Vocab
Famine
A shortage of food and a hunger crisis
Identify one cost and one benefit of farming for early people.
Cost: Famine if crops failed/starvation
Benefit: Getting food from less land used
Resource
A supply of something that can be used as needed.
What is the first feature that all civilizations have in common?
Cities
List a domesticated animal & classify them according to how people used them! (Categories: Pets, food, clothing, work, protection)
Sheep belong in both the food and clothing category Dogs n pets, work & protection
surplus
More food than needed.
What new skill made agriculture possible?
Domestication of animals as food sources. Farming created a surplus of more food than needed. Then, Food surpluses lead to job specialization, so not everyone needs to be a farmer.
Civilization
A complex society that has cities, a well-organized government, and workers with specialized job skills.
What social classes were common in most early civilizations?
Rulers/Priests merchants, farmers, and skilled workers (artisans) Slaves
What are public works? Give two examples.
Large building projects that benefit society as a whole; roads/ sewer systems/irrigation systems/city walls.
domesticate
To change the growth of plants or behavior of animals in ways that are useful for humans.
What are some of the benefits and drawbacks of job specialization?
Benefit: Society can form a more advanced culture. Drawback: Individuals don’t learn certain skills.
Religion
Set of shared beliefs about supernatural powers that created and rule the world.
How were natural resources linked to the growth of civilizations?
Cities arose in areas that had soil, water, and seeds available.
Why do you think people in early cities began to trade with other cities?
Trading allowed them to get goods they might not be able to produce. They also got wealth by selling surplus food.
revolution
A complete change in ways of thinking, working, or living.
How did farming change the kinds of communities people lived in?
Farming allowed trade of farming goods. People didn’t worry so much about getting food. People settled and built more permanent homes.
Social class
Groups of people that occupy different ranks or levels in society.
How did Uruk differ from earlier farming communities?
Uruk had a large population, a complex government system, and a more complex economy
How was job specialization linked to the emergence of social classes?
Class was determined by the kind of work someone did, their occupation.
specialization
People spend most of their time working at a single job or craft.
How do you think decision making would change as people moved from hunter-gatherers to larger farming communities?
Unlike small communities, it was harder for everyone to participate in complex decisions in larger farming communities, so governments would start to form.
Economy
The system that a community uses to produce and distribute goods and services.
What 3 questions define the economy of a society?
a. What goods and services are produced?
b. How are they produced?
c. Who uses them?
How was a strong government linked to public works? Do you think organizing such projects was a necessary job for early governments to do?
It took a strong government to organize the people & resources needed for these projects. Only the government could organize such projects so it was a necessary job.