Name ______

First Civilizations Unit1 [part 1]

Chapters 1-2 Assignment Sheet

SSWH1

The student will analyze the origins, structures and interactions of complex societies in the ancient Eastern Mediterranean from 3500 BCE to 500 BCE.

  • Describe the development of Mesopotamian societies including the religious, cultural, economic, and political facets of society including Hammurabi's law code.
  • Describe the relationship of religion and political authority in Ancient Egypt.
  • Explain the development and importance of writing including cuneiform, hieroglyphics, and the Phoenician alphabet.

SSWH2

The student will identify the major achievements of Chinese and Indian societies from 1100 BCE to 500 CE.

  • Describe the development of Chinese civilization under the Zhou.

______

  1. Read Chapter 1 pages 19-25 and Chapter 2 Sections 1 and 2
  2. The following terms will be used in this unit and may appear on the test. You are not required to turn in these words but are encouraged to learn them in the context of the chapter.

Mesopotamia
  • Hammurabi’s Code—a written law code used as a method of unifying his empire

  • Ziggurat—as a place of worship and city hall

  • City-state—in Mesopotamia they functioned much like a country today

  • Cuneiform—the first written record

Egypt
  • Hieroglyphics—Eygyptian writing

  • Polytheism—religious beliefs of Egyptians and Mesopotamians

  • Theocracy—in Egypt the government was based on religious authority

  • Pharaohs—were seen as god-kings in Egypt

Zhou [China]
  • Mandate of Heaven as developed under the Zhou in China to justify their conquest of the Shang

  • Dynastic cycle in China as a pattern of rise, decline, and replacement of dynasties

  1. Map Skills—You do not need to turn in the map but you need to be able to locate the following places for the test.

NileRiver / Red Sea / Mediterranean Sea / Lower Egypt
Upper Egypt / Arabian Peninsula / Thebes / Memphis
TigrisRiver / EuphratesRiver / Babylon / Mohenjo-Daro
HuangheRiver / IndusRiver / Himalayas

IV. The following questions must be answered and turned in for a grade on the day of the test. You must

use complete sentences that incorporate the question into the answer. All work must be done in ink.

  1. What are the traits of civilization? [use the acronym PERSIA that we did in class]
  2. What was the relationship of religion and politics in Ancient Egypt?
  3. How did writing influence ancient civilizations? Identify the writing systems of the Egyptians and Mesopotamians.