Unit 2: River Civilizations

Ch 2 & 4

Why do civilizations develop around rivers?

Mesopotamia – pg 30

aka the “Fertile Crescent” Between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers

Area would flood every year leaving many nutrients in the soil

Good: great for farming Bad: unpredictable rainfall is hard to live in

Discuss How does food supply affect the

development of civilization?

So What is Being Done About It?!? Check out this wikispace that my class last fall

created. http://3rdblockfood.wikispaces.com/Schools

For homework, do a 3-2-1 about the content on the wikispace. 3: Things you didn’t know 2: Things you found interesting 1: Question you have

Make sure to read all 7 tabs! There will be a quiz tomorrow to check that you did read and understand

Sumer: City-States Sumer is one of the oldest

civilizations, dating back to 4500 BC

Sumer had a number of cities sharing the same culture but developed their own separate gov’ts with their own rulers ie Iredell County is like Sumer with the cities of

Statesville, Mooresville, Troutman, Olin, Union Grove, Love Valley, Stony Point, etc.

Sumerian Religion Polytheism: believed in many gods

Gods had some human traits, but they were immortal and all powerful

Believed that human souls went to the “land of no return” located between the earth’s crust and the ancient sea

Not a joyful happy “heaven” but a gloomy and boring eternity awaited the dead

Research Sumerian gods

1. Enlil

2. Enki

3. Inanna

4. Nanna

5. Ninurta

What are they the god of? What would you pray to them for?

Sumerian Gov’t Each city-state had a

ziggurat, or temples, in the center or town Governments were controlled by the temple

priests = theocracy Priests acted as a go between with the gods In return, people offered crops to the priests

Sumerian Social Classes

Kings, landholders,

priests

Wealthy merchants/artisans

Field workers(majority of Sumer)

Slaves(Prisoners of war)

Sumerian Women Women were given many more rights than

most other (more modern) civilizations. Could work as merchants, farmers, or artisans Could own property Could join the priesthood Some learned to read and write

Sumerian Tools and Technology** Invented the wheel, the sail, and the plow Used bronze for tools and weapons Developed a number system and used principles of

arithmetic and geometry Measured 360 degrees in a circle

Architecture: built arches, columns, ramps, and pyramid-style ziggurats

Conquering Empires Sumer’s city-states were always fighting

with each other which made them susceptible to attack from other civilizations Sargon of Akkad: 2350 BC took control of Sumer

and spread their culture throughout Mesopotamia Babylonians: 2000 BC invaded and took over.

Set the capital at the city of Babylon The most powerful leader of the Babylonians was

Hammurabi

Hammurabi Hammurabi’s most notable

contribution was his set of laws They were engraved in stone and placed all over the

empire, which unified the many different groups of the culture

282 specific laws dealing with community, family relations, business conduct, and crime (pg 34) Punishments were based on retaliation

(eye for an eye)

Examples of Laws If a man has stolen the goods of a temple or palace, that man

shall be killed, and he who has received the stolen thing from his hand shall be put to death.

If a man has stolen ox or sheep or ass or pig or ship, whether from the temple or the palace, he shall pay thirtyfold. If he be a poor man, he shall render tenfold. If the thief has nought to pay, he shall be put to death.

If a man's wife be caught lying with another, they shall be strangled and cast into the water.

If a man's wife, for the sake of another, has caused her husband to be killed, that woman shall be impaled.

If a man, after his father's death, has lain in the bosom of his mother, they shall both of them be burnt together.

Discuss Why do humans need punitive laws to deter

them from committing crime?

Egypt: Pyramids on the Nile Nile river flows northward

across Africa for over 4100 miles From Wilmington, NC

to Los Angeles, CA is 2592.11 miles

Gift of the Nile Floods every summer would leave fertile soil

(silt) to farm with Farmers built irrigation systems to regulate

water to their wheat and barley crops Egyptians worshipped the Nile as a god Surrounded by desert keeping Egyptians

isolated

Isolation of the Egyptians Pro’s

Con’s

Pharaohs Rule as Gods In Egypt kings were gods and were called

Pharaohs Pharaohs controlled religion, government, the

army, and the well being of all Egyptians

Theocracy: government in whichrule is based on religious authority

Pyramids

Egyptians believed that their king ruled after death Had an eternal life force called Ka

Kings tombs (Pyramids) were more important than their palaces and needed to meet their needs in the after life

http://app.discoveryeducation.com/player/?assetGuid=88ac6bd6-193f-4f7f-84b7-68352faf0e73&fromMyDe=0&isPrinterFriendly=0&provider=&isLessonFromHealth=0&productcode=US&isAssigned=false&includeHeader=YES&homeworkGuid=20 minutes

http://www.history.com/topics/ancient-egypt/videos#king-tut1min, 30 sec

Egyptian Religion Polytheism: believed in over 2,000

gods and goddesses Life after death

A person was judged after death to determine if they would go to the Other World

The rich and royalty had their bodies preserved by mummification

Book of the Dead had prayers, and spells for help guide the soul in the after life

Discuss Why would a theocracy be an effective form

of government?

Research Egyptian Gods1. Hathor

2. Isis

3. Osiris

4. Bastet

5. Sobek

What did they look like?

What would you pray to them for?

Mummification (pg 38 & 39) “First, they draw out the brains through the nostrils with and

iron hook. . . Then with a sharp stone they make an incision in the side, and take out all the bowels. . . Then, having filled the belly with pure myrrh, cassia, and other perfumes, they sew it up again; and when they have done this they steep it in natron (salt), leaving it under for 70 days. . . At the end of 70 days, they wash the corpse, and warp the whole body in bandages of waxen cloth”

The brain, liver, and other internal organs were saved in Canopic jars

Egyptian embalmers were so skillful that modern archeologists have found mummies with hair skin and teeth

Think-Pair-Share How did the Egyptian belief in the afterlife

compare to that of the Sumerians?

Egyptian Social Classes- People could change social class through marriage or career success- In order to move up to the high class, people had to be able to read

and write- Slaves could earn their freedom as a reward for loyal service- In the higher classes, women had the same rights as men

RoyalFamily

Landowners,Gov’t Officials, Priests,

Army Commanders

Merchants, Artisans

Peasant Farmers, Laborers(largest)

Slaves

Science and Technology Developed a calendar that was 365 days, (12

months with 30 days) by observing the star Sirius to determine the length of a solar year They were only off by 6 hours!

Egyptian number system allowed them to collect taxes and build remarkable architecture

Egyptian doctors were able to measure heart rate, cast broken bones, and even conduct minor surgeries

Write-To-Learn How might the Egyptians practice of

mummification increase their development of medicine?

Writing Hieroglyphics

Symbols carved into stone creating a language

We learned the language of Egyptians through the Rosetta Stone

Scribes were highly ranked in society

Developed papyrus: paper like sheets made from marsh reeds

Write a prayer in Hieroglyphics Write a prayer to the Egyptian god that you

researched in class. Write vertically as the Egyptians did Your prayer must be able to

be deciphered by a classmate