Week of August 29-September 2

Monday- World History Introduction

Chapter 1:

What is World History?
- The history of the world
BC and AD? BCE? CE?
- BC= "Before Christ"
  - Starts at high numbers and goes down to one
- AD= "anno Domini" ("in the year of our Lord")
  - Starts at one and goes high
- BCE= "Before Common Era" (same time period as BC)
- CE= "Common Era" (same time period as AD)
How old is the Earth?
- 4.6 billion years
Where were the oldest human fossils found?
- Africa- specifically Tanzania and Ethiopia
Who found the oldest human fossils?
- Louis and Mary Leakey, Donald Johanson, Recent Scientists
What are some of the biggest achievements in world history?
- Invention of tools, mastery of fire, development of language, invention of wheels, invention of boats (the sail), art
Louis and Mary Leakey
- Searched for hominid remains in Tanzania from 1930's-1970's
  - Hominids- the group consisting of all modern and extinct Great Apes (modern humans, chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans plus all their ancestors
- Found human like fossils in 1959 in the Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania (in Africa)
- This discovery would usher many other findings over the decades
Donald Johanson
- Discovered a 3.2 million-year-old fossil of a female skeleton in Ethiopia named "Lucy" in 1974
- This was the oldest known hominid remains found until 2015
Neanderthal v. Cro-Magnon
- Neanderthal was not human ancestor
- Cro-Magnon was human ancestor
- These two crossed paths and the Cro-Magnon beat out the Neanderthals
Agricultural/Neolithic Revolution
- Prior to more organized agriculture, people were nomadic and hunted animals and gathered plants (hunter-gatherer)
- They lived in groups of about 25-70 people
- No one knows exactly how things changed, but about 10,000 years ago, people started more organized farming
- Along with planting crops, people also domesticated animals such as horses, dogs, goats, and pigs
Civilization
- As time went on, people started setting up villages, which then, over time, turned into towns and then some into cities
- As cities emerged, more complex ways of thinking and living emerged leading to civilization
- As cities grew, social classes and gender roles emerged
- One of the oldest cities: Ancient Sumerian City of Ur
Define Civilization
- An advanced state of human society, in which a high level of culture, science, industry, and government has been reached
- A highly advanced society
The Five Traits of a Civilization
- Advanced cities
- Writing/Record keeping
- Specialized workers
- Complex institutions (religion, government, economic structure)
- Advanced technology

Chapter 2:

Early River Valley Civilizations
- Mesopotamia
- Indus River Region
- Huang Ho River Region
- Nile Valley
What are natural borders?
- Borders between countries that are a part of nature
Why are defensible borders important for a civilization to thrive?
- Civilizations don't have to worry about being attacked as much
What are some natural boundaries that would be helpful to an early civilization?
- Mountains, rivers, oceans, lakes, desserts
Early River Valley Civilizations
- Arose in 4 separate river valleys around 3500 B.C.
- Fertile soil, mild climate, waterway for transportation, water for crops and drinking
- Provided for abundant crops and food surpluses
Vocabulary
- Ch. 2.1 Vocab
  - Fertile Crescent- is a crescent-shaped region containing the comparatively moist and fertile land of otherwise arid and semi-arid Western Asia, the Nile Valley and Nile Delta. It stretches from the Nile River in Egypt to the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in modern Iraq. It also encompasses several other countries, including Israel,Lebanon, Jordan and Syria. The western edge of the Fertile Crescent borders the Mediterranean Sea, while the eastern edge reaches to the Persian Gulf.
  - Mesopotamia- the first organized civilization, contained the early developments of the Neolithic revolution, known for the invention of the wheel and math, Greek for "land between the rivers"
  - City-state- a country that is a city at the same time (Ancient Rome, Acient Greece). Is a city and the surrounding territory it controls, functioned like an independent country
  - Dynasty- a series of rulers from a single family (mostly father to son)
  - Cultural diffusion- process in which ideas spread from one culture to another
  - Polytheism- belief in many gods
  - Monotheism- belief in only one god
  - Empire- group of territories or nations ruled by a single ruler
- Ch. 2.2 Vocab
  - Delta- a broad, marshy area of land formed by deposits of silt where a river runs into a bigger body of water
  - King Narmer- King of Egypt that many believe united Upper and Lower Egypt
  - Pharaoh- the god-kings of Egypt, they were seen as almost as powerful as the gods of the heavens
  - Theocracy- Government headed by religious leaders or a leader regarded as a god
  - Pyramid- huge structure where the Egyptian pharaohs are placed after they die
  - Mummification- the process of drying and embalming a corpse to prevent decay, usually reserved for royalty and the rich
  - Hieroglyphics- Egyptian form of writing
  - Papyrus- what Egyptians wrote on, came from papyrus reeds found in marshy areas

Tuesday-

- Ch. 2.3 Vocab
  - Indian Subcontinent- the landmass that includes Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh
  - Monsoon- seasonal winds that can bring in dry air or heavy rain, have a huge impact on India
- Ch. 2.4 Vocab
  - Dynastic cycle- the rise, fall, and replacement of dynasties
  - Mandate from Heaven- a just ruler that has approval from the gods, an unjust ruler can lose their mandate to rule
  - Feudalism- a political system in which the king gives land to nobles.lords and in return, they vow loyalty and military service to the king; used in China, Japan, and Europe
    - Feudal Society:
      - King
      - Nobles and Lords (land given to them by king)
      - Knights (land given to them by the nobles and lords so they would fight for the nobles and lords to protect the king)
      - Peasants/Serfs
Assigned Project:
- Zhou Dynasty
- Topics:
  - Political: Who controls what? What type of government is there? Anything to do with laws or war. How/when did they came into power? How/when did they lose power?
  - Economic: What type of economy? How do people make a living? How were social classes made up?
  - Geography: Where is it? Does it have natural barriers? Is the land mountainous? Desert?
  - Social: Religion, education, art, entertainment, gender roles
  - Include any advances they made technologically, politically, etc.

Wednesday- workday on Ancient Civilizations Project

Thursday- workday on Ancient Civilizations Project

Friday-

Ancient Egypt

Political
- Pharaoh
  - Appointed other officials
  - Highest officials took orders directly from king
- Agriculture
  - Foundation of Egyptian government
- Famous Pharaohs
  - Narmer
    - 1st Dynasty
    - United Upper and Lower Egypt
  - Snefru
    - 4th Dynasty
    - Built first true pyramid
Economic
- Agricultural
  - Wheat
  - Barley
  - Flax
- Crafts
  - Jewelry
  - Perfume
  - Pottery
  - Baskets
  - Rope
- Major Exports
  - Gold
  - Wheat
  - Barley
  - Papyrus sheets
- Major Imports
  - Metals
  - Lapis Lazuli (Gem)
  - Horses
  - Cattle
- How they made their living:
  - Scribes/official jobs
  - Farming
  - Craftsmen
  - Merchants/traders
- Social Classes
  - Pharaoh
  - Nobility
  - Priest and Physicians
  - Artists/Craftsmen
  - Farmers
  - Slaves
Geography
- Considered Egypt the "gift of the Nile"
- "Black Land"
  - Only land they could farm on
  - Rich layer of silt from when the Nile flowed over
- "Red Land"
  - Barren desert
  - Protected Egypt on both sides
  - Provided with precious metals
Social
- Religion
  - Based on gods and goddesses and the powers that they had
  - When there was Upper and Lower Egypt, both kingdoms had their own religions. When they became one, many of the religious beliefs and cultures combined
  - Believed that all the forces of nature could be identified as the children of a creator god
- Education
  - Mostly boys from wealthier families
  - Started at age 7
  - Boys were taught to read, write, and some mathematics
  - Some evidence that girls did go to schools
  - Girls normally learned household responsibilities- cooking and sewing
  - Majority of Egyptians did not receive any kind of formal education
  - In royal families, boys and girls received equal education
  - Royal families and high officials had the opportunity to attend Prince's School
  - Prince's School taught reading and writing Hieroglyphs and other things
- Art
  - first created to show the king or Pharaoh as a god
  - Represented man, nature, and the environment
  - Types:
    - Pyramids/tombs/temples
    - Sculptures/statues
    - Pottery
    - Glass
    - Jewelry
    - Hieroglyphics
  - Copper, bronze, gold, silver, bone, ivory, and wood were also used
- Entertainment
  - Board games- dice were a typical component
  - Athletic games
    - wrestling, javelin, hockey, tug of war
  - Danced, sang
  - Swam in Nile
  - Toys
    - Rattles, miniature animals and people shaped out of clay, dolls, balls, and wooden spinning tops
- Gender Roles
  - Women
    - Bore and raised children
    - Responsible for familiar and domestic relationships
    - Tend to husband
  - Men
    - Taught sons how to do the family trade
    - Responsible for artistic work
    - Seen as leaders of society
Advances
- Ships
- Geometry
- Hieroglyphics
- Papyrus
- Ink
- Solar Calendar

Blogs

Week of August 29-September 2

Comments