CIVILIZATIONS IN INDIA AND

CHINA

INDUS VALLEY- 2600 B.C.E.Two biggest cities:

Mohenjo-Daro

Harappa

Houses with complex plumbing, drains, and sewers

Mostly Farmers

A lot of merchants and traders too

THE GANGES RIVER BASIN

People from central Asia intermarried with natives from the Ganges river basin

Their descendents are Aryans

The Vedas- a collection of prayers, hymns, and religious teachings

ARYAN SOCIETY

Divided social classes based on job

Led to the caste system

ARYAN RELIGION Polytheistic- many

gods

One most powerful god- Brahman

Mystics- individuals who devote themselves to seeking spiritual truth

EARLY CHINA Believed China

was the center of the Earth- called it the Middle Kingdom

Surrounded by mountains, deserts, jungles, and oceans- isolation!

THE SHANG AND ZHOU DYNASTIES

Dynasty- period of time where one family rules

Shang- began 1650 B.C.E.

Zhou- began 1027 B.C.E.

Dynastic cycle- rise and fall of dynastiesControlled by

Heaven

CHINESE RELIGION Many gods and

nature spirits Respect for

ancestors Yin and yang

Yin- Earth and female forces

Yang- heaven and male forces

CHINESE SCIENCE Shang-

Studied planetsCreated calendarMade bronze and silk

Zhou-First booksBound strips of wood or bamboo

China was large, wealthy, and highly developed!