Transcript River Valley Civilizations - Lyons-AP

“Walk Like an Egyptian”
How do civilizations (complex
societies) develop?
Emergence of River Valley Civilizations
“Hydraulic Model”
Transition from Paleolithic to Civilization
• The Neolithic Age had set the stage for civilizations by
developing systematic agriculture, which allowed early
humans to give up their nomadic lifestyle and stay in one
place.
• This led to the formation of farming villages, which gradually
began to develop into more complex societies.
• As their wealth increased, these societies began to create
armies and build walled cities.
• They built temples and started forming religions.
• By the beginning of the Bronze Age, large numbers of
people were concentrated in the river valleys of
Mesopotamia, Egypt, India, and China. (stone, bronze,
copper, iron, steel)
• This would lead to a whole new pattern for human life—the
emergence of civilizations.
4 River Valley Civilizations
• Fertile Crescent – Mesopotamia
– Tigris
– Euphrates
• Egyptian Civilization
– Nile River Valley (upper and lower Nile)
• Indus River
– Harrapan
– Mohen-jo Daro
• Hwang He (
– Yellow River later civilizations focused on both Yangtze
and Yellow River
– Langsho while first dynasty is Xia then Shang
Nile River
Valley
• Because of its geography Egypt developed to
become a peaceful civilization with a higher
standard of living. People as individuals were
treated with more respect here than in other
civilizations of the time.
• The Nile River Valley is Surrounded on Four
Sides by Natural Barriers
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Red Sea to the East
Desert to the West
Mediterranean to the North
Mountains to the South
Nile River Valley has Natural
Advantages
• Frost Free Climate
“Gifts of the Nile”
• Predictable flooding
• Mild flooding therefore able to use river for
irrigation
• Prevailing winds made trade possible both north
and south on the river
• Rich deposits of clay, granite, sandstone &
limestone used for building
• Silt deposits rich for farming
• papyrus used for mats, rope, sandals, baskets,
paper
• Menes-
Major Pharaohs of Egypt
– United upper and lower Egypt in 3100 BC
• Ramses II –
– Defeated the Hittites and returned Egypt to Egyptian rule.
• Nefertiti – influential wife of Amenhotep, mother-in-law to Tutkanamon.
• Amenhotep (later called Akhenaton)– moved the capital and changed worship from polytheism to
monotheism. The main god became Amon Ra and only the royal
family could worship him.
• Tutkanhamon– young Pharaoh found with his tomb intact.
• Hatshepsut –
– female Pharaoh who stabilized Egypt, built many new structures which
provided work for many.
• Cleopatra –
– last Pharaoh of Egypt
Rosetta Stone
• We didn’t know as much about Egypt
until the mid-1800s after the Rosetta
Stone was allowed us to decipher the
hieroglyphics of Egypt
• Napoleon’s officer discovered the
Rosetta Stone (late 1700s)
• Deciphered by Champanion in early
1800s
Fertile Crescent
• Deserts and mountains surround the
Fertile Crescent to the north but because
grass grew on these mountains it attracted
wandering tribes who often attacked those
living in the River Valley.
• City-states protected and isolated each
group
Natural Boundaries Unfavorable
• Both rivers overflow in an unpredictable
manner
– The time of year could not be predicted.
– The magnitude of turbulence of the flooding could not
be predicted.
• The area is called a "crossroad" because
everyone who traveled or traded between
Europe, Africa, and Asia traveled through this
region, sometimes taking what they wanted
Gave rise to multiple empires within the general region
that controlled different territory but had similar culture
Assyria and its rivals
Sumerians
“Necessity is the mother of invention”
Plato’s Republic
• Arch – ziggurats
• developed the wagon wheel to help transport people and goods
from place to place.
• Wheeled vehicles play a critical role in the world today to
continue transporting people and goods.
• Sumerian achievements in mathematics and astronomy formed
the basis for concepts we use today.
• In math, they devised a number system based on 60.
• Geometry was used to measure fields and to erect buildings in
much the same fashion that it is used for those purposes today.
• In astronomy, the Sumerians made use of units of 60 and
charted the heavenly constellations.
• The division of the modern hour into 60 minutes is a holdover
from Sumerian astronomy.
Hammurabi’s Code
Babylonian
• Stele or
Stela
Hammurabi
• 282
• Cuneiform
st
(1
Assyrian
Empire)
911 – 612
BCE
BCE
Early River Valley Civilizations
Name of “China”
• The Chinese call their empire Chung kwo (Middle Kingdom), a name
first applied to Ho-nan, the country of the Chou dynasty; a Chinaman
is designated Chung-kwo-jen or man of the Middle Kingdom; in
diplomacy China is Ta-ts'ing Kwo (the great empire of Ts'ing, the
present dynasty) as it was formerly Ta Ming Kwo (the great empire of
Ming).
• In literature it is called T'ien Hia (Under Heaven), Sze Hai [the four
(surrounding) seas], Chung Hwa Kwo (the Middle Flowery Kingdom);
some names refer to celebrated dynasties, Hwa Hia (glorious Hia),
Han-jen or Han-tze (men or sons of Han), T'ang-jen or T'ang-shan
(men or mountains of T'ang).
• The Arabs called China Sin, Chin, Mahachin, Machin. The SinFF and
Seres of Ptolemy and other classic writers probably represent the
Chinese.
• In the Middle Ages, Europeans made a distinction between Northern
(Cathay) and Southern (Manzi) China. It is probable that the name
China, from the Ts'in dynasty (third century B.C.), reached the West
by way of Burma and India.
Huang He
• Himalayas,
Kunlun
Shan, Tian
Shan
• Gobi
desert
• Pacific
Ocean to
east
Shang China
Middle Kingdom
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Himalayas, Kunlun Shan, Tian Shan
Gobi desert
Pacific Ocean to east
rivers
– Hwang Hu (Yellow),
– Chang Jiang (Yangtze),
– Xi Jiang (West)
• yellow silt &favorable climate make good
farming
Xia 2100 BCE – 1800 BCE
• The Xia were agrarian
people, with bronze
weapons and pottery.
• The ruling families used
elaborate and dramatic
rituals to confirm their
power to govern.
• The rulers often acted as
shamans, communicating
with spirits for help and
guidance
Ancient Dynasties
Mandate of Heaven
• Xia (first)
2100 BCE – 1800 BCE
• Shang
1500BCE- 1100BCE
Mandate of Heaven
• Zhou (longest)
1100BCE – 256BCE
Confucianism during Axial Age (ca. 500 BCE)
• Qin (Chin)
– China gets its name from
this dynasty
Mandate of Heaven
• Zhou Dynasty
• Family of rulers that have the approval of the
ancestors
• Dynastic Cycle has added element much like a
divine monarch creates a theocracy yet as
earthly events appear and have a negative
impact then it is assumed that the emperor has
lost the approval of the ancestors and they have
created the environment
Are you Sleeping?
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Shang, Zhou, Qin, Han
Shang, Zhou, Qin, Han
Sui, Tang, Song
Sui, Tang, Song
Yuan, Ming, Manchu
Yuan, Ming, Manchu
Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong
Confucianism and Scholarly-Gentry
• Creates balance
• Yin and Yang
• Filial piety is the final
link in the chain of
continuity of the
civilization
Shang China
Indus River Valley
• Harappan
• Mohenjo-Daro
• subcontinent of Asia:
water on east and west,
mountain ranges on
north
– Hindu Kush and
Himalayas
• southwest monsoon
brings heavy rain and
flooding
• enriched soil, but
sometimes great erosion
Ancient Geographic Divisions in South Asia
Cities of the Indus
Mohenjo-Daro
“Mound of the Dead”
Indus River Valley
• destruction
• well-planned,
citadels, grid
of streets
• clay brick
houses,
plumbing
with sewer
system
• bronze and
copper tools,
gold and
silver jewels,
clay pots,
spun and
woven cloth
Development of Region
• Early Food Producing Era (ca. 7000-5500
BC)
• Regionalization Era, (5500-2600 BC)
– regional cultural development
– subdivided into various eras
– emergence of an Early Indus state ca. 2800
BCE and urbanization ca. 2600 BCE
Drains & Sewer Systems
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Successors to the region
Vedic Era - Hinduism
Aryans
Rajas
Indo-Europeans
Caste System - called
Varna which translates
to color in the ancient
language)
• Jati – sub-castes
Aryan Invasion Theory
• Sometime between
2500 and 1800 BCE
– Aryans began moving
into India
– Apparently NOT the
cause of the fall of
Indus Civilization
– Farmers without
written language
– Used Khyber Pass
Political and Social Systems
• Tribe led by chief and
tribal council
• Tribes formed small
states
• Each state ruled by king
and council of warriors
• Aryans looked down on
conquered people
• Laws against marriage of
Aryans with original valley
dwellers
• Men permitted more than
one wife
• Sons expected to be
warriors and perform
ritual at fathers funeral
Economic System
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Mostly farmers
Barley major crop
Most owned their land
Handicrafts in villages
System of barter for goods
Cattle later used as money
Historical Geography
• Environmental determinism – the manner in which humans and
the environment interact.
– Man and his culture are shaped by their environment and
while technology allows them to adapt, their underlying
characteristics have already been shaped by their
environment
• Systems within a civilization are influenced by the environment
• Humans change and adapt their environment with technology
– Technology are methods that are used by man or man’s
attempt “to overcome his environment”
• Possibilism is a different theory that holds that there is an
interdependence between humans and their physical
environment and that while the environment sets certain
constraints, culture is shaped by man
Olmec- 3500-2500 BCE- site La Venta
• Two environments & Agricultural methods
– Slash and burn agriculture- forested uplands
– Irrigation riverine agriculture- riverine lowlands- u-shaped stone drain
lines.
– 2 or more crops per year
– Maize, beans, squash
• Lowland riverine populous became the elite
• Chiefdom societies- with centers populated at circa 1000 eachrulers, elite, craftspersons
• Writing system but un-deciphered though indications of
counting system- Maya used same counting system so this
aspect is translatable.
• Items of trade
– Highlands- obsidian, jade and Magnetite, cacao (drink for nobility)
– Lowlands- mollusk, turtle shell, sharks teeth, and pottery
• 4 major redistribution/ceremonial centers– San Lorenzo, La Venta, Tres Zapates, and Laguna de los Cerros
• Classic Maya- 2000- 800 BCE- sites Copan & Palenque
Classic cultures of the Americas
Yin and Yang
• The light color area which indicates
more sunlight is called Yang (Sun).
• The dark color area has less sunlight
(more moonlight) and is called Yin
(Moon).
• Yang is like man. Yin is like woman.
Yang wouldn't grow without Yin. Yin
couldn't give birth without Yang.
– Yin is born (begins) at Summer Solstice
and Yang is born (begins) at Winter
Solstice.
– Therefore one little circle Yin is marked on
the Summer Solstice position. Another little
circle Yang is marked on the Winter
Solstice position.
– These two little circles look like two fish
eyes.
http://www.chinesefortunecalendar.com/yinyang.htm
The Spread of Bantu
Population
• growth
Shih Huang Ti
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In 245 BC , Ying Cheng became king of the Ch’in when he was only thirteen years old. As he grew in age,
wisdom and power, he developed the dream of realizing the Confucian idea of the whole of China under
one ruler.
– He declared himself Ch’in Shih Huang Ti, First Emperor, establishing the Rule of Emperors (called
Huang Ti) that would last in China until 1911 with the abdication of the last emperor, Pu Yi. The name
China comes from the time of his rule, when Ch’in brought China from a feudal state into a powerful
kingdom with a centralized government.
To solidify his power, Ch’in Shih Huang Ti build a mobile army of cavalry and chariots armed with iron swords
and bows.
– He moved the old aristocrats and feudal lords to the capital and demanded the surrender of their
weapons.
– To defend agianst the barbarian invaders from the north, he built the Great Wall of China (later
expanded to become 1500 miles long and the only man-made object visible from space).
The creation of a central government was used to standardize weights and measures, coinage, roadways,
legal codes and a standardized, written script that could be read not only by speakers of China’s many
regional dialects but later also by the Japanese, the Koreans, and the Vietnamese.
– To finance the building a operation of this central government, Ch’in Shih Huang Ti also begain national
taxation.
The adage the “Power corrupts and that absolute power corrupts absolutly”, however proved true and Ch’in
became a totalitarian ruler. He created a system of spying through his military governnors and civil
administrators in the provinces, and monopolized all basic goods.
– In an effort to produce intellectual conformity, in 213B.C. he ordered the burning of books, especially
Confucian classics. But he saved works of medicine, legal philosophy, and magic, which relected his
utlitarian attitude toward learning, ironically balanced with his interest in superstition.
– Soon he became a paranoid relcuse dodging assassination attempts on his life.
The discovery in 1974 of his burial site in Shensi, China, http;//www.taisei.co.jp/cg_e/ancient_world/xian/axian.html has
unearthed 7,000 life size terra-cotta soldiers.