14 Feb 2021

Early Civilizations

The way that the world lives today evolved from the 4 major civilizations. From
gathering foods to building shelter, making clothing and so much more. Each of these
civilizations created a highly functioning society with religion, hierarchy, and trade. Each left a
cultural achievement that is still prevalent today.

Mesopotamia emerged in 4000 BCE. Although they had a strong source of water, there
was often irregular flooding and because there was a lack of natural boundaries (shown in map 1
below) leading to many invasions of their territories, causing empires like the Babylonians to
fall. The Mesopotamians were polytheistic worshipping many human-like gods. The kings,
whose royalty was passed down by blood, were believed to be servants of Gods. The Sumerian
empire built ziggurats to worship their gods. The cultural achievements and legacy that these
empires left were remarkable and still use today. The Babylonian empire invented what is
modern-day algebra, while the Sumerian empire made the wheel along with bronze tools and
weapons.

Ancient Egypt emerged around 3100 BCE. Unlike Mesopotamia where the river spread
throughout the entire region, the Egyptians used the Nile river and the surrounding deserts only
living on about 10% of the land (shown in map 2 below). The Nile River was known as the giver
of life. It provided travel and trade with the Mesopotamians, drinking water, and irrigation.
Similar to the Mesopotamians the Egyptians were polytheistic. They worshipped animal-like
gods. They also had king gods known as pharaohs who were extremely powerful and in charge
of all religious and political decisions. In the hierarchy of society, the Pharaohs were at the top. It
then came priests and nobles, traders and artisans, farmers and herders, and lastly the slaves. The
Egyptians believed in life after death so they spent decades building the pyramids, which were
tombs for their pharaohs, with the use of over 100,000 men and blocks that weighed over 10
tons. Today they are a historical monument that millions of people travel across the world to see.
These pyramids are also museumized on the US $1 bill with the “all-seeing eye” on the
unfinished pyramid.

The Harappan Indians was from 2500-1000 BCE. They had the Himalayan mountains
(shown in map 3 below) and a peninsula for isolation to prevent any foreign invasions. Although
the Indus were protected from foreign invasion they were not protected from domestic invasion
which was ultimately the fall of their civilization leaving them with a vanished legacy. They
were overthrown around 2500 BCE by the Aryans who were nomadic pastoralists with bronze
weapons, horses, and chariots. Their society consisted mostly of farmers and merchants who
made many trades with the middle east and Egypt. The Harappan Indians were also polytheistic
practicing Hinduism in citadels. Their priests were dominant in their society because they were
considered intermediaries between the people and Gods. The Harappan Indians as a whole
ultimately fell due to the irregular flooding. They were the first to use a drainage system as well
as a public bath, urban planning, and brick homes.

Finally, there was China’s Shang and Zhou dynasties. The Shang dynasty, from
1766-1122 BCE, was the first authenticated era of Chinese history with about 5,000 tribes and
run by father-son succession. Their level of hierarchy was based on the king followed by
aristocracies, artisans, peasants, and criminals. The Zhou dynasty was from 1122-221 BCE. They
defeated the Shang dynasty which was accredited to their emperor who was seen as the “sun of
heaven.” Their political system was based on kinship making it easier to control the expanding
population. They have immense agricultural production and expansion . They also perfected the
bronzes and developed written Chinese for the upper classes and scribes. They were polytheistic
and believed in many spirits, but Unlike the other major civilizations, their way of life did not
seem to revolve around many gods. Rather they were more humanistic following their core
values that are still prevalent in Chinese culture today.

The evolutions of these civilizations was unique from others in the way that they were
able to live on for centuries and create a functioning way of life. These major civilizations play a
huge role in the way that the world functions today. Each civilization created something that the
average human does not live without.
 Citations

1.) “...The Mesopotamians were polytheistic worshipping many human-like gods. The kings,
whose royalty was passed do…” HIS101Lecture: Rise of Civilization in the Near East
(from ca. 4,000 BCE) 2/5/2021”
2.) “The Nile river was known as the giver of life.” HIS101 Lecture: Rise of Civilizations in
Egypt (from ca. 3,000 BCE) 2/8/2021
3.) “Although the Indus were protected from foreign invasion they were not protected from
domestic invasion which was ultimately the fall of their civilization leaving them with a
vanished legacy.” HIS101 Lecture: Indus Valley India to Aryan Invasion ca. 2,500-1,000
BCE) 2/10/2021
4.) “Their political system was based on kinship making it easier to control the expanding
population.” HIS101 Lecture: China’s Foundations in Shang & Zhou ca. 1600-200 BCE)
2/12/2021
5.) “Unlike Mesopotamia where the river spread throughout the entire region, the Egyptians
used the Nile river and the surrounding deserts only living…(World Civilizations “Egypt
and Mesopotamia Compared”,p.37)”
 MAPS

1.) Mesopotamia

https://www.ancient-civilizations.com/mesopotamian-civilization/

2.) Eypt
 https://www.pinterest.com/pin/86412886578783033/

3.) Indus Valley Indus/Aryan

https://sites.google.com/site/ancientindiapathfinder/the-indus-river-valley

4.) China Shang/Zhou

https://www.chinahighlights.com/map/ancient-china-map/shang-dynasty-map.htm