waterproof pots. copper was probably the first metal that humans shap

usefui items and jewelry because it is easily malleable. By 6000 B.C.E.

had discovered that it was even more versatile when heated to high

tures, and they fashioned copper knives, axes, farm tools, and weapons'

production is hard to trace because flbers don't easily survive the ages, but

iiagments indicated that fibers were woven together as early as 6000 B

anJ eventr.rally flbers were splln into thread that was woven into cloth.

The Grorvth of Tou'ns and Cities

By 4000 B.c.E. a number of villages had grown into towns, and town

a few srnall cities, such as Jericho on the Jordan River and Catal Huy

barricaded, the irouses could not be invaded. Both places relied upon

supplement their agricultural base. Jericho traded its salt, sulfur, and pi

semiprecious stonei frorn Anatolia, turquoise from the Sinai, and obsidi

cowrie shells from other areas. catal Huyuk traded flint, obsidian, and j

with towns and villages nearby. Although it is not accurate to call Jeri

catal Huyuk cities, their organizations and the life styles of their in}

foreshadowed the development of great cities and civilizations during

tershed 4'h Millennium B.C.E.

southern Turkey. Both settlements were founded by 7000 B.c.E., and

were heavily fortified for protection. .Iericho's round houses of mud and

on stone foundations were sutTounded by a ditch and a wall ahnost 12 feet

Catal Huyuk's houses were joined together so that once outside entrances

34 UNIT ONE

IDENTIFICATIONS AND CONCEPTS

agriculturebipedalismCatal Hayukcultural diffusiondivision of laborhortrcultureir-rdependent invention.IerichoLucy"rlarker events" of Pre-historyNeolithic craft industries

Neolithic (or Agricultural) Revolution

Paleolithic Agepastoralismpolytheisrrprimary sources

specializationsurplus

I'ARLIESTCIVILIZATIONS 35

.',t'.

;i ,.., ..: ..,,, -,: ".,.,

CHAPTER TWO: THEEARLIEST CIVLIZATIONSI . '

B.C.E. humans across the globe were organized rn many ways. Awere still hunters and gatherers, making their livings in much

ways that their ancestor did. Others had settled into small villages as

ists orwere following domesticated herds of animals to pasture. Ingenerally those areas where agriculture had started early, large

forming. In southwest Asia, in a place that the ancient Greeks

Mesopotamia, more complex organizations were beginning to grow intoof the ancient civilizatrons.

iencouraged new fonns of social organization par1ly because owningwas an incentive to make improvements, particularly in getting access

Building and maintaining irrigation ditches depended on cooperationand inigation needs led people to settle in villages rather than

farms. These activities called for supervrsion and regulation, so

ged'for some type of formalized govemment arose. Once the number ofin a settlement grew so that more division of labor occurred, the villageid called a town. Even more growth and specialization led to the fomra-

lof the first cities where interconnected citizens lived in close proximityoo,wonder, then, that the flrst civilizations grew up in river valleys where

to fresh water allowed crops to be irrigated so that economic activitiesbe organized through interactions among cities, torvns, and the country-

MEANING OF CIVILIZATION

developments must occur ir.r order tbr a sociefy to be called a "civiliza-'Some important characteristics of civilizations are:

) ''Generation of reliable surpluses - Agricultural technology allowsfiifarmers to produce more than their lamilies need. In the earliest civi-','lizations, farmers supported rnany city dwellers and filled food storage

houses to provide a reliable food source in lean times.

Highly specialized occupations - Whereas vrllage and town lifecharacterized by division of labor, occupational specializations inearly civilizations were far more complex, including jobs inment, trade, merchandise, and religion.

3)

4)

Clear social class distinctions - With the growing complexity ofcupations, the early civilizations set status distinctions among them,

that big differences appeared in prestige levels and wealth.

Growth of cities - Population centers in the ancient civilizations vin size, but many were far larger than any that had been seen beforel

As economic, political, social, and cultural life grew more interrelsonrc towns grew into citres.

5)

6)

Complex, formal governments - The early need for government

coordinate agricultural activities became even greater as more econom-

ic activities developed and cities grew larger.

Long-distance trade - The early civilizations first built internal trade

networks, ancl eventt-tally developed long distance trade networks

alnong different civilizations. This trade stimulated economrc develop''

rnent, euconraged cultural development, and accentuated social c

distinctrons.

1) Organized writing systems - Most early civilizations developed forms

of writing that enabled traders, religious leaders, and political leaders

to comrlunicate. An exception was civilization in the Andes region in

South America, where even by the 16'r'cenrury C.E., the highly orga-

nized Inca civilization did not have a writing system.

Using "civilization" as an organizing principle is controversial, partly because

it may impiy that "civilized people" are superior to "uncivilized" people. One

criticisrn is that the very use of the word "uncivilized" implies that hunters

and gatherers were inferior people. Indeed, a great deal of evidence points

the fact that early urban dwellers viewed nomadic people with disdain.

this point of view may not be justified because civilization often brings with

it a "dalk side" of increased crime, conflict over personal interests, aing discrepancy between rich and poor, and devastation of the natural

ronment. On the other hand, tire idea of civilization is useful in developing

an understanding of the changing nature of early human social organization.

2)

Civilizations have allowed humans to reshape their environments and

. developea centuries later in west Africa, very much influenced by earlier hearths

ORIGINAL DOCUMENTS:ATTITUDES OF THE ..CIVILTZF,D"

of people in early civilizations toward the nomadic people

b th"* is rlflected in the connotations associated with "barbarians,"

iat originated with the ancient Greeks. Do you see a point of view

ing quotes from ancient Romans?

inust awaken again the ancient Roman spirit, fight our own battles,

on nothing in common with the barbarians, drive them from every

ial positiorias rvell as fiorn the senate...These barbarians, previous

rl servauts of our house, now intend to rule our nation!"Synesius, 4th century Roman

,ilfhe people of the Huns...are quite abnormally savage...when they join

Uatttl tney advance in packs, uttering their various war cries...None of

1,$,gm,ploughs or even touches a Plow-handle. They have no fixed abode,

,qo home or law or settled l'llarlner of life'.."Ammianus Marcellus, 4th century

Roman historian

other living species. Civilizations have built the loundation for great literature,

Scientific disioveries, works of art and archttecture, and the efficient organi-

zation of worl<, Whatever its problern and merits, civilizations have shaped

human development since its advent sometinle in the 4'r' Millennium B'C'E'

CULTURAL HBARTHS

',i'Historians specialize in the identiflcation of cultural hearths, the areas where

l,itcivilizations first began to radiate the ideas, innovations, and ideologies that

,',: culturally transformed the worlci. Eariy cultural hearths developed in southwest

Asia ani north Africa, south Asia, and east Asia in the valleys and basin of

great river systems. Cultural hearths evolved much later in Central and Southtfmeri.u,

and their geography shaped cultural deveiopment not around river val-

''leys, but arornd m*ntuin-ranges and central highlands. Another cultural hearth

38 UNIT ONE

along the Nile River in northeast Africa. Another unique cultural hearth

oped in the islands of the Aegean Sea, where the inhabitants were joined

water access among islands and mainland. From their centers, the hearths

r-rntil they carne into contact with one another, although their ability to tra

and contact other cultural hearths was limited by their levels of technology

distance.

Darliest Cultural Hearths. The earliest cultural hearths were almost completely determined by

graphrcal locations. All were in river valleys where the soil was the most fertile and water most

grorving crops and transportation.

0lrnec

CulturalHearthsinthcAmericas. TheoriginsoltheealliestcivilrzationsintheAmericas-theChavin - are probably sornervhat rrore recent than those olthe cultural hearths in the Eastern Hem

althoLrgh recent discoveries give evidence that civilization may ltave existed in the Atnericas as.early

B C.f ] Neithe'r the Mesoarierican nor South American hearths centered on river valleys, with thd'

expan6ing out from the coastljne, ancl the Chavrn settling befween the coastline and the Andes M{

East Asianultural Hearth

Valleys

EARLIESTCIVILIZATIONS 39

IN MESOPOTAMIA

iivilization is generally believed to have developed in Mesopota-between the rivers," in southwest Asia sometime during tlie 4'h

B.C.E, By 3500 B.C.E. writing had developed, and by 3000 B.C.E.were entrenched. The two rivers - the Tigris and the Euphrates -

li{modern day Turkey, parallel one another for about 400 miles, and finallyjustbefore they empty into the Persian Gulf. Because rhe area is geograph-

tdlyragggsi6le from many dircctions, it became a "crossroads" for cliverse

SLqnl of people that sometirnes settlecl and sometirnes lroved on. Many earlywere members of the Semitic language family that was the precursor;modern Hebrew and Arabrc languages. A non-Semitic group called

iiahs,'who came into lower Mesopotamia about 5000 B.C.E., is generallywith building the earliest civilization with many of the characteristics,pp. 35-36. Gradually they created small competing city-states, eacl.r

in a large town that govemed the countryside around it. By about 3000l,the'Sumerians had subjugated many of the Semites in the area, either by6nor consent, and the area of their control grew larger. Sumerian power

by the brisk trade resulting from conquests that brought foodin, villages to the towns and created economic ties among the towns

:the growing economic interdependence, the towns remained quarrel-and the Sumerians' early history was charact erizedby unceasing warfare,

provoked by competition for control of precious irrigated lands.

Development

all ancient civilizations, the rnajority of people were farmers, herders, ory associated with agnculture, such as wine pressers, millers, or

,.:Probably about 5% of the population lived in cities and did not growfood. Even those involved in trade were most likely to be involved

ing gsa6, especially grain. I{owever, the towns and cities were the birth-of literacy, and the nun.:bers involved in occupations that required theto read and write - such as scribes, bookkeepers, and priests - grew as

ion increased. Craftsmen did not have to be literate. but metalwork-work, pottery and jewelry making, carpentry, and masonry all re-

ial training. Many people were involved in the central task of earlycreating and rnaintaining a reliable water source. Labor systemseflbrts to get work done) were generally sntall, with craft shops

by a family with perhaps two or three paid or slave laborers.d made up a signrficant portion of the rvorking population, and rvere oftenggyf,unpleasant or dangerous worl<, such as ntining or hanclling the deaci.

40 UNIT ONE

Ancicnt-Mesopotamia. The Mesopotamian city-states grew up along the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers,

where river silt provided rich soil for tlieir crops.

Political Development

The Sumerian city-states were not politically unified until about 2300 B.

when an invading Semitic group led by Sargon the Great conqlrered the

area. He fourided the Akkadian Empire that was dominated by the newly

ated town of-Akkad. As a result of the political conquest, cultural diffusion

Surlerian ways spread throughout much of the area, influencing a wide

of land fi-om Mesopotamia to Egypt that came to be known as the Fertilecent.

Before Sargon's conquest most of the city-states were theocracies, g,

gods or priests. Sargon changed that tradition so that the cities were

kings, but priests were so revered that the kings often obeyed their wishes.

location of the temple in tlre city's heaft and the king's paiace on the

provides archaeologists witli evidence for early control by priests. Hthe constant warfare almost certainly increased the power of the warrior

so that kings after Sargon assumed responsibility for the temples, city de

irrigation channels, and the system ofjustice. Sargon and his descendents

cured loyalty fi'onr therr soldiers by giving them land. The Akkadian

only lasted for a little over a century, and the city-state of Ur rose to replace

kad in power. The government bureaucracy grew during this time, and a s'

of messengers and road stations speeded up communication in the area.

the 1700s B.C.E. Hammurabi led the Babylonians to conquer

only to be followed by a series of other people that came through the

over the centuries, including the Hittites in the 1500s B.C.E., the Ass,

the 900s B.C.E., and finally the New Babylonians in the 500s B.C.E.

A significant "urarker event" occurred under the Babylonians with the

the first known written law code (a systematic set of rules administered bydp,.nrrorrf\ Ifqmmrrrqhi,s fndp incnriherl nn a hlack stnne nillnr onve i

tumed into symbols

EARLIESTCIVILIZATIONS 41

es of punishments for crimes meant to be used as standards for jus-,6 codes provide insight into rnuch more than just laws, since they alsoa rich assortment of beliefs and customs of the Mesopotamian people.

Code of Hammurabi identified three distinct classes in Mesopotamia in ther,century B.C.E.:

The free land owning class, which consisted of the royal family, priests,'warriors, high government officials, merchants, and some craftsmen and,ihopkeepers

'A class of dependent farmers and craftsmen, who worked for the fi-ee

,land owning class

. Slaves, who often did domestic work and less desirable jobs outside thehome

were often prisoners of war, and others were debtors. However, slavewas not as important as it was later to become in ancient Greece and Rome.were identified by a particular liairstyle, not by pennanent marks or chains,

that won their freedom coulcl easily rid themselves of their previousIt was not uncommon for a debtor to become a slave for a few years andfreed when the debt was paicl.

ideir lost social standing and fi'eedom with the spread of agriculture, ancl inancient civilizations - including Mesopotamia - a food surplus made largerlies possible, so women were tied to their responsibilities at home. Women

own property, control their dowries, and participate in trade, but men con-political and religious iife. The status of women appears to have declined

iiificantly during the 2"d millenniurn B.c.E. as urbanization and private wealthIn later Mesopotamian history men could take a second wife if the

iiid not bear children, and kings and other rich men often had several wives.of nobility were married to noblemen of their family's choosing in

enhance the family's wealth and status. It is possible that the wearing ofback to this Mesopotamian era

'Characteristics

"marker event" inwith the Sumerianof objects on clay

wolld history occurred in Mesopotamia aboutinvention of writing, which had its origin incylinder seals. The eariiest writing evolved

and eventually into phonetic elements baked