1 World History Topic 2 Reading Guide Ancient Middle East and Egypt Lesson 1: A Civilization Emerges in Sumer Key Terms Write each term in your own words Fertile Crescent Mesopotamia Sumer The Epic of Gilgamesh hierarchy ziggurat cuneiform Text 1: Civilizations Arise in the Fertile Crescent Where is the Fertile Crescent? What factors made the Fertile Crescent an area in which civilizations could develop? What prompted people to work together in early Sumer? What technology did Sumerians use to control the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers?
2 What is a city-state? How did geography affect where and the way Sumerians built their cities? Text 2: Sumerian Civilization Develops What was the purpose of ziggurats? What roles were the Sumerian kings expected to take on? As you read information about social classes. Then use the graphic organizer to record the types of people in each social class. Upper Class Middle Class Lower Class How did cuneiform come about? Cite evidence from the text to support your answer.
3 Topic 2, Lesson 1 (cont.) Text 3: Sumer s Legacy What was Sumer s legacy in the following areas? religion written language literature math astronomy technology music
4 World History Topic 2 Reading Guide Ancient Middle East and Egypt Lesson 2: Empires in Mesopotamia Key Terms Write each term in your own words Sargon Hammurabi codify civil law Nebuchadnezzar bureaucracy - barter economy money economy Zoroaster colony alphabet Text 1: Empires Emerge in Mesopotamia Why did Sargon s empire collapse?
5 Why is Hammurabi s code so important? Reason #1 Reason #2 What kind of issues did Hammurabi s code deal with? Was Hammurabi s Code fair to women? Justify your answer with evidence from the book? What other things deal Hammurabi accomplish? 1. 2. 3. 4. Text 2: New Empires and Ideas What technology allowed the Hittites to become so powerful? How did this technology help them? Why would the Hittites want to protect this technology?
6 Lesson 2-2, Text 2 (cont.) Explain how historians have been able to learn about ancient cultures in general and the Assyrian empire in particular? What other technological advancements have the Assyrians been given credit for? Describe the Ishtar Gate. What did it look like? What materials were used? What was the gate used for? Text 3: Rise of the Persian Empire Did the Persian rulers treat the people they conquered poorly? Explain your answer. What were the methods used by Darius I to unite the Persian empire? 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
7 How did a network of roads maintain peace and unity in the Persian empire? How did Darius I increase trade in the Persian empire? What is the difference between a barter economy and a money economy? How did the theology of Zoroastrianism influence later religions? Text 4: Phoenician Contributions By what method did the Phoenicians spread their civilization? What is the Phoenician s most impactful legacy?
8 World History Topic 2 Reading Guide Ancient Middle East and Egypt Lesson 3: The Hebrews and the Origins of Judaism Key Terms use your text or go to https://quizlet.com/_5abiwu for definitions monotheistic Torah Abraham Judaism covenant Canaan Moses David Solomon Judah patriarchal Sabbath prophet ethics Diaspora Text 1: The Ancient Israelites Unique Belief System How were the ancient Israelites belief system similar to other civilizations and how were they different?
9 What is the purpose of the Torah? The Ancient Israelites According to the quote on p. 41, what covenants did God make with Abraham? 1. 2. According to Genesis, how did the Israelites become slaves in Egypt? How many tribes were united into the nation of Israel? How were they united? Explain why Israel split into two nations? What were those two nations? What happened when Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonian armies captured Judah Text 3: Judaism s Legacy How were Israelite women treated?
10 How did the Ten Commandments shape future societies? What were the reasons for the Diaspora? Which examples of democracy can be traced to Judeo-Christian influences? Cite evidence from the text to support your answer.
11 World History Topic 2 Reading Guide Ancient Middle East and Egypt Lesson 4: Egyptian Civilization Key Terms use your text or go to https://quizlet.com/_5brjq1 for definitions cataract delta dynasty pharaoh bureaucracy vizier Hatshepsut Thutmose III Ramses II Amon-Re Osiris Isis Akhenaton mummification hieroglyphics papyrus decipher Rosetta Stone
12 World History Topic 2, Lesson 4 (cont.) Text 1: Geography Shapes Egypt Why was the flooding of the Nile a benefit for ancient Egyptians? How did ancient people control the Nile s water and why was controlling it important? Text 2: The Old Kingdom In what way were pharaohs viewed in ancient Egyptian civilization? What enabled pharaohs to create a strong, centralized state in ancient Egypt? How important do you think the afterlife was to ancient Egyptians? What makes you think this? Text 3:Middle and New Kingdom Egypt How did the Egyptians and Hyksos interact? What things did each culture gain from the other? What caused the Egyptian empire to decline?
13 Who replaced the Egyptians as the rulers of the Nile? Text 4: Religion Shapes Ancient Egyptian Life Why was Osiris an important Egyptian god? What was the result of Akhenaton trying to get the people to worship Aton instead of Amon-Re? Why were bodies mummified? Why did pharaohs need to be buried in large pyramids? Text 5: Organization of Egyptian Society In what way was Egyptian society structured in a similar way to other ancient societies? What functions did farmers do besides farming their land?
14 World History Topic 2, Lesson 4 (cont.) Text 6: How did the Rosetta Stone enable historians to learn more about ancient Egypt? Name some Egyptian medical advances. How did the Egyptian medical advances spread to other civilizations? Examine the text for advances by Egyptians in science and mathematics, arts, and literature. Then use a chart like this one to record advances. Science and Mathematics Arts Literature