Unit 2: River Valley Civilizations

city-state

A city that with its surrounding territory forms an independent state. Found in Mesopotamia.

Cuneiform

A form of writing developed by the Sumerians using a wedge shaped stylus and clay tablets.

Fertile Crescent

A geographical area of fertile land in the Middle East stretching in a broad semicircle from the Nile to the Tigris and Euphrates

Theocracy

A government controlled by religious leaders

Empire

A group of states or territories controlled by one ruler.

Subcontinent

A large landmass that forms a distinct part of a continent and is typically separated by a barrier such as mountains.

Indus River

A large river surrounded by fertile land in modern India/Pakistan that allowed for Harappan civilization.

Ramses II

A long-lived ruler of New Kingdom Egypt. He is referred to in the Bible as the Pharaoh during the Exodus (story of Passover), but there is no archaeological evidence to prove this.

Thutmose III

A pharaoh that was one of the greatest conquerers; many new lands were brought under Egyptian control during his reign.

Dynasty

A powerful family or group of rulers that maintains its position or power for some time.

Sumer

The world's first civilization, founded in Mesopotamia.

Mesopotamia

A region between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers that developed the first urban societies. It means "land between two rivers"

Mandate of Heaven

A theory of ancient China in which those in power were given the right to rule from a divine source; Zhou used this as an excuse to overthrow the Shang Dynasty

Yellow River

Also known as the Huang-He. The second longest river in China. The majority of ancient Chinese civilizations originated in its valley.

Oracle Bones

Animal bones or shells carved with written characters which were used for telling the future from the gods.

Planned Cities on the Indus

Cities laid out according to a grid system with sewage and plumbing. Buildings were made of oven baked bricks. Levees kept water out. Islands raised cities above flood level.

Shang Dynasty

Early rulers in China who were the first to leave a written records found on oracle bones and surrounded cities with large earthen walls for protection.

Hieroglyphics

Egyptian writing that involved using pictures to represent words.

New Egyptian Kingdom

Era marked by Egytptian expansion and empire building.

Old Kingdom Egypt

Era of pyramid building

Hatshepsut

First female pharaoh who expanded Egypt through trade. Took power because Thutmose III was too young when Thutmose II died.

Pyramid

Huge, triangular shaped burial tombs of Egyptian pharaohs built during the Old Kingdom.

Narmer

King who united upper and lower Egypt

Mohenjo-Daro

Largest city of the Indus Valley civilization. No written records have been deciphered, but many artifacts and a well-organized city have been uncovered.

Sargon

Leader of the Akkadians who overran the Sumerian city-state and set up the first empire.

Monsoon

Major winds in the Indian Ocean that blow in dry or moist air which substantially impacts the climate and flood season.

Polygamy

Marriage to several people at the same time

Ziggurat

Massive pyramidal stepped tower made of mudbricks. It is associated with religious complexes in ancient Mesopotamian cities, but was also used for governmental purposes.

Euphrates River

One of the two largest rivers in Southwest Asia that created the area known as Mesopotamia.

Hammurabi

Ruler of Babylon. He conquered many city-states in southern and northern Mesopotamia and is best known for a code of laws, inscribed on a black stone pillar, illustrating the principles to be used in legal cases.

Harappa

Site of one of the great cities of the Indus Valley civilization.

Upper Egypt

Southern part of Egypt

Chinese characters

Symbols used to write the Chinese language. Disadvantages: contained many symbols, took years to become literate, limited number of educated Chinese for centuries.

Tigris and Euphrates Rivers

The land between these two rivers contained the early civilizations of Mesopotamia

Zhou Dynasty

The longest lasting Chinese dynasty. They used the Mandate of Heaven to justify their conquest of the previous dynasty. They lost their power after a period known as "The Warring States"

Lower Egypt

The northern part of ancient Egypt

Dynastic Cycle

The rise and fall of Chinese dynasties according to the Mandate of Heaven.

Nile River

The river in which early kingdoms in Egypt were centered around; longest in the world.

Pharoh

The title used by the rulers of Egypt; considered to be gods.

citadel

a fortified area that served as the center of the city in the Indus River Valley.

Rosetta Stone

a huge stone slab inscribed with hieroglyphics, Greek, and a later form of Egyptian (demotic) that allowed historians to understand Egyptian writing.

Polytheism

the belief in or worship of more than one god.

River Valley Civilizations

the earliest civilizations that developed around rivers for the fresh water supply and the fertile land ex-: Tigris-Euphrates (Mesopotamia), Nile (Egypt), Indus (India), Huang He or Yellow River (China)

Collectivism

the practice or principle of giving a group priority over individual desires; we before me--part of Ancient Chinese culture that continues to present day

Issues faced by Sumerians

unpredictable flooding, no natural barriers, limited natural resources