and
encouraged tradeancient Israel reached
height of power
 After death of King Solomon tension among
tribes led to creation of two separate
kingdoms
 Kingdom of Israel-10 northern tribes,
captial- Samaria
 Kingdom of Judah- 2 tribes, captial-
Jerusalem
 722/721 BC Assyrians overran Kingdom of Israel sending
tribes to other parts of Assyrian empire
 “Ten lost tribes” merged with neighboring peoples and
lost identity
 Chaldeans destroyed Kingdom of Judah in 586 BC
 Captives sent to Babylonia
 Exile from their homeland is called Diaspora
 Eventually Persians allowed people of Judah to return to
Jerusalem and rebuild
 Monotheistic
 Covenant, law and prophets- 3 aspects of Jewish
religious tradition
 Ten Commandments
 Age of Prophecy
Why do you think a country
that is good at fighting might
not be good at ruling?
 Semitic- speaking people who used iron to est an
empire in 700 BC
 Empire included: Mesopotamia, Iran, Asia Minor,
Syria, Israel, Egypt
 At it’s height ruled by kings whose power seen as
absolute
 Under leadership empire became well organized
 Local officials responsible to king
 Developed efficient system of communication (horses to
carry messages- within 1 week)
 Strong at conquering- developed effective military
leaders and fighters
 Army was large, well organized & disciplined
 Layout
 Infantrymen at core
 Cavalrymen and war chariots used to shoot arrows
 Equipped with iron weapons
 Variety of tactics
 Guerrilla warfare in mountains
 Battles on open ground
 Lay siege to cities (battering rams & siege towers)- tunnel
under
 Terror used as part of warfare





Smashed dams
Looted & destroyed towns
Set crops on fire
Cut down trees (fruit)
Poor treatment of prisoners
 Empire fell in 612 BC to Chaldeans and Meads
 After collapse of Assyrian Empire the Chaldean king
Nebuchadnezzar II made Babylonia leading state
 Persians: Indo-Europeans from southwest Iran
 Nomadic but unified under Cyrus (559-539 BC)
 “Cyrus the Great”
 Demonstrated wisdom, compassion and organization
 Respect for other civilizations (Jews)
 Darius (521-486 BC) added western India, part of Europe and
Greece to empire
 Divided gov’t into 20 provinces (satrapies)
 Governor (satrap) ruled each province: collected taxes, provided
justice, recruited soldiers
 Communication system
 Well-maintained roads dotted with stations for food & shelter
 Empire’s power depended on military
 Standing army of soldiers from all over kingdom
 Core was elite infantry force- “Immortals” (member killed,
immediately replaced)
 After Darius- Persian kings isolated at their
courts
 Kings increased taxes & loyalty to empire
declined
 Weakened monarchy
 Polygamous kings had many wives
 Sons had little power and all trying to gain
throne
 Weakened empire and led to conquest by
Alexander the Great in 330s BC