Chapter 2: Early Societies in Southwest Asia and the Indo-European Migrations
After reading Chapter 2, you will be able to:
Identify both the geographical origin of and the characteristics of a complex society
Explain the influence of migration on cultural characteristics
Compare early law codes and explain their influence on our beliefs of law and order
Chapter 2: Early Societies in Southwest Asia and the Indo-European Migrations
On provided map, locate the following places:
Indian subcontinent
Anatolia
Southwest Asia
Mesopotamia
Phoenicia
Judea
Tigris, Euphrates, Nile Rivers
Arabia
Steppes of Eurasia (Ukraine)
South Asia
Ur
Sumer
Babylon
Jerusalem
Chapter 2: Early Societies in Southwest Asia and the Indo-European Migrations
As you read Chapter 2, take notes on the following terms:
Civilization—Complex Society
Mesopotamia
Tigris and Euphrates Rivers
Sumer, Sumerian
Ur (see Ram in a Thicket)
Fertile crescent
Nutrient-rich silt
Irrigation
Economic specialization
City-states
Ziggurat
Divine mandate to Kings
Kingdom, regional kingdoms
Sargon of Akkad (2370-2315 BCE)
Hammurabi of Babylon (1792-1750 BCE)
Babylonian Empire
Hittites
Semitic
The Code of Hammurabi
Lex talionis
stele
Assyrians
Nebuchadnezzar Of Babylon (R. 605-562)
Chaldean (New Babylonian) Empire
Bronze, Iron
Wheel, boats (3500 BCE)
Shipbuilding and trade
Cross-cultural interaction and exchange
Social Class: ruling, religions, free commoners, slaves
Patriarchal society: landowners, ‘rule of the father’ over wives, children; double standard of morality; women as court advisers, temple priestesses, economic activity
Introduction of the veil (at least c. 1500 BCE)
Development of Writing: cuneiform: “wedge-shaped”; replaced by Greek alphabetic script
Mesopotamian Literature: Epic of Gilgamesh
polytheism
Moses and Monotheism
The Torah (“doctrine or teaching”)
Foreign conquests of Israel: Assyrians 722 BCE; Babylonians 586 BCE
Maritime trade
Development of alphabet symbols: spread of literacy
Domestication of horses and use of Sumerian weaponry
Indo-European migrations 3000-1000 BCE (see map: ch2: map2_4) (Common roots of many languages: implies influence of a single Indo-European people—probable original homeland: modern-day Ukraine and Russia, 4500-2500 BCE)
Hittites: influence on trade: horses, chariots with spoked wheels; iron; migrations to western China, Greece, Italy
Hanging Gardens of Babylon
Abraham
Monotheism
Phoenicians
Sources from the Past: Hammurabi's Laws on Family Relationships
Sources from the Past: Israelites' Relations with Neighboring Peoples
Chapter 2: Early Societies in Southwest Asia and the Indo-European Migrations
Word document or pdf document of map locations and Chapter 2 terms; map of AfroEuroAsia
