Notes on textbook: chapter 2

Early river valley civilizations:

-      They formed fertile river plains

-      They faced many challenges such as flooding and limited growing areas

-      They had to form an irrigation system

-      In some of these societies the priests controlled the government rather than a leader, but some however were controlled by military and government officials

Problem solving:

-      Over time these people created solutions to deal with all of their problems. They were able to start producing more crops and they had a good water supply. They were able to build city walls for protection. These were built with mud bricks. People were beginning to be able to trade with other civilizations to get what they needed for their livelihood.

The Sumerians stand out in history as one of the first groups of people to form a civilization. As we learned in chapter one there are 5 key characteristics set apart from early human societies:

1.    Advanced cities

2.    Specialized workers

3.    Complex institutions

4.    Record keeping

5.    Improved technology

Dynasty- a series of rulers from a single family which is passed down

Cultural diffusion- the process in which a new idea spreads from culture to culture

City state- each city and its surrounding land

Polytheism- the belief that there is more than one god