Topic One - Origins of Western Civ

Question 1

Paleolithic Era

Answer 1

400,000-11,000 BC
Primitive Stone Tools
Nomadic Hunter-Gatherers

Question 2

Neolithic Era

Answer 2

11,000-4,000 BC
Nomadic peoples begin settling
(Animal domestication, Agriculture, Surplus production)
Improved tools, walled towns, larger animals

Question 3

(First) Agricultural Revolution

Answer 3

Shift from Paleolithic to Neolithic era around 11,000 BC

Question 4

Mesopotamia

Answer 4

modern Iraq
invented Irrigation (Tigris and Euphrates)
3,000 BC: first Sumerian cities
City-states constant warfare

Question 5

Sumerians

Answer 5

in Mesopotamia 3,000 BC
Cuneiform
Mathematics
First written law code (NOT Hammurabi)
Polytheistic

Question 6

Cuneiform

Answer 6

Sumerian invention of writing based on pictographs (very hard to learn)

Question 7

Ziggurats

Answer 7

Sumerian religious shrines (Polytheism)
religion had fear of floods

Question 8

Sumerian Society (Classes)

Answer 8

Four categories:
Nobles
Clients
Commoners
Slaves

Question 9

Sargon

Answer 9

Semite Kings who conquered Sumer 2331 BC (Akkadian Empire)
spreads Mesopotamian culture to Persian Gulf
lasts 200 years

Question 10

*Babylonians

Answer 10

migrated from Arabia, settled around Euphrates
dominated trade

Question 11

Hammurabi

Answer 11

Babylonian king (r. 1792-1750 BC)
Makes Babylon dominant city-state
Conquers Assyria, Sumer, Akkad
Makes Babylon religious center (Markud god)

Question 12

Hammurabi’s law code

Answer 12

Hammurabi claimed divine authority
based on strong sense of justice
“an eye for an eye”
Commoners punished more harshly, etc.

Question 13

Ancient Egypt

Answer 13

shaped by Nile River
plentiful natural resources

Question 14

Nile River

Answer 14

central to Egyptian life, religion, and culture
re-newer of land
fertile mud led to surplus

Question 15

Early Periods of Egyptian History

Answer 15

Archaic Period (3100-2660 BC): Political Unification
Old Kingdom (2660-2180 BC): Prosperity, Evolution of Religious Beliefs

Question 16

Pharaoh (power and responsibility)

Answer 16

god-king
Power over wealth, resources, and people of all Egypt
Pharaoh had responsibility of ensuring tranquility and prosperity

Question 17

Amon-Ra

Answer 17

Amon: Sky-god
Ra: Sun-god
eventually became Amon-Ra

Question 18

Horus

Answer 18

Falcon-god, bestowed divinity kinship upon rulers of Egypt
Pharaoh eventually considered Horus in human form

Question 19

Ancient Egyptian Social Structure (and Ma’at)

Answer 19

Pharaoh relied on high officials and administrative staffs
High priests led religion
Peasantry made up vast majority
Ma’at: belief in a cosmic harmony that gave the Pharaoh the authority and right to rule; embodied truth, justice, morality

Question 20

Egyptian Life/Society

Answer 20

remember social classes and Ma’at
Centered on Family
Marriage: business arrangement made by parents
Focus on Children and boys’ education
Wealthy had walled homes
Baths to keep cool, minimum clothing
Women subordinate to men, but still had rights

Question 21

Hittites

Answer 21

Major power from Anatolia
Expand and conquer in Near East
1274: Hittites attack Egyptians, eventual alliance