Key+Concept+1.3


 * < Key Concept 1.2** .................................................................................................................... **Key Concept 2.1 >**

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=The Development and Interactions of Early Agricultural, Pastoral, and Urban Societies (10,000 BCE - 600 BCE)=

[|A Crash Course in World History]features a series of short videos by young adult author, John Green.

//**What is a ‘civilization,’ and what are the defining characteristics of a civilization? **// A civilization is a group of people that share a common leadership, culture or social structure.
 * See also this [|definition of civilization]


 * [[image:primary_sources.PNG link="@http://library.mtsu.edu/tps/sets/Primary_Source_Set--Early_Civilizations.pdf"]]Primary Source Set: Early Civilizations through Decline of the Roman Empire**, Middle Tennessee State University


 * For the characteristics of civilizations, see Massachusetts Curriculum Framework Grade 7.6 **

I. Core and foundational civilizations developed in a variety of geographical and environmental settings where agriculture flourished.
//**Where did the earliest civilizations develop, and why did they develop in those locations? **// They developed in Mesopotamia, Egypt, modern day Pakistan, and China. These civilizations were all located near rivers that flooded regularly. This allowed for feasible farming where people did not have to work as much for food, and they could settle down and lead sedentary lives.

//**How did civilizations develop and grow more complex before 600 BCE? **// They did this by obtaining a food surplus. This would allow for specialization, which means there are people in society that are not involved in agriculture. Now it was possible to have soldiers, politicians, priests and artisans, and as a result, have a more complex society.

Here is a link to a game on [|being a farmer in ancient Sumer]

//**What is a “state?” Who ruled the early states, and which segments of society usually supported the ruler? **// A state is a group of governing bodies that come together to regulate food production and distribution. Early states were led by either military or religious leaders. Rulers were said to have connections to the spiritual world and be able to control nature. .

Students should be able to identify the location of **ALL** of the following required examples of **//core and foundational civilizations//**:

 * Mesopotamia in the Tigris and Euphrates River Valleys
 * Egypt in the Nile River Valley
 * Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa in the Indus River Valley
 * Shang in the Yellow River or Huang He Valley
 * Olmecs in Mesoamerica
 * Chavin in Andean South America

**[|Timeline: Classroom Technology from Papyrus to iPads]**

**//A. Mesopotamia in the Tigris and Euphrates River valleys//**
For more, see [|Ancient Mesopotamian, This History, Our History]

**For more on important achievements of Mesopotamian civilization, see Massachusetts Curriculum Framework Grade 7.10**

[|Mesopotamia: Crash Course World History #]3

[|Mesopotamia on Ancient History Encyclopedia]

Click here for an [|essay on the development of writing systems] in world history. See also
 * [|The Five Original Writing Systems]
 * [|Writing and World History]
 * Grade 7.10 from Massachusetts Frameworks

[|Ancient World Writing Systems] from Syracuse University Libraries.

**//B. Egypt in the Nile River Valley//**
[|Timeline of Ancient Egypt]from the Children's University, Manchester, England.

**For more on the important achievements of Egyptian civilization, see Massachusetts Curriculum Standard Grade 7.16**

[|Ancient Egypt: Crash Course World History #4]

[|The New York Times article about a possible same sex couple buried in an ancient Egyptian tomb together] [|Egypt on Ancient History Encyclopedia]

**C. Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa in the Indus River Valley**

 * [[image:rotating gif.gif width="43" height="43"]]See Special Topic Page on Indus Valley Civilization**


 * Click here for a [|short video on Mohenjo-Daro from Youtube]
 * [|Indus Valley Civilization: Crash Course World History #2]

[|Indus Valley Civilization on Ancient History Encyclopedia]

**D. Shang in the Yellow River or Huang He Valle**y
[|Youtube video about the Shang Dynasty]

Click here for a [|short overview of the Huang He River Valley civilization] from teachers and students in Virginia.

[|Shang Bronzes: A Window into Ancient Chinese Culture (1523 B.C. - 1028 B.C.)]from the Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute.


 * E. Olmecs in Mesoamerica**



[|Here is a link to a website about the Olmecs]

[|A picture of a 'Stone Head' made by the ancient Olmecs as well as more information about ancient Olmec society]

[|Olmec Civilization on Ancient History Encyclopedia]


 * F. Chavin in Andean South America**

The Chavin culture flourished in South America from 900 to 200 BCE. The Chavin culture was located primarily in northern and central Peru, with settlements located in the Andes. The Chavin were able to unite numerous local tribes by establishing a common ideology/religion. They did this through the use of stonework, sedentary agriculture, and temples. What is important to note about the Chavin is that it wasn't necessarily a society, but more a series of cultural practices. These practices would be the base of the development of other cultures and societies in South America.

A BBC article discussing the increasing complexity of the Chavin culture that is being unearthed by archaeologists.

II. The first states emerged within core civilizations.
====**A. States were powerful new systems of rule that mobilized surplus labor and resources over large areas. Early states were often led by a ruler whose source of power was believed to be divine or had divine support, and/or who was supported by the military.**====

//**What is a “state?” Who ruled the early states, and which segments of society usually supported the ruler? **// A state is a group of governing bodies that come together to regulate food production and distribution. Early states were led by either military or religious leaders. Rulers were said to have connections to the spiritual world and be able to control nature.

====**B. As states grew and competed for land and resources, the more favorably situated had greater access to resources - including the Hittites' access to iron, produced more surplus food, and experienced growth populations. These states were able to undertake territorial expansion and conquer surrounding states.**==== They had environment that were stable enough to support a food surplus. This allowed them to specialize and make an army. This allowed them to conquer other states. Other early empire used trade and industry to expand into other areas, but this was not conquering other societies as much as it was taking them in.
 * //Why were some early states able to expand and conquering neighboring states? //**

**C. Early regions of state expansion or empire building were Mesopotamia, Babylonia, and the Nile Valley**
====**D. Pastoralists were often the developers and disseminators of** //**new weapons and modes of transportation**// **that transformed warfare in agrarian civilizations.** ====

[Teach one illustrative example of new weapons, either from the list that follows or an example of your choice: Compound bows, Iron weapons]

[Teach one illustrative example of new modes of transportation, either from the list that follows or an example of your choice: Chariots, Horseback riding]



III. Culture played a significant role in unifying states through law, language, literature, religion, myths and monumental art.

 * **See Massachusetts Grade 7.11 for information on Hammurabi's Code and its principles of law and justice.**

**A. Early civilizations developed monumental architecture and urban planning.**
Early architectural forms included grain houses to distribute food and religious buildings used in ceremonies. Rulers created lavish palaces for themselves.
 * //What architectural forms did early civilizations produce? //**

[Teach one illustrative example of **//monumental architecture and urban planning//**, either from the list that follows or an example of your choice: Ziggurats, Pyramids, Temples, Defensive walls, Streets and roads, Sewage and water systems]

**<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">B. Elites, both political and religious, promoted arts and artisanship **
//**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">What forms of writing developed in ancient civilizations? **// <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Cuneiform developed in Mesopotamia, and it consisted of lines and dashes rather than an alphabet. Egypt had its famous hieroglyphs, many of which still survive today. The Phoenician alphabet originated on the eastern shores of the Mediterranean. This simplified the language down to a small set of letters and spread literacy to a somewhat larger portion of the populace. Many other independent languages or dialects of widespread ones arose as well, though much less remains given their limited usage.

[Teach one illustrative example of **//arts and artisanship//**, either from the list that follows or an example of your choice: Sculpture, Painting, Wall decorations, Elaborate weaving]

**C. Systems of record keeping arose independently in all early civilizations and subsequently were diffused.**
//**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">What forms of writing developed in ancient civilizations? **// <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Cuneiform developed in Mesopotamia, and it consisted of lines and dashes rather than an alphabet. Egypt had its famous hieroglyphs, many of which still survive today. The Phoenician alphabet originated on the eastern shores of the Mediterranean. This simplified the language down to a small set of letters and spread literacy to a somewhat larger portion of the populace. Many other independent languages or dialects of widespread ones arose as well, though much less remains given their limited usage.

[Teach one illustrative example of **//systems of record keeping//**, either from the list that follows or an example of your choice: Cuneiform, Hieroglyphs, Pictographs, Alphabets, Quipu]

Click here to see [|Evolution of Alphabets]. The move from pictorial representations to symbols standing for sounds of speech revolutionalized communication. Here is an article on [|Cuneiform].

For more on the development of written communication, see **Massachusetts Grade 7.10**

**D. States developed legal codes, including the Code of Hammurabi, that reflected existing hierarchies and facilitated the rule of governments over people.**
For more on Hammurabi's Code, see ** Massachusetts Grade 7.11 ** or [|Hammurabi]

**E. New religious beliefs developed in this period continued to have strong influences in later periods.**
//**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">What pre-600 BCE religions strongly influenced later eras? **// <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Judaism, Buddhism, Jainism, Taoism, Confucianism, Legalism, and Guardianism.


 * [__Required__ examples of __//new religious beliefs//__: The Vedic religion, Hebrew monotheism, and Zoroastrianism]**

**F. Trade expanded throughout this period from local to regional and transregional, with civilizations exchanging goods, cultural ideas, and technology.**
//**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">How “big” were the pre-600 BCE trading regions? **// <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Some notable trading regions included trade up and down the Nile, trade through Mesopotamia (a pivot point between Mediterranean, Egypt and the Indus Valley), and trade throughout the Mediterranean via the Phoenicians.


 * [__Required__ examples of __//trade expansion from local to regional and transregional//__: Between Egypt and Nubia and Between Mesopotamia and the Indus Valley]**

**G. Social and gender hierarchies intensified as states expanded and cities multiplied.**
//**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">How did social and gender identities develop pre-600 BCE? **// <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Broadly speaking, women were inferior to men in society. This status extended to everyday freedom, hierarchical opportunity, legal rights, and property ownership. Still, there were a fair amount of expectations. In early foraging and farming groups, men and women did different tasks, but both were valued in the society for their contributions. As rulers commanded civilizations, kings’ wives, advisers, and harem members could influence the decisions. To research ancient Mesopotamian economies, look at an[| interactive cuneiform tablet]from the University of Chicago.

// Encyclopædia Britannica Online //, s. v. "Chavin", accessed May 22, 2012, [].


 * // Women in River Valley //** **//Civilizations [|Gender roles in River Valley Civilizations]//**

** H. Literature was also a reflection of culture . **
//**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">What was the relationship between literature and culture? **// <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Though literature was usually limited to a small, elite portion of the populace, it serves as a guide when understanding ancient cultures. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">The stories and epics combine mythical exaggerations of the people’s environment, religious beliefs and fears, and values of the society. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Literature was no doubt a symbol of high culture and education in the ancient civilizations.

[Teach one illustrative example of **//literature//**, either from the list that follows or an example of your choice: The "Epic of Gilgamesh," //Rig Veda,// //Book of the Dead]//

//[[image:rotating gif.gif width="43" height="43"]]See Influential Literature page The Epic of Gilgamesh//
//[|Epic of Gilgamesh Video]// Overview of the story

//[|Hymns from the Rig Veda]//

[|Enheduanna], the world's first known author