The Past? Dates? Events? People? A class that helps students prepare for

college and the SATs? Something students need to take so that

Coach Flo has a job? Something to sleep through? I have no idea, but I know it sucks?

History is a story that tells us who we are … by telling us who we were.

The story must tie facts together, but there is no need to have all the information to tell the story

Stories from the past combine to help us tell our story

Time before the development of writing Scientists say it may go back hundreds of thousands of

years No documented “story” without writing Really belongs to scientists and archaeologists Many human advances, including the ability of humans

to domesticate agriculture – leads to settlements

Civilizations developed along major river systems all over the world

Some settlements are tens of thousands of years old

Rivers brought not just water, but silt as well, which fertilized the land

Certain rivers are predictable in their floods

Mesopotamia: Tigris and Euphrates Egyptian: Nile Indian: Indus Chinese: Yellow

Tigris and Euphrates Rivers Modern Day Iraq Writing: Cuneiform (Wedge-shaped writing) Government: City-states Religion: polytheistic and tied to nature Epic of Gilgamesh: Flood story Hammurabi's Code: equality before the law

Nile River: flows north from the highlands of Ethiopia to the Med – civilization develops only along the river

Settlements in Egypt are probably older than in Mesopotamia, but writing developed later

Religion: polytheistic with Pharaoh (king) as son of Re Government: first empire (multiple nations – one ruler) –

Nile runs from Black Africa to Arab Africa Writing System: Hieroglyphics (picture writing) – has

thousands of characters – much more sophisticated than Mesopotamian cuneiform

Phoenicians Found in modern day

Lebanon (north of Israel) Sea traders – colonized the

entire Mediterranean area Traded with Egyptians and

Greeks – brought goods and culture across the Med

Developed the alphabet to facilitate trade

Alphabet – set of symbols based on sounds of a language

Hebrews (Israelites) Small and insignificant

kingdom found in and around Jerusalem (eastern part of the Med.

Often conquered by others (Egypt, Babylonia, Rome, Alexander, Persia)

Religion – monotheism Judaism Old Testament Foundation for both Christianity

and Islam

Indus River – in northern India – contains the highest concentration of people in the world

Some settlements along the Indus may be perhaps 25,000 years old

Religion: Hinduism

Settlements along the Yellow River Isolated by geography from the rest of the world Government: ruled by dynasties (long periods of familial

rule). According to tradition, dynasties would rule until they lost the “mandate of heaven” (authority from the gods)

Three major philosophies developed in Ancient China Confucianism Daoism (Taoism) Legalism

Confucius Chinese 6th century BC

philosopher Everyone has duties and

responsibilities Accept your position in life Correct order in life will bring

stability (balance is key) Ruler’s responsibility was to

provide good government People’s responsibility was to

be respectful and loyal subjects

Taoism Reject conflict and strife in

everyday life Seek to live in harmony with

nature Simplicity in life and the virtue

of yielding to outside pressure Water – yields to pressure, yet

is an unstoppable force that causes immense changes

Best government – one that governs least

Youngest of the philosophies in Ancient China Sought to unite Confucianism with Taoism under a strict

code for behavior – only through a strict sense of loyalty and unity could peace and harmony with nature and self be achieved

Harsh rules – set down by harsh rulers Government control of everything, down to the smallest

facet of everyday life (made great use of paper to get the word out)

Rulers greatest asset – ability to control the people and provide stability

Control and discipline brought unity and harmony

Hinduism Old Indian religion Both polytheistic and

monotheistic All powerful world soul or

force in all of us Based on reincarnation and the

caste system All of us are trying to rejoin the

world’s soul

Buddhism Siddartha Gautama – first

Buddha or “enlightened one” Based on understanding

relationship between desire and pain

Eliminate desire to eliminate suffering

Eliminate desire = achieve Nirvana and break cycle of reincarnation

Oldest surviving major world religion Polytheistic and monotheistic at the same time Brahman – the world’s soul (monotheistic) Different Hindu gods -- really just manifestations of Brahman Creation – Brahman shattered – each of us has a piece of Brahman –

it’s the “life force” in all living things Reincarnation – cycle of rebirth based on Karma (the way you live

your life)– we’re all eventually trying to rejoin Brahman – only members of the priest class with good Karma will be able to rejoin Brahman

Caste system: 14 levels of humans from Brahmin (priest class) to Untouchables (lowest humans)

Siddhartha Gautama – Hindu prince who had a crisis of faith and walked among the people and observed the world

Four Noble Truths Everyone suffers Suffering is caused by desire To eliminate suffering – eliminate desire To eliminate desire – follow the Eight fold path to righteousness

Eliminating desire would thus allow a person to become “enlightened” or a Buddha. This was called achieving a state called Nirvana

Achieve Nirvana and break the cycle of reincarnation and join the world’s soul

Anyone not achieving Nirvana would ensure their good Karma and would go up on the ladder of reincarnation

Ancient powerful empire (550 BC to 350 BC) centered in modern day Iran

Stretched from the steps of India to the Greek world – largest empire of its time

Developed the first ideas behind Local Autonomy as a way to govern its empire

ran into Greek colonies in what is today Turkey (ancient Anatolia) and fought a protracted war against the united Greek city states – it’s a war that Persia will lose.