HIST 205 Lecture 1: HIST 205- Ancient Mediterranean History- LECTURE 1- The Ancient Near East
14 Nov 2014
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Document Summary
The middle east was the origin of ancient civilization: rise of organized society. Started in a region that was a fertile crescent. Mesopotamia : between the two rivers- tigris and euphrates. It wasn"t particularly fertile but that was because there were no proper dams and irrigation systems. 8000-6000 bc transition from hunter- gatherer to sedentary lifestyles. They realize that they need help from people and are easier to collaborate: agriculture in mesopotamia from 5500 bc onwards, organized cities appear in c. 3100 bc onwards in sumeria. [bc and bce means the exact same thing] Importance of collaboration and cooperation: coalescence and nucleation of settlement, competition, need for protection of settlements, changed patterns of social interaction. Urban culture, urban interactions [different roles in society, specialization of labour, not everybody needs to be a farmer (pottery, metal working, priest, scribes) coalesce wealth hierarchies rise, wealthy people are on top]
