Culture, Change and History

• History is the dynamic interplay of environmental factors and human activities.

The Universal Culture Pattern

• A "universal culture pattern" is based on six needs common to all people:
  • The need to make a living
  • The need for law and order
  • The need for social organization
  • The need for knowledge and learning
  • The need for self-expression
  • The need for religious expression

Culture Change and Culture Lag

• A common culture exists when people in a group behave similarly and share the same institutions and ways of life.
• Civilization is a type of culture that includes writing, cities, wide political organization, and occupational specialization.
• Invention is a key source of culture change, though the role of external physical contact in invention is unclear.
• Culture lag occurs when different parts of society fail to integrate harmoniously.

The How of History

• History records past human actions based on surviving evidence.
• History demonstrates that patterns and problems in human affairs result from complex growth processes.
• History offers a means to learn from human experience.

History as a Science

• Historians may present events as a narrative.
• Historians must consider the uniqueness of data, as each event occurs at a specific time and place.
• External Criticism tests the genuineness of sources.
• Internal Criticism involves evaluating a source to determine the author’s meaning and accuracy.

Periodization

• Historians divide time into periods to simplify their task and manage materials.
• The divisions chosen reveal a historian’s perspective on the past in terms of logical and meaningful patterns.

The Why of History

• Thomas Carlyle believed major figures determined the course of human events.
• Karl Marx argued that irresistible economic forces governed human beings.
• Charles Darwin’s evolutionary hypothesis influenced the concept of "survival of the fittest" in human societies.

The Challenge of History

• Progress and growth are continuous factors.
• Understanding the past allows assessment of present opportunities and perils for moving courageously into the future.
• History is studied to:
  • Learn about the past
  • Understand the present
  • Appreciate heritage
  • Broaden perspective
  • Acquire background for critical thinking

The Rise of Western Civilization

• The earliest civilizations arose in Mesopotamia and Egypt.
• Stonehenge is a double circle of standing stones, some up to 13 feet tall.

The Beginnings of Civilization

• Achievements were made during the Old Stone Age

The Study of Prehistory

• Prehistory is the period before written records.
• Artifacts are objects shaped by human beings.
• Fossils are human or animal remains and traces left in rocks by plants and animals.
• Archeologists study places where prehistoric people lived.
• Anthropologists study artifacts, bones, and other clues to determine what people looked like, what they ate, etc.
• Geologists analyze fossils and the rocks in which they are found.
• Chemists and Physicists use special methods to estimate the ages of artifacts.
• Botanists and Zoologists contribute specialized knowledge about plants and animals.
• Archeological Digs are sites where ancient objects are deeply buried.
• Willard Libby made a major discovery in scientific methods of dating in 1948.
• Carbon 14 dating depends on the fact that all living organisms contain a certain amount of radioactive carbon.

Stone Age Hunters and Gatherers

• The Old Stone Age, or Paleolithic Age, is the longest part of the Stone Age.
• Nomads were the men and women of the Paleolithic Age.
• Neanderthal people developed beliefs.
• Religious beliefs may have inspired some of the earliest prehistoric art, created by Cro-Magnon people.
• Don Marcelino de Sautuola found an ancient cave on his estate in 1875.
• Maria, his daughter, explored the cave in 1879 and discovered paintings.
• The Lascaux cave, found in 1940 in France, contains numerous paintings of animals.

New Stone Age Brings Change

• The Neolithic Age, or New Stone Age, was a period of significant change.
• Farming became common in Europe, while rice cultivation developed in Southeast Asia.
• Farming led to permanent settlements or villages.
• Jericho, built around 7000 B.C, was one of the earliest known walled cities.
• Villagers developed specialized skills and became artisans.
• Catal Huyuk provides information about Neolithic life.
• Trade developed due to the demand for specialized goods and services.
• Barter, the exchange of goods, was common.
• The plow, pulled by oxen, was an important technological advance.
• Copper was likely the first metal used.
• The Bronze Age is defined by the use of bronze in tools and weapons.

Ancient Near East

• Mesopotamia means "Between the rivers."
• Kings used artists to glorify their careers.
• Cylinder seals were used for private communication.
• Writing was cuneiform.

Sumerian Civilization (3500 – 2340 BCE)

• Southern Mesopotamia became known as Sumer.
• Farming villages grew into twelve city-states.
• Sumerians practiced polytheism.
• Ziggurats, large brick temples, were built as homes for the gods.
• Cuneiform was the Sumerian form of writing.
• Sumerians established schools primarily for upper-class boys.
• Mesopotamians worshipped numerous gods.
• Mesopotamians developed written laws, made advances in mathematics and astronomy, and engaged in widespread trade.
• The Code of Hammurabi dealt with religion, irrigation, military service, crime, business, property, marriage, and family.

Egyptian Civilization Lasts 3,000 Years

• Egypt depended on the Nile River.
• Silt carried by the Nile built up a marshy delta.
• Egyptians practiced polytheism, including animal worship.
• Thoth was the scribe of the gods.
• Osiris was the ruler of the Nile, who died each year and was brought back to life by his wife Isis.
• Egypt was united under the rule of Menes, who built Memphis as his capital.
• Three periods in Egyptian history: Old Kingdom, Middle Kingdom, and New Kingdom.
• Rulers were called Pharaohs.
• Immense pyramids were built during the Old Kingdom.
• The Great Pyramid stands 450 feet tall.
• The Middle Kingdom restored Egypt’s prosperity.
• Around 2040 B.C, Egypt was ruled from Thebes.
• The Hyksos, meaning "Prince from Foreign Lands," ruled Egypt during a foreign dynasty.
• The Empire Age occurred during the New Kingdom.
• Conquered peoples paid tribute to Egypt.
• Hatshepsut was the first great female ruler in history.
• Akhenaton tried to change Egyptian religious beliefs by promoting the worship of Aton, represented by the sun.
• Amenhotep took the name Akhenaton, meaning "It is well with Aton."

Egyptian Society and Culture

• Egyptians left written records.
• Hieroglyphic means “sacred carving”.
• Egyptians wrote on papyrus scrolls.
• Scribes had important skills.
• Egypt had skilled artisans.
• Prisoners became slaves with short and miserable lives.
• Egyptians developed knowledge of medicine and astronomy.
• Egyptian medical textbook written on the diagnosis and treatment of injuries.
• Egyptian calendar was based on the sun and had 365 days.
• Tombs provided a "home" for the dead.
• Egyptians believed in the Other World.
• Bodies were carefully preserved before burial.
• Howard Carter discovered Tutankhamen's unrobbed tomb.
• The treasure of "King Tut's" tomb was the greatest single archeological find from ancient Egypt.

Other Near Eastern Peoples Make Contribution

• Around 2000 B.C, Aryans migrated from northeast of the Black Sea.
• The Aryan language became the ancestor of nearly all languages now spoken in Europe and India, now called Indo-European.
• The Hittites learned to use iron
• The Lydians introduced the use of coins.
• Phoenicians
  • Skilled seafarers spread ideas.
  • Phoenicia was known for tall cedar trees, used in shipbuilding.
  • Phoenicians were the first to make objects of clear glass.
  • Phoenician cloth was dyed a deep purple.
• Phoenicians used a writing system based on early alphabet.
• Hebrews
  • Small group of people yet their influence in world history was great.
  • Early Hebrew history is recorded in the Bible.
  • Exodus was the flight of Hebrews of Egypt to Sinai Peninsula.
  • Moses was regarded as the Hebrews people's chief law giver.
  • The Ten Commandments are Hebrews set of moral laws.
  • Yahweh was the Hebrews God.
  • Canaan was a place which they believed God had promised them.
• Hebrews believed in Monotheism
• Assyrians
  • Ruthless conquerors.
  • Tiglath-Pileser was a conqueror who defeated people in Northern Mesopotamia.
• Babylonians
  • Nebuchadnezzar the greatest Chaldean king who ruled from 605 B.C to 562 B.C.
  • Babylon became most famous for a series of terraces planted with trees and flowers and watered by stream known as the "Hanging Garden".
• Persians
  • Led by Cyrus the Great, began around 547 B.C to build the largest Empire.
  • Darius the great extended the Persian conquest into Northern India.
  • Inspectors-spies> known as the "Eyes and the Ears of the king"
• Zoroaster was a persian religious teacher in sixth century.
  • Ahura Mazda, the wise Lord, was seen in a supreme God, standing for truth, goodness and light.
  • Ahriman was the evil spirit, representing darkness.
  • Zoroastrianism made the Persian king as their official religion of the Empire.