Ancient River Valley
Civilizations
1. Mesopotamia: Tigris and
Euphrates Rivers
2. Egypt: Nile River
3. India: Indus and Ganges Rivers
4. China: Yellow and Yangtze
Rivers
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Ancient River Valley Civilizations, Lecture notes of Ancient history
An overview of the ancient river valley civilizations including Mesopotamia, Egypt, India, and China. It discusses the growth of civilization, the five traits of a civilization, and the history of pharaohs in Egypt. It also covers the contributions of Egyptian and Indus Valley civilizations, complex institutions, and religion in the Indus Valley. Additionally, it provides information on China's geography, river valley, and history, including the Mandate of Heaven idea. Finally, it briefly mentions other civilizations such as the Aryans and Hittites.
Typology: Lecture notes
2022/2023
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Ancient River Valley
Civilizations
- Mesopotamia: Tigris and Euphrates Rivers
- Egypt: Nile River
- India: Indus and Ganges Rivers
- China: Yellow and Yangtze Rivers
The Growth of Civilization
- Agricultural Revolution: farming created settled communities
- The five traits of a civilization
- Cities
- Writing
- Specialized workers
- Complex institutions
- Technology
Some contributions of ancient civilizations
- Sumer : first civilization , plow, sailboat, wheel, cuneiform, ziggurats, polytheism
- Babylon : Code of Hammurabi
- Phoenicians : the alphabet and improved shipbuilding
- Jews : ethical monotheism, Judaism
- Persians : well-built empire based on tolerance
Egypt, “Gift of the Nile”
Some contributions of Egyptian civilization
- Hieroglyphics
- Egyptian religion (polytheistic)
- Pyramids
- Mummification
- Medicine
Br o n z e Ag e
E mp i r e s
Some of the many contributions of Indus Valley civilizations include...
- Sanskrit
- Hinduism
- Buddhism
- Reincarnation
- Caste system
Complex Institutions Religion in the Indus Valley Hinduism
- Hinduism is a mixture of Aryan and ancient Indian culture
- The sacred writings are the Vedas that explain the basic philosophy of Hinduism.
- Beliefs include reincarnation, moksha , and castes.
Indus River Valley
- Indus sites not fully discovered yet
- No kings/queens known
- Few available records
- Was largest empire until Persia
develops 1000 years later
Indus River Valley
- Two main cities of the Indus Valley
- Harappa
- Mohenjo-Daro
- Both carefully planned & laid out in
a grid pattern
- Structures built of oven-fired bricks
- Homes had indoor plumbing
Huang He River Valley
- China’s geography has isolated it
- Chinese developed belief that
China was the center of the Earth &
source of all civilization
- China to south & southwest
hemmed in by Tien Shan &
Himalaya mountains
China’s River Valley
- Located between the Yellow (Huang-He) and Yangtze (Chang Jiang) Rivers
Some of China’s many contributions include...
- Printing
- The Great Wall of China
- Dynastic cycle
Huang He River Valley
- China’s history began in Huang He
Valley
- People learned to farm during the
Neolithic Age
- The yellow soil particles in the river
give it its name “Yellow”
- Also known as “China’s Sorrow”