• At 3100B.C, the lands were united by Narmer.
• Egyptians relied on harmony and balance of the universe, which they called "Maat" (personalized by the goddess of Maat; ideological opposite of goddess "isfet"
• All routs of financial and social success were through the palace
• Women could ow money and land and divorce, but little had power.
• Gods often had animal heads or bodies.
• All souls would need to justify themselves at the point of death and were either sent to an after world paradise or the mouth of a monster.
• Hieroglyphics was formed at around 3100B.C.
• They created the calendar with 12 months and 365 days to predict the flooding of the Nile river.
• They had excellent knowledge of human anatomy and would work extensively on health issues
• wooden sailboats were constructed
• pyramids were tombs covered in marble
• The temple of Amon at Karnak is the largest religious building in the world 
• Stone sculptures and interior paintings filled the temple.

      Today in western civ. we did a worksheet on different vocab words. This was helpful because it gave extra vocab words that I may have missed when I was taking notes.The ancient Egypt test is also Monday and you said it would be like the Mesopotamia quiz. I did not really like the Mesopotamia quiz format because it was worth so much points but only fifteen questions. I was OK with the questions on it because everything was in the textbook, but I did not like the spelling part. I know one of them I got wrong was the wrong answer, but spelling uncommon challenging words it very annoying. I used to not believe people when they said English was a hard language, but I am starting to realize that they are correct. After taking German, I realized how organized and concrete their language is. It is almost like math with pronunciation. For example: "ei" always makes and "i" sound and "ie" always makes an "e" sound. So as long as you know the rules, you can write out any German word. I am able to spell out "informatikaufgaben" with out even looking up the spelling, and I cannot even spell English words like "museum" or "accommodate." I can already foresee you making us spell "pharaoh" or "Tutankhamen" on  the test and I will do word triangles again just like I did in third grade. Of course I am not mad with my grade, I still have an A, I am just mad why I got that grade.

Pg .41, #1, 3, 4, 5

1.

• The delta allowed easy river travel between parts of Egypt while also providing a source of water and fertile land.
• Narmer was a very important king because he united upper and lower Egypt.
• The pharaoh was a incredibly powerful ruler of Egypt who was treated, and believed to be a god by his people.
• Ancient Egypt was a theocracy because the pharaoh ruled Egypt and the pharaoh was a religious figure; many countries are still theocracies today, such as Saudi Arabia and Iran.'
• The pyramid was built for dead pharaoh's ka, or afterlife, and one of the pyramids was the tallest man-made structure for 3,800 years.
• Egyptians would preserve bodies by mummification and put their items in their coffin so they can have it in the afterlife.
• Hieroglyphics were the written language of ancient Egyptians.
• Papyrus was a reed used to make paper that grew along the Nile river.

3. The desert surrounding Egypt protected them from invaders, allowing Egypt to grow without any threats.

4. Egyptians viewed the pharaoh as a god.

5. They would get mummified so they could have different items in there afterlife. Their mummified bodies would be buried with their clothing, cosmetics, and jewelry.

I got two wrong on the test. Both of them were most likely the spelling ones. The first one I got wrong is the first spelling one. I was so focused on spelling it correctly that I put the wrong word. It should have been Neolithic, which is also much easier to spell. I also guess I spelled Ziggurat wrong, but looking it up it is correct, so it could have been another problem.

Egypt

EGYPT

• Using mathematical knowledge and engineering skills, Egyptians built magnificent monuments to honor dead rulers.
• The Nile river flows northward through Africa for 4,100 miles. It is the longest river in the world
• it would flood and bring rich soil to Egypt
• Ii would flood in July because of melting snow from the mountains and rain.
• the flood water would recede in October, leaving soil behind
• There were risks involved in living in Egypt
• Less water in the Nile meant thousand of people would starve
• with to much water, the land would flood, destroying crops
• The desert around them restricted trade but kept away attackers
• river travel was common, but limited due to rapids called cataracts
• southern Egypt was called upper Egypt and northern Egypt was called lower Egypt.
• Egyptian villages dated back to 5000B.C.
• Individual settlements formed, which made lower and upper Egypt which then got united by a king named Narmer
• the king of lower Egypt wore a red crown and the king of upper Egypt wore a white crown
• Narmer created a red and white crown to represent a united kingdom.
• The capital of Egypt was Memphis, which was between upper and lower Egypt
• there were 31 Egyptian dynasties
• 2660-2180 is known as the Old Kingdom.
• They believed that pharaohs had live after death, or ka, so they built pyramids for them.

VOCABULARY

• delta- a marshy region formed by deposits of silt at the mouth of a river.
• Narmer- a king of the Old Kingdom who united upper and lower Egypt.
• pharaoh- a king of ancient Egypt, considered a god
• theocracy- government in which the ruler is viewed as a divine figure
• pyramid- a massive structure built for Old Kingdom pharaohs.
• mummification- a process of embalming and preserving a dead body.
• hieroglyphics- written script used by Egyptians
• papyrus- a tall reed  that grew in the Nile delta, used to make paper

Today in Western Civ. we did a worksheet on Hammurabi's code. It is very interesting to see how they answered criminals in Sumerian times, they would just kill them most of the time. I do not know how the punishment is determined because the law on the damaged boat, another boat would just be replaced by the person who damaged the boat as compensation. But if a barber sells a slave that is not on sale, the barber gets put to death. I cannot understand why one dies and the other compensates because they are similar situations of damaged/ stolen property. Maybe it is because sailors have a higher social rank than barbers? The social rank does limit the punishment so I am pretty sure that is why. The most surprising thing I learned today is that there is a statue of Hammurabi in the U.S. supreme court. Yes he did have influential laws but a lot of them involve death and suffering. There is also bias towards men and bias to higher social classes which is not like the U.S. supreme court and he seems to be a bad role model for the supreme court.

• Sumerians conquered the Akkadians -2350 B.C
• Akkadian gods took place of Sumerian gods
• Hammurabi of Babylon creates a series of laws known as Hammurabi's code- Laws based of "an eye for an eye" It has laws about marriages, and punishments for all sorts of crimes
• The expansion of Mediterranean civilization
• Indo-europeans were people from the grasslands of Russia who introduced the horse to the new east
• The warlike indo- europeans tribes know as the Hittites  settled in Asia minor
• The Hittites had trade and conquered nearly all of their neighbors, even threatening Egypt.

• The Fertile crescent is now Jordan, Syria, and Iraq.
• Sumer occupied the land between the Tigris and Euphrates
• Populations increased
• Cities and towns were founded, with some having as much as 40,000 people.
• Better food allowed for diversity in professions such as priests, tradesmen, politicians, and farmers
• kings and dynasties emerged and city states emerged
• collected taxes
• Sumerians ordered the earliest form of writing called cuneiform
• The Epic of Gilgamesh Is the oldest know epic and is about a great flood.
• They divided hours into 60 min and min into 60 sec.
• The ziggurat was a Sumerian temple built on top a mountain of earth.

       Hammurabi's code seemed to have laws that would make sense for punishment at the time. It was completely different when they were around and a lot of these laws would seem to make science. It also seems like the laws were in favor of the entire city state. They did not have any jails so most of the people who committed the crime were killed. It also seemed like that if you did not let executed, you would not be angry at what happened and revolt against the city state which was probably better for the rulers. It also seemed like the social class mattered too. for example, you would have to pay less if you stole something from a slave compared to a king or priest.

From Pre-History to Civilization

• Before civilization: the prehistoric Era
• The origins and Ages of Human Beings
• 200000 years ago, human species emerged in southern Africa
• 14000 years ago, a worldwide human race exploded
• Earliest prehistoric age is the Paleolithic age
• Neolithic stage (new stone age) was marked by advanced tool makings and beginnings of agriculture
• The Agricultural revolution=the neolithic revolution

• The lowest class of Sumerian society is slavery.
• They were the first to use arithmetic and geometry
• A conqueror named Sargon defeated the city states of Sumeria.
• Sargon created the worlds first empire.
• an empire brings together separate peoples or previously independent states under the control of one ruler.
• Sargon led the army of Akkad.
• The empire that now controlled the Mediterranean in 2350b.c is the Akkadian Empire
• The Sargon dynasty only lasted about 200 years.
• in 2000b.c, nomadic worriers known as Amorites invaded Mesopotamia.
• They established the capital of Babylon
• The Babylonian empire reached its peak during the reign of Hammurabi from 1792 B.C. to 1750 B.C.
• Hammurabi recognized that a single uniform code of laws would help unify the different peoples of the empire.
• He established Hammurabi's code.
• Kings, priests, and land holders were the highest on the social rankings, then merchants

Early River Valley Civilizations 3500 B.C - 450 B.C.

• The earliest civilizations formed on fertile river plains, facing seasonal flooding and limited growing area.
• Projects such as irrigation systems required leadership and laws (organized government). They were controlled by priests, military leaders and or kings.
• Early civilizations developed bronze tools, the wheel, the sail, the plow, writing, mathematics. These spread through trade, wars, and the movement of peoples.
• The fertile crescent has rich land.
• Te fertile crescent is by the Mediterranean sea and the planes became known as Mesopotamia.
• Mesopotamia means "land between the rivers"
• The  rivers framing Mesopotamia are the Tigris and Euphrates.
• These rivers flow to the Persian Gulf.
• Once a year, these rivers flooded leaving silt on the land which was a very fertile soil and allowed the Sumerians to barley and wheat.
• people first farmed the land around 4500 B.C.
• Sumerians settled here.
• Sumerians dig irrigation trenches to get their crops watered. They traded with nearby civilizations and built walls around their cities.
• They were one of the first people to farm.
• They had advanced cities, specialized workers, complex institutions, record keeping, improved technology.
• Each city and the land around it formed city states.
• The city state functioned as a modern country.
• Some city states are Uruk, Kish, Lagash, Umana, and Ur.
• Priests first run the cities and lived in the ziggurat in the center of the city state.
• Soon people gained control of standing armies.
• A series of rulers from a single family is a dynasty.
• When a new Idea or product gets spread through different cultures is cultural diffusion.
• They were polytheistic (many gods).
• They built impressive ziggurats for their gods.
• Hammurabi's code: holds people responsible for their actions.

Today in Western Civilization we took our test on Guns, Germs, and Steel. I think I did very well on it. I do not think I got the first one right but I got both of the extra credit. I think I did very well on the essay and I think it was one of the best essays I wrote so far for your class. I did not have a very good closing for the essay though because I could not really fit one in that would improve the essay. I am excited for the next chapter in western civ. because I did not learn about ancient civilizations since 5th grade. It is not my favorite topic however because a lot of it is just kind of dry and boring. I am hoping after ancient civilizations we will move on to Greece and Rome because that is a very interesting topic and I do not think I have ever learned about it in school before.

• people in the fertile crescent had the best crops
• the city of dwar 
• dwar is 9000 years old, 25000 years older than draa
• a few hundred people lived in dwar
• clothes and plaster were able to be made
• people over farmed the fertile crescent and moved east and west
• populations exploded when they reached Egypt and other parts of Europe and Asia.
• anywhere on earth that has the same line of latitude is similar
• the Europeans brought cattle to the new land
• there are now 100 million cattle in america
• Americans consume 20 million tons of cattle every year.