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The River Valley

Civilizations

•Mesopotamia (3500 BC-1600 BC)

•Indus River Valley Civilization (2500 BC-1700

BC)

By : Nirmal Roshan R Class :

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From Neolithic to CivilizationsSettlements need rules/law to

maintain orderRules and laws needed to

regulate irrigationThreat of outside invasion made

it necessary to have rulers who could provide protection

Money from taxes and tributes

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River-Valley CivilizationIt refers to the civilizations developed in the fertile river valley

Rivers played a great role in the birth of the earliest civilizations that began in Asia and in Africa. The ancient people built their settlements along the riverbanks for several reasons.

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River-Valley CivilizationFirst, rivers are great sources of food and fresh water.

Second, crop planting and livestock raising are best in the river valleys.

Each time the river is flooded, fertile soils are deposited in the planting field. Also, pastoral animals are herded along the river banks where they enjoy the moderate climate.

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Lastly, rivers were the great centers of ancient trade.

The easy access to water routes speeded up the trading activities by different groups of people. Thus the most prosperous settlements were those built along the rivers and other coastal waters.

River-Valley Civilization

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Mesopotamia (3500 BC-1600 BC)Tigris and Euphrates River around 4500 BCSumerians arrive in 3500 BC-Begin

irrigationCity-States established around 3000 BC-

ruled by monarchy-often military leaders who displace priests as rulers-pass power to their sons who pass it to their sons (dynasty)

Polytheistic religion-Ziggurat (temple) center of each city state

Scientific Achievements: Wheel, plow, sail, bronze, pottery, arch, number system based on 60 and 360 degree circle, cuneiform (writing)

Hammurabi’s Law Code-First written law code

Other Civs (Assyrians, Phoenicians, Hebrews) adopt ideas first developed by the Sumerians

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MESOPOTAMIAIt lies in the Fertile Crescent

It is an arc of fertile land from the Persian Gulf up to the Mediterranean Sea

It has 2 parts:Mesopotamia – Eastern part

Levantine Coast – Western part

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MESOPOTAMIAEtymologically, it comes from

the Greek words “meso” which means “between” and “potamus” or “river”.

Literally means land between two rivers:Tigris – eastern partEuphrates – western partwater of the two rivers

comes from the Caucasus Mountains to the north and it flows southward to the Persian Gulf. The two rivers join together at the so called Shatt al-Arab before it exits to the Persian Gulf.

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Political Impact-Made the law more stable and predictable-less personal, more objectiveLegal Impact – The idea of a separate judiciary (court system) like the U.S. & India

Hammurabi’s Law Code…

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Mesopotamians fell due to weak and ineffective rulers and due to the invasion of other groups of people.

Causes for Decline of Mesopotamian Civilization

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Indus River Valley (2500 BC-1700 BC)First Major cities include

Mohenjo-Daro and HarappaDeveloped cities on grid system

and had sophisticated plumbing and sewage systems

Early cities declined due to a possible change in the course of the Indus River.

Indo-European peoples known as the Aryans settle in the Indus Valley around 1500 BC.

Aryan religious features: sacred literature known as the Vedas

Caste system

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Computer generated picture of what Mohenjo Daro may have looked like.

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Important Elements of Both…Advanced citiesIrrigationSystems of government and

religionWritten legal codesTrade networksArchitecture-archDivisions of time/calendar systemWriting