World Humanities. Background Reading:The Beginnings of Civilization, 10, B.C.E. I CAN...

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1 World Humanities Background Reading:The Beginnings of Civilization, 10, B.C.E. I CAN... Explain the link between the Neolithic food-producing revolution and the emergence of civilizations. Identify the causes that transformed early communities in southwest Asia into the first cities, kingdoms, and empires. Describe how civilization took shape along the Nile River in Egypt. Discuss the impact of food production and metallurgy on the first human populations of Europe. KEY IDEAS The development of food production through agriculture and the domestication of animals led to the development of large settlements and the emergence of powerful elites. In southwest Asia and Egypt, civilizations arose that were based on cities, and devoted their resources to irrigation, warfare, and worship. Long-distance trade was an important feature of these early civilizations, as was the development of writing. As the case of Europe in this era illustrates, the development of civilization did not happen everywhere at the same time. I. DEFINING CIVILIZATION, DEFINING WESTERN CIVILIZATION Culture is used by anthropologists to refer to all the different ways in which humans collectively adjust to their environment, and transmit experiences and knowledge to their descendants. Culture is best understood as a web of interconnected meanings that allows a particular group of people to understand themselves and their place in the world, and each culture is distinctive. Culture, then, is distinct from civilization, which is defined as a city-based society in which there are differing occupations and levels of wealth wherein elites exercise economic, political, and religious power. A. Making Civilization Possible: The Food-Producing Revolution The first modern humans supported themselves by gathering wild foods. After the Ice Age ended, humans slowly discovered how to increase their food supply by planting crops and domesticating animals. As a result, the human population increased, and food surpluses allowed for economic specialization and exchange, and fostered the growth of social, political, and religious hierarchies. B. The First Food-Producing Communities Archaeological excavations of Neolithic sites in three areas of southwest Asia give evidence of the development of agriculture beginning around 8000 B.C.E. As a result, there developed in these areas increasingly complex forms of political organization and religious observance, as well as longdistance trade.

2 C. Transformations in Europe Europe lagged in developing a Neolithic culture, widespread only by about 2500 B.C.E. Metallurgy, using copper, reached the Balkans by about 4500 B.C.E. and the use of the plow by about 2600 B.C.E. Monumental building in Europe resulted in megaliths that marked burial sites, from about 4000 B.C.E. Stonehenge is the best example. By 1600 B.C.E., Europe had achieved some, but not all of the requirements for civilization. II. MESOPOTAMIA: KINGDOMS, EMPIRES, AND CONQUESTS Southwest Asia played a special role in history by standing at the crossroads of Africa, Asia and Europe, and as being considered the birthplace of civilization. A. The Sumerian Kingdoms About 5300 B.C.E., a dynamic civilization that would last for 3,000 years began to emerge from the villages, and later cities, of Sumer (or southern Mesopotamia). In learning to control the waters of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers to irrigate crops, the Sumerians developed the foundation of civilization: the city. By 2500 B.C.E., 12 cities dominated Sumer. Providing markets and encouraging craft specialists, Sumerian cities were important economic centers, in which centralized authorities directed labor and economic activity: a redistributive economy. In the earliest period, temple priests held central authority, acting for the god or goddess that owned all of the city-state s lands and resources. Later, kings dominated, possibly coming to power through their role as war leaders in periods of expansion. Long-distance trade and a fostered diplomacy helped to maintain a coherent Sumerian culture as well as to increase Sumerians knowledge of foreign peoples. B. The Akkadian Empire of Sargon the Great With their conquest by the Akkadian king Sargon, the Sumerian cities found themselves part of a new kind of political entity: the empire. Controlling a large empire presented new challenges, including new organizational methods. Akkadian kings tried to ensure loyalty by portraying themselves as semi-divine figures, and met the problem of financing an empire through various means, one of the most important of which was taxing trade. Thus, long-distance trade held great importance for these kings, and the cities of Mesopotamia prospered. Two military innovations helped create and maintain the Akkadian empire: the composite bow and the chariot. Nonetheless, Akkadian rule collapsed around 2250 B.C.E. C. The Ur III Dynasty and the Rise of Assyria After the fall of the Akkadian Empire, the Sumerian city-states regained their autonomy. Around 2100 B.C.E., they were again subjects of an empire. The empire of Sargon was replaced by a powerful dynasty centered in the city of Ur. Ur s kings centralized both government and economic production, but their most important innovation came in the area of law, by establishing the custom of collecting and writing down laws. Ur, however, collapsed about 2000 B.C.E., with the Amorite invasion. D. Assyria and Babylonia Another period ensued, in which city-states squabbled for domination. In this period, strong central control of the economy lapsed, and some individuals traded for themselves. As an example, Assyrian merchants traded throughout Anatolia. Profits and risks were both high, and the Assyria flourished. Further south, the kingdom of Babylon expanded under Hammurabi. Dominating Mesopotamia, Hammurabi issued a law code that covered every aspect of economic life. Taxation was high, and Hammurabi s death was followed by a revolt. His empire was lost by 1650.

3 E. Cultural Continuities: The Transmission of Mesopotamian Cultures 1. THE MESOPOTAMIAN WORLD VIEW: RELIGION The deification of unreliable natural forces was central to Mesopotamian beliefs. In their polytheistic religion, Enlil, Enki, Marduk and Inanna were the most important deities. The priests, as intermediaries, had a key role, presiding over the temples of the ziggurats. An example is the ziggurat of Ur, built by Ur-Nammu for the city-states chief deity. 1. THE MESOPOTAMIAN WORLDVIEW: SCIENCE? Divination was widely used, reading the natural world for messages from the unseen world. The use of divination in Mesopotamia can be termed a proto-science for it was systematic, and deductive. In astronomy and mathematics, this proto-scientific mentality led to such ideas as square and cube roots, exponents, the 360-degree circle, and the base-ten system. 2. THE DEVELOPMENT OF WRITING The need to keep accurate records led to the earliest writing by about 4000 B.C.E. in Uruk, and the cuneiform system by about 3200 B.C.E. Scribes were important to leaders, and the use of cuneiform spread. 3. THE EPIC OF GILGAMESH The story of the historical king of Uruk, Gilgamesh, was worked into a popular legend. The Epic of Gilgamesh comes to us in Akkadian, but it pre-dates the Akkadian Empire, and had a wide influence in the Middle East. 4. LAW AND ORDER Sumerian law codes the most famous being that of Hammurabi are dated to at least 2350 B.C.E. Though they are tricky to use as historical sources, they do reveal the preoccupations of their times. For example Hammurabi s code makes class distinctions clear. The code also discusses family matters in detail, and reveals the patriarchy of Babylonian society. The harshness of some of the punishments called for sometimes distracts us from the fact that such codes established the precedent for the Western tradition of a punishment that should fit the crime. III. EGYPT: THE EMPIRE OF THE NILE Egyptian civilization was built on the narrow strip of fertile land along the Nile River. Largely isolated from other areas by deserts, Egypt enjoyed stability. Its history is divided into Predynastic, Early Dynastic and three Old Kingdom periods, separated by intermediate periods of destabilization. A. Egypt s Rise to Empire Like Mesopotamian civilization, that of Egypt moved from hunter-gatherer societies, through a period of small villages, then small towns, by 3500 B.C.E. A common culture developed by 3000 B.C.E., unified by communications along the Nile River, and organized politically into Upper and Lower Egypt. 1. THE KINGS AND THE GODS IN THE OLD KINGDOM Egyptian kings established themselves as religious, social, and political focal points. The story of the struggle between Seth and Osiris embodied the centrality of the Nile, the basis for monarchy, and the Egyptian concept of world order. The king only later pharaoh was the incarnation of the god Horus, who restored order after the destruction of Osiris. The ruler thus

4 established ma at a term which means right order, truth, justice and was responsible for maintaining the cosmic order. Egyptian religion was polytheistic, but imbued with a greater sense of order. For Egyptians, religion might be practiced at home, to household gods, or on the state level, where the worship of such gods (such as the sun god Re) were part of a stable, cyclical nature in their world. 2. THE PYRAMIDS The first pyramids were massive royal temples, part of the Egyptian focus on the afterlife. Later pyramids, such as the Great Pyramid of Giza, dated to around 2600 B.C.E., were also tombs. The process of building the pyramids could be a long-running project, involving tens of thousands of workers. 3. THE SOCIAL AND POLITICAL ORDER IN THE OLD KINGDOM The king and his family, though at the summit of Egyptian society, were constrained by the need to preserve ma at, through precise rituals. The Egyptian nobility were important in the kingdom s redistributive economy. The need to keep exact records led to the development of hieroglyphic writing. The rest of society was divided into artisans, peasants, and slaves. Egyptian women could buy and sell property, and were considered equal to their husbands in marriage. 4. WHERE IS MA AT? THE COLLAPSE OF THE OLD KINGDOM The Old Kingdom was brought down around 2200 B.C.E., presumably because of drought and resulting famine. In the First Intermediate Period that followed, Egyptian culture experienced a heightened sense of uncertainty, and the afterlife became more important. 5. THE MIDDLE KINGDOM, CA B.C.E. The Middle Kingdom was begun by Mentuhotep II ( B.C.E.), and was centered on Thebes. In this period, the king was less omnipotent, and the nobility gained in power. For most, assuring their place in eternity became a troubling preoccupation, to be helped by the use of scarabs. 6. ENCOUNTERS WITH OTHER CIVILIZATIONS Egypt wanted to protect its international trade and was willing to use force if necessary, but preferred to use diplomacy and friendship when possible. Trade with Nubia now Sudan was particularly important, and was protected by a system of forts that protected the flow of gold and ivory into Egypt. Peoples from surrounding lands moved into Egypt, merging with and invigorating Egyptian culture. Near the end of the Middle Kingdom, political order in Canaan broke down, and the Canaanites became more aggressive towards neighboring lands. The Second Intermediate Period resulted in Egypt. The Hyksos one of these Canaanite groups established rule over Egypt by about 1650 B.C.E. Largely assimilated into Egyptian culture, they nevertheless brought innovation as well. Most importantly, the Hyksos introduced the use of bronze and the light chariot. The use of the chariot fostered the growth of empires in Egypt and throughout the

5 region. The Late Bronze Age, from about 1500 B.C.E., was a period of greater international contact and instability. B. The New Kingdom: The Egyptian Empire in the Late Bronze Age With the expulsion of the Hyksos around 1550 B.C.E., King Ahmose I began the New Kingdom. This period saw the expansion of Egypt far into Asia, and the first use of the title pharaoh. 1. BUILDING AN EMPIRE: MILITARY CONQUEST AND THE TERRITORIAL EXPANSION A conscription of one in ten villagers created a large standing army. The idea that only in Egypt did order reign provided an ideological basis for conquest. Thutmose I conquered southern Palestine. Thutmose III conquered the entire coastline, controlling Cannan, which was valued for its natural resources and its trading connections. To the south, Egypt again controlled Nubia, reinforcing its hold by encouraging colonization. 2. KEEPING AN EMPIRE: ADMINISTRATIVE AND DIPLOMATIC INNOVATION Sophisticated bureaucratic methods helped to maintain the empire won by force. The vizier and regional administrators ran the kingdom. Using the lure of trading privileges, the pharaohs used diplomacy to maintain their empire. 3. CONTINUITY IN THE NEW KINGDOM As in the earlier periods, a redistributive economy was overseen by the government and temples. Monumental building continued: most notably the Great Temple of Abu Simbel, built by Ramesses II. The status of women was maintained, with some women holding priesthoods. 4. CHANGE IN THE NEW KINGDOM Although female rulers had not been unknown in Egyptian history, the reign of Hatshepsut was unusual. She ruled as a male pharaoh, even to the extent of generally being depicted as a man. Her son, Thutmose III, had evidence of her reign erased, perhaps in an attempt to reassert ma at. Later in the New Kingdom, Amenhotep IV took the name Akhenaten, and declared the deified sun disc the only god. The Amarna Period was initiated by Akhenaten when the capital was moved to a new site, Amarna, to signal a more complete break. Historians disagree whether this was true monotheism, or an attempt to return to Old Kingdom worship. After Akhenaten s death, the court returned to Memphis, and the successor, Tutankhamun, returned to traditional worship. In the twelfth century B.C.E., Egypt again experienced a period of disruption, which was shared by the entire Middle East. IV. CONCLUSION: CIVILIZATION AND THE WEST By 3000 B.C.E., civilization had not yet developed in Europe, but had developed in Mesopotamia and Egypt. Europe the West would eventually claim these Near Eastern civilizations as remote ancestors, from whom the West inherited such crucial components as systems of writing and the idea of law codes based on abstract principles.