Please enable JavaScript.
Coggle requires JavaScript to display documents.
Early River Valley Civilizations (Ancient China Ch 2 Sec 4 (Geography…
Early River Valley Civilizations
Mesopotamia
Ch 2 Sec 1
Geography
Desert climate
In the middle of the Persian Gulf and the Mediterranean Sea
Rivers - Tigris and Euphrates
Fertility
Arc of land for farming
Curved shape and richness of it's land also known as Fertile Crescent
The Rivers flooded Mesopotamia at least once a year. Leaving an excellent soil called silt.
In this very rich soil we had large quantities of wheat and barely any at harvest time. Consecutively villages started growing
Sumer
Attracted Sumerians because of good soils, but they had disadvantages as well
Unpredictable flooding and no rain periods.
No natural barriers for protection, nearly defenceless.
Natural resources were limited. Building things were difficult since required items were scarce.
Organization problems
Irrigation system
the irrigation system was split between the plantations and then they released the water to irrigate the plantations.
Defense - built city walls with mud bricks
Trading system with the people of the mountains and desert
grain, clothes and crafted tools for stone, wood and metal invented wheel.
One of the first groups of people to form a civilization
Ur - center of all Sumerian cities was the walled temple with a ziggurat in the middle.
Priests and Rulers Shared Control
Earliest gov. were controlled by temple priests.
Farmers believed that the success of their crops was by the god's blessing.
In times of was priests did not lead the city
Dinasty - a series of rulers from a single family
Culture
Belief Systems, social structure, technology, and arts.
A religion of many gods - Polytheism and cuneiform system of written
Their gods fell in love, had children, and so on. Yet they were immortal and all-powerful. Humans were their servants. To make gods happy, ziggurats were built.
Social Classes begin to appear
High Class - kings, landholders and some priests
Normal - Ordinary Sumerian people
Lowest class - slaves
Ancient Egypt
Ch 2 Sec 2
Culture
Pharaonic culture, then Christianity and Islam.
Theocracy - kings were gods.
believed that a king ruled even after his death
Pyramids and mummies
Egyptian Writing
Science and Technology
Geography
Nile River - longest river in the world
brings water to Egypt making the soil fertile.
In July the river over floods, when it receded it left behind rich soil, silt
In July the river over floods, when it receded it left behind rich soil, silt
Environmental Challenges
Egyptian Farmers were much more fortunate than Mesopotamia Villagers when you compare the Nile with Tigris and Euphrates.
Risks
When the water was just a few feet lower, crops reduced and people starved.
When water was higher, destroyed houses, granaries and seeds (planting)
Desert on sides of Nile served as a natural barrier for Egypt. Lived in a small amount of the land, reduced social contact(forced)
Fun Facts
Egyptian men and women wore makeup. They were one of the first civilizations to invent writing.
Upper & Lower Egypt
Upper
Lived along the Nile
First Cataract (at the end of theNile)
Elevation higher
Lower
North
Near the sea
Nile delta region
The Nile is also known as a system of transportation between both of them
Egypt Unites into a Kingdom
Each village had it's own rituals, gods, and chieftain.
Two separate kingdoms, Lower and Upper Egypt, which later united.
Ancient China
Ch 2 Sec 4
Geography
Natural barriers isolated ancient China
East - Yellow Sea, China Sea & Pacific Ocean
Mountains and desert dominate about 2/3 of China
West-Taklimakan desert and icy 15,000ft Plateau of Tibet
Southwest - Himalayas
North - Gobi Desert
River Systems
2 major river systems flow west to the Pacific Ocean. The Huang He also known as yellow river in the North. Central China - Chang Jiang also known as Yangtree flows east to the Yellow Sea.
The silt - a fertile soil called loess.
Environmental Challenges
Flooding
Geographic isolations
The Huang He floods could be disastrous "China's Sorrow"
Because of isolation early settlers had to supply their own goods rather than trading
China's boundaries did not completely protect
China's Heartland
Only 10% of China's land is suitable for farming
North China Plain-China's heartland
Civilization Emerges in Shang Times
Near Beijing, a homo-erectus skeleton was found.
The First Dynasties
Even before Summerians settled in a southern Mesopotamia, early Chinese culture were building farms.
First Dynasty - Xia
Early Cities
Oldest and most important city - Anyang
Anyang wad built mainly of wood
Shang surrounded their cities with massive earthen walls for protection.
Culture
Family
Social Classes
Religious beliefs
Development of writing
Indus Valley River
Ch 2 Sec 3
Geography
The Indus River Valley civilization was located in a small area of land, modern Pakistan, and India.
Highest mountains in the world.
Rivers, Mountains, and Plains
Large desert to the east, protect the Indus Valley from invasion.
Important rivers - Indus River flows to Himalayas, southwest, to Arabian Sea.
Farming is restricted
Indo-Gangetic Plain, below it there is a peninsula.
Monsoons
Seasonal winds
Dominate India's Climate
Can be very powerful
Environmental Challenges
Yearly floods spread deposits of rich soil over a wide area, floods were unpredictable
The rivers sometimes changed course
Monsoon wind - wet and dry seasons - unpredictable
Civilization Emerges on the Indus
Earliest Arrivals
No one knows how humans began settling in India subcontinent
Perhaps from Africa
Archeologists found evidence in agriculture and domestication
Harappan Planning
Good example
Partially built on mudbrick wall
Inside was a citadel
Streets were 30ft wide
Houses varied in size(had bathrooms)
Language
Written Language(impossible to decipher)
400 symbols make up the language
Some signs stand alone and others seem to be combined into words.
Culture
Social divisions were not great
A relatively prosperous society
Conflict was limited
Animals were important
Mistery animals and symbols
Theories for decline
The Aryan Invasion Theory
The Climate Change Theory - I believe this one was the one that happened because to me it makes more sense for the climate to have and impact of the decline of the Indus Valley river
Religion
Close ties to religion
Theocracy, but no temple has been found
Links to Hindu
Gods
Trade
Trade with people in the region
Gold and silver - Afghanistan
Semiprecious Stones - Persian and Deccan Plateau
Indus River - good transportation
Colored cotton cloth - very desired
Indus Valley Culture Ends
Quality declined
Great cities fell into decay
Probably because of earthquakes
Some cities survived others were destroyed