Foundations of Civilization First Civilizations Egypt Mesopotamia.

Foundations of Civilization

First CivilizationsEgypt

Mesopotamia

Guiding Questions

What was the relationship between people and their

environment?

What were the push/pull factors for migration?

How does migration affect other civilizations/cultures

What is trade?

How does an economy function?

What I Know about First Civilizations

What I Learned about First Civilizations

What I Want to Learn about First Civilizations

K-W-L Early Civilizations


Scientist believe that humans

first appeared over two million

years ago.

It is also suggested that the first

humans were wandering Hunters

and Gatherers.

TTYN: What were Hunters and Gatherers?.


Hunters and Gatherers –

During the Stone Age, Hunters and

Gatherers, also known as Nomads, were

people who moved from place to place, hunting

and gathering their food.

They made simple tools and weapons from

stone, bone, and wood. They developed their

own language, which allowed them to

communicate during a hunt.

Foundations of Civilization Spiritual Beliefs –

Towards the end of the

Old Stone Age,

Nomads began to bury

their dead, which

suggests that they

believed in an afterlife.

Where it all began –

Evidence suggests that the

earliest people lived in E. Africa.

Eventually, their descendants

spread to all parts of the world.

There some evidence that

suggests Nomads migrated over a

land bridge into N. America.


TTYN: Describe Migration

Migration led to Cultural Diffusion, or the exchange of

ideas, customs, and goods among cultures.

TTYN: From your prior knowledge, describe -

How Cultural Diffusion has had an impact on

American Culture.

How Cultural Diffusion has had an impact on your life


TTYN: Describe the term Revolution

The Neolithic Revolution(In with the New and out with the Old)

Due to environmental changes and changes to weather

patterns, the Old Stone Age came to a close.

Warmer weather promoted vegetation where,

previously, sheets of ice had dominated the landscape.

Around 10,000 B.C., civilizations made several

important discoveries – they learned how to plant seeds

and domesticate animals.


TTYN: Describe the term Revolution

The Neolithic Revolution(In with the New and out with the Old)

Too tired to wander - The need to wander was over

People could live in permanent settlements

The end of the Old Stone Age and the beginning of the

New Stone Age, or Neolithic Period.

FYI – Many historians refer to the Neolithic Revolution as

the Agricultural Revolution because farming and

domestic animals changed the way people lived.


TTYN: Try to Identify at least three different ways that

life may have changed during the Neolithic Revolution -

1. Permanent Settlements

2. New Social Classes – Not everything was “peaches

and cream.” When resources were scarce, groups

went to war and Chiefs or headsmen emerged. As a

result, men gained prestige and obtained great

power and influence.


TTYN: Try to Identify at least three different ways that life may have changed during the Neolithic Revolution -

3. New Technology –

• The wheel

• Metal weapons

• Metal tools

• Plows

• Calendar

There’s no place like homeWhere did most

civilizations develop?

First civilizations began to develop along river valleys. The rich fertile lands helped new civilizations thrive.

Pa l e o l i t h i c v s . N e o l i t h i cCompare and Contrast


Pa l e o l i t h i c v s . N e o l i t h i c

lasted 2.5 million years to

8000 BC

Otherwise known as the

Old Stone age”

Cave paintings

Hunters and gatherers

nomadic ( never stayed in

one place (followed herd)

Science and Technology

Stone tools, use of rocks,

teeth

“Neo” means new

New Stone Age

People learn to farm

No longer have to follow

herd

Can stay in one place

and live

establishment of

villages

permanent homes

Domestication of

Animals

people learn to raise

animals and

keep them as a food

source

pigs, chickens, cows

New tools make

farming easier and life

Use of Bronze

Plates

Bowls

Ox drawn

Development of

agriculture

Food surpluses

This period is also

sometimes called the

Agricultural Revolution

So, What does it all

MEAN?

People stopped

chasing food and

started

living in permanent

settlements growth

of villages, towns,

cities

Leisure time will lead

to advancements in

record keeping and

technology


Ancient Middle East and Egypt


Early Civilizations

TTYN - Can you name one of the earliest civilizations? Hint!! This country recently experienced a revolution

EGYPT

3000 2500 2000 1500 1000 500 5003500

2625 B.C.Old KingdomBegins

1539 B.C.New KingdomBegins

730 B.C.Nubian DynastyRules Egypt

270 B.C.Meroitic PeriodIn Kush


Timeline

Along with the Great Pyramid

of Giza, the Sphinx is one of

the greatest enigmas and the

most studied ancient

monument of mankind’s

history. The whole complex

of Giza, composed of the

Sphinx, the Great Pyramid,

other pyramids, and distinct

structures, definitely holds

the key to understanding

advanced past civilizations.


Two schools of thoughts concerning

the origin, age, and the builder of the

Sphinx in Egypt.

First, that Pharaoh Khafre built the

Sphinx around 2500 B.C., which suggests that the

Sphinx is about 5,000 years old.

Second, that the Sphinx was built by an advanced

civilization 8,000 to 10,000 B.C. This school of thought

has been around for hundreds of years, but new

findings give it more credibility.


The second finding would suggest that

mankind’s history is older than the

6,000 years of Christian tradition

and an advanced ancient civilization

built the Sphinx. This would mean that

history would have to be rewritten or a better

understanding of Moses account of creation.

TTYN: Why is knowing when the Sphinx was built

important?



Geography

Ancient Middle East and Egypt Geography

Geography

Most of Egypt is a desert

Early civilizations settled along

the Nile River.

The Nile River provided water for

drinking and irrigation.

The river also served as a

transportation highway.



Major River: Nile River

“Gift of the Nile”

Each year the Nile

floods leaving behind

rich resources (silt)

which aid in farming

Unlike the Tigris and

Euphrates- Nile floods

like clockwork (yearly)

People were not able to survive in the harsh desert

and began to move into the Nile River Valley.

The Nile River Valley has

fertile land along each side of

the river.

It is the world’s longest river.

The river flows northward for more

than 4,000 miles from its main source at

Lake Victoria in central Africa.


Vocabulary

Savanna

A grassy plain with many trees and animals.

Delta

Low land formed at the mouth of some rivers by the silt the river drops there.


Fertile soil

Deserts provided protection and shelter from outside

influences

Access to Mediterranean increased and expanded

trade and culture….Cultural Diffusion!!!

Culture was one of stability and not rapid change

Deserts were an important source of minerals and

building supplies (copper, tin, gold and natron, the

drying agent used in mummification

The Geographical Effects


Religion in Ancient Egypt

Government in Ancient Egypt

Religion

Source of Egyptian Religion

The Ancient Egyptians believed in many gods

TTYN: The belief in many gods is known as what?

and used stories about them to explain events in

nature.

They believed the sun was a god that was born each

day and died each night.

They believed religion was important to their survival

in the Nile River Valley.


Religion

Egyptians were polytheistic.

In other words, they believed in

more than one god.

For example, the sun god,

Amon-Ra or Amon-Re was the

chief god, Osiris was the god of

the Nile, and a host of other gods

who had specific functions.


TTYN: If

polytheistic is the

belief in more than

one god, what is

monotheistic ?

Thoth – the god of wisdom

Hathor – the goddess of love

Orisis - ruled over the dead

Hapi – the god of the river


Egyptian gods

The Egyptians prayed to their gods and

believed in life after death – the Afterlife

A book of prayers called The Book of the Dead was

placed in their tombs , which is to be used as a guide in

the afterlife.


The Afterlife

Amon Ra

The cornerstone of the

religious faith for Egyptians

was a belief in life after death.

Egyptians prepared their dead

for the afterlife through the

preservation process called

mummification

More on Religion….


Government, Society, and Contributions

Government

The Egyptian ruler was called a

pharaoh and Egyptians believed he was

both a god and a king.

After the death of a pharaoh, power

usually

passed to another member of the family.

Thus, these ruling families were called

dynasties.


Government style known as a Theocracy


Society

Egyptian society was divided into classes.

The pharaoh was at the top

Next were the priests, who served the gods and

goddesses, and third were the nobles, who fought the

pharaoh’s wars.

Next were the craftspeople and merchants



Society

The biggest group, the peasant farmers.

The lowest group were the slaves.

Women had a higher status in Egyptian society than

in any other ancient civilization…a woman could own

property, conduct business transactions, and obtain a

divorce.


Government, Society, and ContributionsContributions

Egyptians made many advancements in science and art.

Mummifications helped them understand the human

body, which helped them diagnose illnesses and

perform surgery. They developed a calendar, which is

very similar to what we use today. They also created

picture writing called hieroglyphics. Egyptian temples,

monuments, and pyramids have survived thousands of

years.


http://www.nationalgeographic.com/pyramids/pyramids.htmlEgyptian Hieroglyphics


The Rosetta Stone: Key to understanding hieroglyphics

Found in 1799 by the French

Took 23 years to crack code

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/pyramids/pyramids.html


Science and Technology:

Pyramids

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The first form of paper Something they could write on other than stone

or clay

Papyrus


Calendars• 365 day calendar (to keep track of

flooding of Nile) …learned this by watching stars

http://rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A9gnMiRUjgVFjDcBVE2JzbkF;_ylu=X3oDMTBjMHZkMjZyBHBvcwMxBHNlYwNzcg--/SIG=1etgntfmt/EXP=1158078420/**http:/images.search.yahoo.com/search/images/view?back=http://images.search.yahoo.com/search/images?p=calendar+clip+art&ei=UTF-8&fr=yfp-t-500&x=wrt&w=125&h=125&imgurl=70.85.25.89/images/calendar_clip_art.jpg&rurl=http://70.85.25.89/&size=13.4kB&name=calendar_clip_art.jpg&p=calendar+clip+art&type=jpeg&no=1&tt=399&oid=fdc61cae3a2dd15a&ei=UTF-8

Achievements

VI. Ramses II (1279-1213)

VI. Tutankhamen 1335-1325 BCE

(King Tut)

child ruler

ruled nine years, died at 18

young death meant burial

in the tomb of a lesser

person (noble) resulting in

preservation

In summary format, discuss the development

of locally dominant towns along the Nile in the

Egyptian Neolithic. How might their

development set the stage for the development

of a unified Egypt?


Short-Answer Response

MesopotamiaAncient Middle East and Egypt

The Land Between Two Rivers

TimelineMesopotamia was ruled by four

different empires

Sumerian 3,500 BC – 2,300 BC

Akkadian 2,300 BC – 1,900 BC

Babylonian 1,900 BC – 1,300 BC

Assyrian 1,300 BC – 612 BC

Mesopotamia Location - Located along the Tigris and

Euphrates Rivers, the first civilization in Mesopotamia

was Sumer (Su Mer).

Growth - Villages grew into busy cities and these

city-states, political units made up a city and the

surrounding land, made up the civilizations of Sumer.

Growing Pains - As the cities grew, various city-

states fought each other for land and water.

Mesopotamia

Mesopotamia is a Greek word meaning between

the rivers

Ancient Mesopotamia was located between the Tigris

and Euphrates Rivers

Most of Mesopotamia was located in present day

Iraq

The hot dry climate was mixed with seasonal

flooding from the rivers

TTYN – Identify and describe one negative and one

positive that would result from the flooding of the

rivers.

Geography

To the Northeast of Egypt, the

Fertile Crescent, a region of good

Farmland created by the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers,

stretches from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean.

In this area great civilizations developed, giving the

Fertile Crescent the name “the cradle of

civilization.”

Mesopotamia

Agriculture - (The Fertile Crescent)

Farmers turned the land into a rich

food growing area by using irrigation

and the plow

Farmers grew wheat, barley, dates, and other

vegetables and fruit

They raised goat, pig, sheep and cattle

Irrigation created a surplus of food which led to the

growth of cities…remember the flooding issue???

Surplus led to a flourishing system of trade

Mesopotamia

Sumerian Civilization

Making do with what they had

Had few raw materials such as stone and lumber

Built with earth and water

Bricks of clay

The First Cities

The Ziggurats

Mesopotamia

Economy

The Mesopotamian plain was lacking in resources such as metals,

timber, stone, and grapevines, so the Sumerians had to trade

abroad to get them

At first, the Sumerians traded surplus barley for these goods

Later, the Sumerians began to manufacture trading goods that

they could transport more easily, such as cloth and bronze

ornaments

The Mesopotamians made written contracts, loans and created a

credit system

They used a barter system

Mesopotamia

Trade Routes

Government Sumer – included many independent city-states

TTYN: Can you think of a possible downside to having

so many independent city-states in such close

proximity to each other?

Protection – people would turn to courageous and

resourceful war leaders, which would turn into

hereditary ruler

Mesopotamia

Government Role of the Ruler

Maintaining city walls and irrigation systems

Led armies into war and enforced laws

Employed scribes

Collected taxes and kept records

Chief servant to the gods

Mesopotamia

Social Classes

Mesopotamia

Social Classes

Mesopotamia

Ruling Family, Leading

Officials, High Priests

Middle Class – Merchants, Artisans,

and lesser Priests

The majority of people and peasant farmers

Mesopotamia - (Land of Firsts)

First to invent the wheel

First to use sails on boats

One of first to make up a

story (Gilgamesh)

First to use cuneiform

(writing)

Mesopotamia is known as, “The Cradle of Civilization,”

because it was first in many things: First to use the

calendar

First to use the seeder

plow

First to give a number

place value and

recognize the concept

of zeroPair and Share – Select at least five “First’s” and describe why they may be important to civilization of Mesopotamia

Language

Mesopotamians were the first to

use writing (around 3,000 BC)

Cuneiform - The system of

writing was called cuneiform

Cuneiform was wedge shaped

symbols pressed into clay

tablets

The Mesopotamians wrote many

myths

The most famous was the epic

poem called Gilgamesh

Why Writing was

important then…and

still is

Writing allowed

people to keep

records of their

transactions

People could send

messages with

couriers to far away

lands without

traveling..exchange

ideas and information

Writing allowed

people to pass on

their accumulated

knowledge to future

generations…

HISTORY!!

Mesopotamia

Cuneiform Tablets

Mesopotamia

Religion

The people of Mesopotamia believed in many gods

TTYN – The belief in many gods is known as?

Each town was protected by its own, unique deity or

god

The temple, the center of worship, was also the

center of every city

Around the year 2000 B.C., temple towers called

ziggurats were built to link heaven and earth

Mesopotamia

The Mesopotamians had written laws that everyone

in the empire had to follow

There were 282 laws created by King Hammurabi

Known as Hammurabi's Code, the laws were written

in stone and placed in a public location

The Mesopotamians believed the gods called the king

to establish justice and order; whoever disobeyed the

king disobeyed the gods

Hammurabi

Mesopotamia

Concept Ladder

Topic: Hammurabi Code Hammurabi Code

city-state

Definition: A self-governing state consisting of a city and

surrounding territory

Context: Nippur was the most important city-state in Sumer.

cuneiform

Definition: The system of writing used by the ancient Sumerians

Context: Cuneiform writing looks more like symbols than pictures.

demon

Definition: An evil spirit

Context: According to Sumerian legend, Gilgamesh killed the

demon Huwawa with the help of the sun god.

Vocab

scribe

Definition: A person paid to write, especially in ancient times

Context: Mesopotamian scribes worked closely with the priests and

kings.

stylus

Definition: A hard, pointed writing tool cut from a reed

Context: Sumerian scribe wrote with styluses they made from reeds.

Sumerians

Definition: Residents of Sumer, a region of the ancient land of

Mesopotamia

Context: The Sumerians developed many inventions, such as the wheel

and the plow.

tablet

Definition: A flat slab – often of clay or stone – suitable for an inscription

Context: The Sumerians etched symbols into wet clay tablets to create a

permanent document of their activities.

epic

Definition: A long poem telling the deeds of a hero and often centering

on the ideals of a nation or culture

Context: The Epic of Gilgamesh teaches us to enjoy the time we have on

Earth.

immortality

Definition: The quality or state of having an endless life

Context: Gilgamesh was unable to achieve immortality, but he was able

to leave behind a legacy through the work he had done during his

lifetime.

Mesopotamia

Definition: An ancient land located where we find the modern country of

Iraq

Context: Mesopotamia means, “land between the rivers” and got its

name because it was located between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.

Nippur

Definition: A major city-state in the ancient Sumerian region of

Mesopotamia

Context: Nippur was a busy trading center in Sumer and its most

important religious city.

Mesopotamia DBQ

Additional Resources

Daily Lesson Planner

Student Notes Packet

Notes Packet Instructions and Suggestions:

How extensive your Notes Packet really depends on whether or

not if you ask your students to maintain a notebook.

My notes packets include space for notes PLUS a copy of each

literacy activity I ask the students to complete

I require my students to re-write each ‘Do Now’ and/or TTYN

question PLUS to record their response in their Notes Packet

Grading the Notes Packet – I grade based on accuracy and depth.

Particular attention is given to literacy activities and ‘Do

Now’s/TTYN”

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Foundations of Civilization First Civilizations Egypt Mesopotamia.

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