WEEK 1MESOPOTAMIA &

INDIAStandard 2

MESOPOTAMIA & INDIA VOCABULARY• Neolithic Revolution• Fertile Crescent• Epic of Gilgamesh• Ziggurat• Hammurabi’s Code• Zoroaster• Alphabet• Money Economy• Monsoons

• Mohejo-Daro• Moksha• Castes• Siddharta Gantama• Asoka• Cuneiform

MESOPOTAMIA- GEOGRAPHY• Located in the Middle East between the Tigris and

Euphrates Rivers• AKA- Fertile Crescent or “land between rivers”• Unpredictable flooding or famine

• Settlers channeled river water to their crops (Irrigation)• Rivers where also used in travel and trade

MAP OF MESOPOTAMIA

MESOPOTAMIA- RELIGION• Polytheistic (Worship many gods- Marduk)• Based on relationship with environment; fatalistic worldview• Huge temples called ziggurats were built to please their gods

• Monotheistic (Worship only one god)• Judaism has roots in region (Abraham from Harran)• Originated with 10 Commandments & idea of a covenant

• Zoroastrianism originated through the Persian Empire• Incorporated ideas of Judaism (Sin, Heaven/Hell, Judgment

Day)

MESOPOTAMIA- RELIGION

MESOPOTAMIA- ECONOMICS• The majority of the region bartered (traded) for

what they needed with neighboring regions, travelling on the rivers

• Later empires (such as Persians) switched to a money economy to centralize power and trade.• Money economies use coins or tokens of agreed-upon

value

MESOPOTAMIA- ECONOMICS

MESOPOTAMIA- SOCIETY• City-states in the region had a rigid hierarchy• Religious figures• Merchants & Artisans• Peasant farmers

• Women in this region honored and held high social standing (owing to the goddesses in the religion) but had very few legal rights

MESOPOTAMIA- SOCIETY

MESOPOTAMIA- POLITICS• Area was made up of mostly independent city-states

that were frequently attacked and occasionally conquered by invaders• Because the area was fertile and in demand

• Two Distinct categories• Assyrian/Babylonians in East• Sumerians in West/South

MESOPOTAMIA- POLITICS• Famous Conquerors of the Region• Hittites, Assyrians, Persians• Sargon of Akkad• Created the first empire

• Hammurabi (Babylon) created the first written law code (Code of Hammurabi)• Distinguished between criminal & civil law• Over 200 crimes punishable by death• Different punishments based on social status/wealth

• Darius (Persia) created the Royal Road, Persia’s money economy, & an organized structure for gov’t using satraps (local leaders)

MESOPOTAMIA- POLITICS• Code of Hammurabi

MESOPOTAMIA- TECHNOLOGY• Innovations of the Region• Cuneiform• Writing system designed by the Sumerian (Record Keeping)• 1st ever writing used

• Alphabet• Writing system where a symbol represented a sound

(Phoenicians)• Later became the Greek alphabet & is part of our alphabet

• Ironworking• Used to make stronger weapons for less expense (Hittites)

MESOPOTAMIA- TECHNOLOGY

INDIA- GEOGRAPHY• Located in South Asia• AKA- Indian Subcontinent

• People of India deal with monsoons• Seasonal winds that bring hot, dry air in the fall and a

downpour of constant rain in the summer• Civilization in this region began in the Indus River

Valley

INDIA- GEOGRAPHY

INDIA- RELIGIOUS BELIEFS• Birthplace of Hinduism & Buddhism• Hinduism• Polytheistic religion where followers seek moksha

(enlightenment) through many lifetimes of good karma (deeds) and reincarnation

• Sacred text is the Vedas• Emphasizes rigid castes (social roles)

• Buddhism• Polytheistic religion based on the teachers of Siddharta

Gautama Buddha (Nepalese prince)• Teaches followers to seek nirvana (release) through the

denial of pleasures & desires (Four Noble Truths)

INDIA- RELIGIOUS BELIEFS

INDIA- SOCIAL ROLES• Caste System • Rigid social roles supported through Hindu teachings• Began as a hierarchy imposed by ruling Aryans• Evolved to strictly govern every aspect of life- dress,

behavior, work, interactions, etc.• Social Order• Brahmins (Priests)• Kshatriyas (Warriors)• Vaishyas (Merchants)• Shudras (Laborers)• Dalits/Untouchables (Dirty Work/Slaves)

INDIA- SOCIAL ROLES

INDIA- POLITICAL STRUCTURES

• Ancient India was organized into well-planned cities (Mohenjo-Daro, Harappa)

• 2 Major Indian Empires• Mauryans (321-185 BCE)• Formed by Chandragupta Maurya• Conquered areas and ruled a well-organized structure• Effective but harsh against dissenters

• Ashoka was the most famous emperor• Converted to Buddhism and spread it throughout the region

• Guptas (320-540 CE)• Looser control that led to a “golden age” of learning in India

INDIA- POLITICAL STRUCTURES

INDIA- TECHNOLOGY• During the Gupta Dynasty, the concept of zero

and the current numbering and decimal system was created

• Doctors of this period vaccinated against smallpox (1000 years before Europe)

INDIA- TECHNOLOGY