Freshmen Midterm Review Sheet

Know the Basic Ideas of these Religions

Hinduism / Buddhism
Polytheism / Christianity

Know your geography

Study the Geography of each civilization. Learn the main features, why is its geography important?

Be able to find the location of the events and empires in each chapter on a blank map of the Eurasia and Africa.

TO STUDY USING THIS MIDTERM REVIEW SHEET BELOW WRITE AT LEAST A SENTENCE OR TWO ABOUT EACH TOPIC.

Chapter 1 Toward Civilization

Paleolithic Era – life style, tools, beliefs

Neolithic Agricultural Revolution

Artifacts

Historians

Chapter 2 First Civilizations: Africa and Asia

River valley civilizations

Nile River

Pharaohs

Hieroglyphics

Pyramids

Tigris and Euphrates Rivers

Cuneiform writing

Hammurabi

Ziggurats

“Carriers of Civilization”

Hittites

Hebrews

Chapter 3 Early Civilizations and Empires In India and China

“Mandate of Heaven”

Yellow River

Confucianism

Buddhism

Taoism

Legalism

Hinduism

Great Wall

Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro

Caste system

Civil Service Exam

Silk Road

Chapter 4 Ancient Greece

City-states

Geography

Democracy/ direct democracy

Common Culture

Athens

Sparta

Age of Pericles

Alexander the Great

Chapter 5 Ancient Rome and Christianity

Roman law

Punic Wars

Republic

Emperors

PaxRomana

Christianity

Eastern Roman Empire/Byzantine Empire

Summary Review

Introduction

History is the study of written records. Before there was writing is called pre-history. Archaeologists, anthropologists and even historians study artifacts to learn about the past. The Neolithic Age is the first agricultural revolution. Man started to plant crops, domesticate animals, use copper for tools, and build permanent settlements.

Egypt

Ancient Egypt was on the Nile River. Egyptians were polytheistic. They worshipped gods of nature, Amon-Ra (Sun god), Osiris (Nile god). They mummified their dead to preserve them for the afterlife. Scribes in Egypt recorded important events using hieroglyphics. They built huge tombs called pyramids. The three basic periods of Egyptian history are: The Old Kingdom, The Middle Kingdom, The New Kingdom.

Ancient Middle East

Mesopotamia is the cradle of civilization. There are two rivers in Mesopotamia: the Tigris and the Euphrates. Sumerians were the first civilized peoples. They built stepped pyramids called Ziggurats to worship their many gods.
Hammurabi was the Babylonian king who made the first written law code.
The Assyrians were cruel and used iron weapons. They had a great library at Ninevah.
The Persians conquered a large Empire. Cyrus the Great, the Persian Emperor, treated conquered peoples with TOLERANCE. The Persians used the Great Royal Road.
The Phoenicians were great sailors and traders (purple dye). They are known as the "Carriers of Civilization" because of their alphabet. Phonetics.
The Hebrews were monotheistic. Moses gave them the Ten Commandments.

India

India is a large peninsula. There are three regions of India: the Coastal Plains, the Northern Plains and the Deccan Plateau. The rainy season is called the Monsoon season. Indian civilization begins in the Indus river valley( Harappa & Mohenjo-Daro). They were conquered by the Aryans in 1500 B.C. The Caste System develops as Hinduism develops. The Caste System had strict rules about interaction between the different castes. Perform your Dharma, get good Kharma be reborn into a higher Caste! Buddhism (founded by Siddhartha Guatama) also comes from India. The basic ideas of Buddhism are found in the 4 Noble Truths. During the Moghul Empire, started by Tamerlane, Akbar the Great was known for his religious tolerance.

China

Chinese civilization begins in the Yellow River Valley. They worshiped their ancestors who could influence the gods. The Zhou Dynasty was ruled with the Feudal System. Wu Wang justified his seizure of the power by using the idea "the Mandate of Heaven". Confucianism begins during the Zhou Dynasty. Confucian beliefs include, respect for your elders (filial piety) and the Five relationships. Confucianism becomes the "Heart of chinese traditions". The Qin Dynasty ruled through the ideas of Legalism. Shi Huang Di (Qin Emperor) builds the Great Wall of China to protect China from Nomadic invaders.

Greece

Greece is a mountainous peninsula. The Greeks developed city-states (small independent cities) because of the mountains. Minoan civilization was on Crete. Myceneaens fought the Trojan War. The story of the Trojan War is told in the Iliad and the Odyssey orally retold by the blind poet Homer. Sparta was a military state. Athens was a democracy where only the adult men could vote. Sparta was a city state where their lives were devoted to military training. The Greeks fought the Persians and beat them twice. Greece begins it's Golden Age.Herodotus wrote his history during this time.
Pericles rules Athens and the Delian League and they fight the Peloponnessian League. Sparta wins. Alexander the Great conquers the Persian Empire and spreads Greek culture which begins the Hellenistic Age.

Rome

Rome was located on the Tiber River in Italy. Romans owe much to the Latins and the Etruscans. The Romans establish a Republic in 509 B.C. A republic is when citizens elect their leaders who represent them. There are 300 Senators in the Roman Senate. Rome fought Carthage in the Punic Wars and gained control of the Western Mediterranean. Caesar, Pompey, and Crassus ruled in the 1st Triumvirate. Caesar set the foundations for the Roman Empire. Augustus is the first emperor. During his reign the PaxRomana, a 200 year period of peace and prosperity, begins. Rome becomes corrupt and is invaded by Germanic tribes. Constantine is the first Christian Emperor. He builds Constantinople in modern day Turkey. Christ is born during the Roman Empire. Peter, His apostle, brings Christianity to Rome. Roman Law says, " innocent till proven guilty". Rome collapses in 476 A.D. The Eastern half flourishes under the name Byzantine Empire.