Other Early Civilizations

1
Other Early Civilizations

• Phoenicians, Hebrews, Assyrians, and Kush
  (Nubians)

2
Objectives WHI.3

• Objective
• The student will be able to demonstrate knowledge
  of ancient river valley civilizations, including
  the Phoenician, Hebrew, Kush, and Persian
  Civilization, by
• Locating the civilization in time and place
• Describing the development of social, political,
  and economic patterns, including slavery
• Explaining the development of religious
  traditions
• Explaining the development of language and
  writing

• Essential Questions
• Why did Ancient Civilizations develop in river
  valleys?
• Where were the earliest civilizations located?
• When did these civilizations exist?
• What were the social, political, and economic
  characteristics of early civilizations
• What religious traditions developed in ancient
  civilizations?
• What forms of language and writing existed in
  early civilizations?

3
The Phoenicians (1100 842 B.C.E)

• Lived along the
• .

4
Rise of the Phoenicians

• Trade
• Purple dye
• Traded goods from other lands wine, weapons,
  precious metal, glass, and ivory

• Became powerful traders after Minoans decline
• Important trading centers
• Byblos, Tyre, Sidon
• City-states situated around Mediterranean
• Ruled by Kings and powerful merchant families
• Remarkable shipbuilders and seafarers
• First to sail beyond Gibraltar
• Believed to sail to Britain, possibly Americas
  and around Africa

5
The Alphabet

• Merchants needed a way to record transactions
• Developed a writing system that used symbols to
  represent sounds
• Adopted by many cultures such as the Greeks
• Phonetic
• One sign used for one sound
• Alpha/beth alphabet
• Enormous contribution

6
End of the Phoenicians

• Captured by Assyrians 842 B.C.E.
• City-states like Carthage in North Africa
  survived
• Later dominated by Babylonians, and then Persians
• Conquerors recognized shipbuilding and seafaring
  skills

7
Ancient Trade Routes

• Mediterranean connected to Asia through land
  routes
• Crossed Central Asia through Afghanistan to get
  to India
• Sea routes
• Arabian Sea connected to Persian Gulf
• Used Monsoon winds to cross Arabian Sea

• Networks important, ensured exchange of products
  and information
• Carried goods, ideas, religious beliefs, art, and
  ways of living
• Phoenicians diffused alphabet and other important
  contributions

8
Origins of Judaism
9
Search for the Promised Land

• Phoenicians not the only civilization to live in
  area later called Palestine
• The Hebrews settle in Canaan
• Ancient Palestine/ Phoenicia trading crossroads
• Between the Jordan River and Mediterranean
• Believed land was promised to them by God

10
From Ur to Egypt

• Torah
• First five books of Hebrew Bible
• Most sacred writings
• Christian Old Testament
• Contains events that happened and stories
• Abraham
• God chose him to be father of the Hebrew people
• God commanded him to move his people to Canaan
• Around 2000 B.C.E. moved to Canaan
• Around 1650 B.C.E. moved to Egypt

11
A New Religion

• Monotheistic
• First monotheistic civilization
• Three aspects of Judaism
• Covenant, law, and prophets
• God Yahweh
• Had power over not only Hebrews but all people
  everywhere
• Omnipotent
• Just and good
• Hebrews asked for protection against enemies
• God did because of the covenant between him and
  Abraham

• Hebrews migrated to Egypt because of famine and
  drought
• Hebrews coexist with Egyptians peacefully at
  first
• Later forced into slavery
• Hebrews fled Egypt between 1500- 1200 B.C.E.
• Called the Exodus
• Led by Moses

12
A New Covenant

• Mount Sinai
• Moses climbed and prayed
• God spoke to him, gave him Ten Commandments
• Became basis of religious laws in Judaism
• Based on idea God is just, required high moral
  conduct
• Return to Canaan
• Hebrews wandered for forty years
• Return to Canaan after Moses death
• Changed from nomadic to settled farmers and city
  dwellers
• Learned technology from Palestine

13
Kingdom of Israel

• After Canaan arrival
• Organized into twelve tribes
• Self-governing, independent
• Geography
• Harsh features
• Arid desert, Jordan River,
• Grassy Hills, dry hot Valleys
• Plentiful water sources
• Saul and David
• Philistines threatened Hebrews
• One large tribe called Judah (Judaism)
• 1020- 922 B.C.E. Hebrews united under three
  kings
• Saul, David, and Solomon

• New kingdom called Israel
• 100 years of independence and power
• Jerusalem was capital

14
King Solomon

• 962 B.C.E.
• Solomon succeeds his father David as King
• Most powerful of Hebrew Kings
• Height of Israelite power
• Known for his wisdom
• Built trading empire
• Beautified capital of Jerusalem
• Builds Temple of Solomon
• Home for the Ark of the Covenant
• Built to glorify God
• Not large but beautiful, inside covered in gold

15
Kingdom Divides

• Solomons building projects a problem
• Needs money more taxes
• Men forced to work on temple 1 of every 3 months
• Discontent and Split
• After Solomons death, Jews in the north split
  from those in south
• North Israel, South Judah
• 200 years of confusion, battles, and prosperity

• Babylonian Captivity
• 725 B.C.E. Assyrians attacked Israel
• Judah resisted for 150 years
• City fell to Nebuchadnezzar 586 B.C.E
• Destroys Solomons temple, enslaves Hebrews and
  deports them to Babylon
• 539 B.C.E. Cyrus the Great releases Hebrews
• Return to Jerusalem and rebuild city and Temple

16
Assyrians

• Beginning 850 B.C.E. Assyrian amassed an empire
• Came from the northern part of Mesopotamia
• Had to become aggressive due to terrain
  disadvantage
• Spread down through Palestine into Egypt

17
Assyrians

• Led by King Sennacrib
• Society glorified military strength
• advanced military planning and technical skill
• Used iron technology
• Great efficiency at organizing conquered
  territories into an empire

• Built beautiful capital at Nineveh
• Had a library of 25,000 clay tablets thanks to
  King Ashurbanipal

18
Fall of the Assyrians

• Causes
• Empire spread itself too thin
• Cruelty of Kings
• Ninevah destroyed in 612 B.C.E. by the Chaldeans

19
Empire of Kush (Nubia)
20
Kush (Nubians)

• Location
• Between the 1st cataract and the separation of
  the White and Blue Nile
• South of Egypt
• Connection between Egypt and Nubia
• Egypt ruled Nubia
• Diffused Egyptian culture
• Religion, customs, writing

21
Kush (Nubians)

• The Golden Age of Meroe
• Kushites moved south for protection to Meroe
• Thrived on natural resources and became wealthy
• Became center of iron weapons and tools
• Became a major trader with India and Arabia
• linked trade routes between the Mediterranean and
  the Red Sea

• Guardians of Egyptian values
• Decline of Meroe
• Challenged by new empires to the South between
  250 B.C.E. and 150 C.E.

22
Objectives WHI.3

• Objective
• The student will be able to demonstrate knowledge
  of ancient river valley civilizations, including
  the Phoenician, Hebrew, and Kush Civilization,
  by
• Locating the civilization in time and place
• Describing the development of social, political,
  and economic patterns, including slavery
• Explaining the development of religious
  traditions
• Explaining the development of language and
  writing

• Essential Questions
• Why did Ancient Civilizations develop in river
  valleys?
• Where were the earliest civilizations located?
• When did these civilizations exist?
• What were the social, political, and economic
  characteristics of early civilizations
• What religious traditions developed in ancient
  civilizations?
• What forms of language and writing existed in
  early civilizations?