THE BRONZE AGE: NEW CIVILIZATIONS IN THE EASTERN & WESTERN HEMISPHERES
Mr. ErmerMiami Beach Senior High SchoolWorld History AP
The Huang He River Valley China = isolated by natural barriers
Himalaya mountains in SW Pamir Mountains, Tian Mountains, Gobi Desert in West Mongolian Steppe to the NW Pacific Ocean to the East
Minimal contact w/ rest of Asia = distinct development Various climate zones (Subarctic to Subtropical) Loess deposits create fertile agricultural lands
Colors the Yellow River Northern China farms millet and wheat Southern China farms rice
Shang Dynasty (1750-1027 B.C.E.)
Neolithic Chinese (Xia Dynasty) Silk production, pounded earth walls, pottery, livestock,
grain Enters Bronze Age c. 2000 BCE (later than W. Asia) Earliest written records in China—pictograms & phonetic Warrior culture, military campaigns against nomads
POWs taken as slaves to Shang capital Decentralized political system, clan leaders rule locally Cities were administrative/religious centers—feng shui
Most common people lived in farming villages Divination and sacrifice Bronze = sign of authority
Shang Artifacts
Zhou Dynasty (1027-221 BCE)
1027: Last Shang king defeated by Zhou leader, Wu Zhou adopt many Shang cultural elements, add
new ones The Mandate of Heaven
Decline in divination, priestly power, sacrifice Continued decentralization of political power
800 BCE: Shift from Western capital to Eastern capital Zhou power destabelized, local leaders increase
power, war 480-221: Warring States Period
Long protective walls, mounted soldiers, steel production
Legalism
Chinese Society: Confucianism & Daoism
Aristocrats seek to influence Zhou leaders Kongzi “Confucius” (551-479 BCE) is such an
aristocrat Governments = family, hierarchy, human goodness,
anti-Legalist Ren (familial benevolence) = moral government
Daoism founded by Laozi, “follow the path (dao)” Accept the world as is, follow natural path
Clan-based kinship replaced by three-generation family Women subordinate to men, Confucius equates
to commoners Monogamous marriage, but men allowed concubines Yin and Yang = different roles for women and men
Kushite Nubia (3100-1100 BCE)
Connects N. Africa to Sub-Saharan Africa Heavily influenced by Egypt with sub-Saharan
elements Nile River = main geographic feature
Irrigated farmlands, cataracts, portaged trade Kush = powerful Nubian kingdom
Kerma (capital) = First urban center in tropical Africa Kushite craftsmen more advanced than Egyptians
Destroyed by New Kingdom Egyptian army Egyptian culture, religion, architecture adopted
by Kushites
Meroitic Nubia (800 BCE- 350 CE)
Egyptian power weakens, loses control of Nubia 712-660 BCE Nubian kings rule Egypt as pharaohs
Assyrian invasion ends Nubian rule in Egypt, kings retreat to Nubia
500s: New Nubian kingdom based in Meroë in the south Sub-Saharan culture begins to replace Egyptian model
Matrilineal family succession, women often ruled as queen Economy based on trade and agriculture 350: Meroitic kingdom collapses
Western nomads attack on camels Trade with Rome declines as it shifts to Red Sea Rise of Axum (Aksum) in Ethiopia lessens regional
influence
The Americas (1200-250 BCE)
First Americans migrated from Asia in waves Isolated in the western hemisphere
Mesoamerica & Andean region develop the most
Limited trade encourages urbanization Irrigation and large-scale building practiced Olmec and Chavin peoples project power
over regions
The Olmec (1200-400 BCE) Dominated Mesoamerica
Microclimates produce variety of climate zones Leads to trade and cultural exchange
The Olmec centered on Atlantic coast of southern Mexico Influence stretches much further to Pacific & Central America
Production of corn, beans, and squash Urban centers eventually abandoned, destroyed, buried Cities designed on basis of celestial bodies (stars) Kingship based on secular and religious power
Large stone heads carved to honor individual leaders Olmec culture influenced later Mesoamerican cultures
The Chavin (900-250 BCE) Mountains, arid coastal plains, dense interior
jungles Complex social institutions, regional exchange,
shared labor Chavin capital, Chavin de Huantar, 10,300
ft. in Andes On trade routes connecting coast to mountain
valleys Communal shared labor used for infrastructure
building Llamas domesticated as beasts of burden Terraced agriculture, adobe brick