Unit 5 - An Overview 1
Who took complete control of each area and how did each do it? The Aryan invasion from the northern Caucuses Mountains Strong warrior nomad's who took over Indus Valley easily Modern day Hindu people Had a cultural diffusion with the Indus Valley people Brought Hinduism, Sanskrit, and Caste system to First ruler to unify into one Kingdom was Qin Shi Huang Began the first dynastic cycle Short lived Qin Dynasty brought uniform laws for everyone Very big on order and rules 2
How did people in each society know their jobs or work? They were born into their caste Upper levels were reserved for the Aryan people Lower levels were taken by former Indus Valley people and tribal ns No social mobility (you stayed where you were) Led to unequal treatment Confucius called for better education and meritocracy to end government corruption Created the civil service exam which awarded ability and intelligence over social status An eight day written exam placed the best people in government positions regardless of their birthright 3
Which river did each civilization start from? The Indus River was the start of the Indus River Valley and n civilization Very predictable flooding and extremely fertile made Perfect starting place for a civilization Originated with the Yellow or Huang He River Very heavy and violent flooding but leads to fertile land Silt and soil is yellow which creates the color Known as "'s Sorrow" for it's destruction 4
Explain how the Himalayan Mountains affects each area. Major water source for all three of ancient 's rivers including the Indus, Brahmaputra, and Ganges Rivers Causes winter monsoons (dry) and summer monsoons (wet) Can cause great flooding or drought and famine depending on the season Source for the Yangtze River Creates the elevated western area of known as the Tibetan Plateau (very dry) Creates a natural barrier between and all other river valley civilizations Allowed to grow and develop independent from all the other river valleys 5
Give one example of how weather makes life difficult in each area. Dry and wet monsoon seasons affect most ns with extreme flooding or draught Cyclones hit several times a years causing massive flooding and destruction Tsunamis from underground volcanoes or earthquakes can devastate the coastline Flooding of both the Yellow and Yangtze river have caused millions of deaths Gobi Desert and Tibetan plateau made trade difficult on the Silk Road because of the dry terrain 6
What is the main religion or philosophy used in each area? Hinduism was brought in from the Aryan invasion Created cultural diffusion with native Indus Valley people Third largest religion in the world today Also responsible for the creation of Buddhism which spread to by way of the Silk Road Confucianism which is a way of life and more a philosophy has been the base of Chinese life until even today Taoism and creating a natural inner balance was created by Loa Tzu Both emphasize how to live instead of rituals or worshipping of gods 7
Give two main ideas of each of these religions/philosophies. Hinduism believes in the collection of positive karma (good deeds) and dharma (life duties) which carry on from one life form to the next After being reincarnated and gaining enough good karma the soul will eventually leave the body to become one with the universe (moksha) Confucianism looks into living morally correct (right vs wrong) Large emphasis on family relationship and respect for elders (basis of today) Toaism and Buddhism both combine a peaceful life that is about gaining a balance while not striving for materials wants to find true happiness 8
Give an example of how each region interacted with other civilizations. Indus valley people regularly traded with both the Egyptian and Mesopotamian civilizations Created seals to label their goods and trade with others Also was a center of trade along the Silk Road between and all western civilizations was known as the "Middle Kingdom" thinking they were the center of the world Isolated by natural barriers for thousands of years until western traders came Made massive fortunes by trading silk and other goods Received Buddhism through as well 9
How did each group communicate from what we learned in class? The Indus Valley has a language that no one has been able to decipher After the Aryan invasion the language of Sanskrit was culturally diffused into Early dynasties used oracle bones to create a written language Calligraphy is creating individually drawn characters to represent a word or idea 10
Name a structure that each group was the first to create. Indus Valley cities created citadels that were used for protection Had the first cities build on straight line grids The great bath The great wall was a massive structure built over a thousand years to keep out invaders Forbidden city which was home to the emperor Buddhist temples 11
Name three (3) inventions that each civilization created. They made houses with natural air conditioning Cities had indoor plumbing, drainage for waste, and running water from wells The great bath and other hygiene related inventions were a first in human history Paper was first created here They created and monopolized the silk making process Created the first compass, clock, tea, and moveable type for printing 12