Ancient Civilizations
Ancient civilizations are complex, advanced societies that once existed, but what made these civilizations stand out in their characteristics and differ from today's society?
Navigating Bodies of Water
Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia
The people of Mesopotamia, Egyptian, Indus Valley, the Americas and China first had to learn how to navigate life with or without a water source, either by creating irrigation systems or water storage systems.
Mesopotamia: “As regular access to water supported agricultural surpluses and population growth, people tended to fare better against the unpredictability of the floods, seasonal changes, and the rivers’ changing courses when they lived in settlements capable of maintaining irrigation canals, drainage ditches, and water reservoirs.”
Egypt: “These professional merchants paid taxes to the state, supporting further consolidation of power by the pharaohs and also infrastructural improvements like irrigation” .
China, Indus Valley, and Americans
China: "The Yangshao culture was concentrated along the middle reaches of the Yellow River".
Indus Valley: “Mohenjo-Daro was located along the lower reaches of the Indus, amidst an abundance of resources: fertile flood plains for agriculture, pasture for grazing domesticated animals, and waters for fishing and fowling."
Americas: “The region’s climatic diversity is due to it being in tropical and subtropical latitudes. “
Navigating The Land
Eygpt and Mesopotamia
To build a civilization, the people of these regions had to learn the land they were living on. This ties back to navigating the water around them, by learning how to irrigate systems in place, to learn what their land could produce.
Mesopotamia: “As regular access to water supported agricultural surpluses and population growth, people tended to fare better against the unpredictability of the floods, seasonal changes, and the rivers’ changing courses when they lived in settlements capable of maintaining irrigation canals, drainage ditches, and water reservoirs. “
Egypyt: “ Around 7,000 BCE, they began cultivating wheat and barley and keeping domesticated animals, including sheep and goats.”
China, Indus Valley, and Americas
China: “ Over 1000 sites left behind by millet-farming village communities have been discovered”
Indus Valley: “ Over 1000 sites left behind by millet-farming village communities have been discovered”
Americas: “ Over 1000 sites left behind by millet-farming village communities have been discovered”
Religion
Eygpt and Mesopotamia
Religion is one of the oldest similiarities in society all around the world. Regardless of where you are, there is a religion those around you may follow.
Mesopotamia: “ Sumerians believed that their entire city belonged to its main deity and built a massive temple to be the dwelling place of that god or goddess.”
Egypt: “Once Egypt was unified, pharaohs ruled as divine kings, as the personification of the gods”
China, Indus Valley, and Americas
China: “The cemetery’s arrangement suggests that people living in the towns were buried alongside clan members, but that some members were wealthier and more powerful: while most graves had nothing but a skeleton, others contained numerous artifacts, such as pottery and jade. “
Indus Valley: “There are numerous female clay figurines, which may have been used for fertility rituals or to pay homage to a goddess. “
Americas: The Olmec crafted smaller sculptures in the round. These sculptures incorporated human and supernatural themes or humans in ritual or symbolic postures.”
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Refrences
Berger, Eugene; Israel, George; Miller, Charlotte; Parkinson, Brian; Reeves, Andrew; and Williams, Nadejda, "World History: Cultures, States, and Societies to 1500" (2016). History Open Textbooks. 2.
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