Stone Age Societies
What does "eolith" (as in Paleolithic) mean?
"Dawn stone", referring to the use of tools
What was the world's first civilization? Where was it?
Sumer, at the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers
Where did Chinese civilization develop?
The Yellow River in the north and the Yangzi River in the south
Why was early Rome influenced by Greek civilization?
Conquest by the Etruscans in the 6th century B.C.
Where did Indian civilization emerge?
The Indus River Valley
Where did the Agricultural Revolution begin?
The "Fertile Crescent" between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers
What was the earliest form of writing?
Cuneiform
What were the four major dynasties of classical China?
Shang, Zhou, Qin, and Han dynasties
What was the key political difference between Athens and Sparta?
Athens was a democracy and Sparta was a military oligarchy
What were the two major alternatives to Hinduism?
Jainism and Buddhism
Why did civilizations begin to urbanize?
Invention of farming made the division of labor and creation of villages possible
What was the slave system based on in Sumer?
Conquest or to pay off debts, not hereditary or lifelong
Where did Chinese emperors believe their authority came from?
Bestowed by a supreme god
What is the only representation of Greece in its "dark age" (c. 1200 B.C.)?
Homer's The Iliad and The Odyssey
How does the caste system differ from regular social classes?
Castes are passed down by generation (hereditary) and come with privileges
How was labor divided in the paleolithic era?
By gender (men hunted, women gathered)
What united the Jewish people?
A collective identity around a monotheistic religion, with an ethical God
What are oracle bones?
Animal or tortoise shells that contain early Chinese writing
Why did Rome fall?
Weak leaders, struggles with inflation, population stagnation, army recruitment issues, and finally, barbarian invasions in 376 B.C.
How did Buddhism spread across South Asia?
Empires subsidized temple construction and sent missionaries
What are some key achievements of stone age societies in the neolithic era?
Agriculture, division of labor, urbanization
What were some of the things that later Mesopotamian civilizations (Akkadia, Babylonia) adopted from Sumer?
Sumerian law (Code of Hammurabi), literature, religion, mathematics
How did the Zhou dynasty deal with ruling over the size of their empire?
A system of feudalism with vassals ruling smaller areas under the king
What were some of the cultural achievements of Greece's golden age?
Dramas, Philosophy (Socrates, Plato, Aristotle), History, Medicine, Architecture, and Sculpture
What were Veda texts?
Hymns written in early Sanskrit by Brahmin priests to please gods, led to emergence of Hinduism