Course 1: Geography, prehistory, Pre-Roman Iberia Flashcards
three main areas of the Iberian peninsula
Mediterranean region, central plateau, Atlantic region
Iberian is a crossroad of what cultures
contact with the cultures of the northern and eastern Mediterranean: phoenicians, romans and southern Mediterranean: carthage
what is the world heritage site ?
earliest and most abundant evidence of humankind in europe found in the caves of the sierra de Atapuerca
what is a the pit of bones ?
more than 1,600 human fossils, including skulls
a surprising discovery: 1879: the cave art of altamira
idyllic space in northern spain
why are the altamira cave paintings important ?
represent the apogee of paleolithic cave art, and some of the best early realistic paintings in all of human history
what was the iberian peninsula before the carthaginian conquests?
iberos: east, celtiberians: center and northwest, vascones/aquitanian: north
what is the iberos origin?
probably from north africa, settled in the eastern and southern coasts of IP
what is the iberos strong influence ?
eastern mediterranean: greek/phoenician
what is the iberos economy ?
diversified: mines, agricultures, based on trade
what is the iberos society?
a stratified (divided into levels) one: nobles, artisans, priests, slaves
what is the iberos religion?
polytheistic (more than one god), but not clearly centralized politically
what was the iberos language?
spoke iberian language, became extinct after the roman conquest
what is the iberos connection?
the mediterranean
what is the celtic iberia’s connection?
the atlantic
what is the celtiberians society like?
transhumant (seasonal movement of livestock) : pastoralists (system of extensive livestock production)
are the celtiberians opposed to Carthage and Rome ?
yes, strongly
what language did the celtiberian spoke?
an indoeuropean language
what is the vascones/proto-basque origins?
still disputed, basque is not an indo-european language
what are the three main theories of the vascones origins?
the native, the basque-iberism and the caucasian origin
what is the native theory (mainstream) ?
a remnant population that trace their ancestry to neolithic hunter-gatherer groups: inconclusive
what is the basque-iberism theory?
relationship between the basque language and society and the now lost iberian language:difficult to prove
what is the caucasian theory?
similarities between the basque and the caucasian languages: unproven
what is the carthaginian conquest?
originally phoenician colony, became the center of a mediterranean empire
what led to the punic wars ?
fight with rome and the carthaginian for the control of the mediterranean sea
did the iberian peninsula become a strategic region and source of silver?
yes
was carthage used as a base during the second punic war?
no, it was the iberian peninsula
did carthage lose its control over the peninsula after the second punic war?
yes
what did the carthaginian conquest brought?
the IP to the center of the conflit between the two superpowers of the Ancient world
what did the carthaginian conquest contributed to ?
the unification of the territory and the death of some of the civilizations already present (iberos)
what did the carthaginian defeat limited?
the influence of the Phoenician/carthaginian and eastern mediterranean culture in the IP
what is the lady of elche?
most famous sculptures in the history of the IP
what is the secret of the iron in Iberia ?
it was the central of the market: trading colonies
what did the phoenicians and greeks brought?
a major change in the material culture of the indigenous societies
what is the neolithic revolution?
mobile groups of humans gradually abandon their hunter-gatherer lifestyle
