Introduction for Chapter 1
1. ORIGINS, TO 1200 B.C.E.
>What similarities and differences were evident in the nature and development of the Mesopotamian and Egyptian civilizations? Chapter 1 examines early human history, tracing the evolution of human society from its origins to the emergence of cities, kingdoms, and empires. For most of their history, humans were foragers moving through the landscape, inventing ever more specialized tools. About 11,000 years ago, people in some places domesticated plants and animals. They began to live in permanent villages, some of which grew into cities. They created new technologies and social systems that facilitated further growth and development. The first places where these new technologies and systems were introduced were the Tigris and Euphrates River Valleys of southwest Asia and the Nile Valley of northeast Africa, areas whose history became linked through trade connections, military conquests, and migrations.
LearningCurve
After reading the chapter, use LearningCurve to retain what you’ve read.
>What do we mean by “the West” and “Western civilization”?
>How did early human societies develop and create new technologies and cultural forms?
>What kind of civilization did the Sumerians develop in Mesopotamia?
>How did the Akkadian and Old Babylonian empires develop in Mesopotamia?
>How did the Egyptians create a prosperous and long-lasting society?
| ca. 250,000 B.C.E. | ca. 3000 B.C.E. |
| – Homo sapiens evolve in Africa | – Development of wheeled transport; beginning of bronze technology |
| 250,000– |
ca. 2500 B.C.E. |
| – Paleolithic era | – Bronze technology becomes common in many areas |
| 9000 B.C.E. | ca. 2300 B.C.E. |
| – Beginning of the Neolithic; crop raising; domestication of sheep and goats | – Establishment of the Akkadian empire |
| ca. 7000 B.C.E. | ca. 1800 B.C.E. |
| – Domestication of cattle; plow agriculture | – Hyksos people begin to settle in the Nile Delta |
| ca. 5500 B.C.E. | 1792– |
| – Smelting of copper | – Hammurabi rules Babylon |
| ca. 3800 B.C.E. | 1258 B.C.E. |
| – Establishment of first Mesopotamian cities | – Peace treaty between Egyptian pharaoh Ramesses II and Hittite king Hattusuli III |
| ca. 3200 B.C.E. | ca. 1200 B.C.E. |
| – Development of cuneiform and hieroglyphic writing | – “Bronze Age Collapse”; destruction and drought |
| ca. 3100 B.C.E | |
| – Unification of Upper and Lower Egypt |
A note on dates: This book generally uses the terms B.C.E. (Before the Common Era) and C.E. (Common Era) when giving dates, a system of chronology based on the Christian calendar and now used widely around the world.