Mesopotamia Vocabulary
In Mesopotamia, _______ were the people who worked on the land belonging to the king or in the temples. They recieved a share of the harvest in return.
Peasants
temple
_____ were considered gods, controlling political and religious power in Egypt
pharaohs
this river crosses the desert from South to North and forms a long, narrow region of vegetation where Egyptian civilization began
Nile
The belief in many gods
polytheism/ being polytheistic
What are the two regions that Mesopotamia was divided into?
Assyria (northern region) and Chaldea (southern region)
to make better use of the Nile's water, Egyptians built dams to hold water and _______ to carry the water long distances
canals
Believing in life after death, Egyptians preserved the bodies of privileged people from decomposing in a process called _______.
mummification
The _____ was formed of the royal family and nobility, owning large areas of land and holding important positions in Mesopotamian society
aristocracy
This empire, centered around the city of Babylon, declared one of the first legal codes in history
Babylonian Empire
These people interpreted the will of the gods, conducted religious rites, and were in charge of the temples
Priests
temples included several parts, starting with access through an avenue of _______ and leading to the _______ where the divine statue was kept
sphinxes, shrine
large, stepped towers used as astronomical observatories, places of worship, or centers for divination
Ziggurats
These people built the first city-states which were independent of each other (Ex. Uruk)
Sumerians
______ and _______ lived in Egyptian cities, producing pottery, glass, etc. and traveling to barter goods to sell in Egypt
Craftspeople, merchants
For Egyptians, art had what kind of political purpose?
Praising the power of the pharaoh
officials who could read, write, and count that controlled product quality and recorded taxes
scribes
Give me two (of the three in the book) characteristics of river valley civilizations.
monarchs with great political power
a very hierarchical society
great architectural works
Name three of the people at the top of the Egyptian social hierarchy after the pharaoh
nobles, priests, scribes, high commanders of the army
name the three types of tombs common to Egyptian burial
mastabas, pyramids, hypogea