River Valley Civilizations Indus Valley and Huang He
Jan 16, 2016
River Valley CivilizationsIndus Valley and Huang He
Essential Questions
1. What was the layout of the Indus Valley civilization?
2. Why do we not have a lot of information about the Indus Valley civilization?
3. What is ancestor worship?4. What is the mandate of heaven?5. What is the dynastic cycle?
Location/GeographyIndus Valley
• south of Himalayan Mountains
• Indus and Ganges Rivers• Deccan plateau• monsoons (seasonal
winds)
Huang He• isolated from other
civilizations because of natural barriers
• Plateau of Tibet• Himalayan Mountains• Yangtze and Huang He
Rivers
ReligionIndus Chinese
• artifacts indicate links to modern day Hinduism
• worship the God Shiva• worshiped cattle
• family was strongly linked to religion
• spirits of ancestors determine fortune
• spirits demanded attention and respect
• used oracle bones to communicate with the gods
• carved questions bones, heated them up, and observed the cracks
• Mandate of Heaven – divine approval for a just ruler
IndusChina
Writing
• has not yet been deciphered
• each character represented an idea, not a sound
• there are no links between spoken and written Chinese
• should know 100,000 words to be a scholar
Indus China
Indus
China
Government/Law
• strong central government (because of planned cities)
• limited conflicts (because few weapons have been found)
• Xia dynasty was the first, cities grew
• Shang dynasty: first to leave written records, built elaborate palaces/tombs
• constantly raging war so they had walls around their cities for protection
• dynastic cycle – the rise, decline, and replacement of dynasties
• Feudalism – a political system in which nobles use lands that belong to the king, provide loyalty to king, protection to workers
Indus China
Science/Technology
• domestication of sheep and goats
• sophisticated city planning
• cities in grid system• citadel = fortified area
with major buildings inside
• plumbing /sewage systems
• craftsmen made weapons, jewelry, religious items
• produced silk cloth • built roads and canals• coined money• iron used for weapons
Indus China
Social Classes
• social divisions were not great (because of common residential areas)
• prosperous society that produced nonessential goods
• two groups: nobles and peasants
• warrior-nobles were at the top with kings and owned the land
• peasants workers had no tools because metal was too precious, used for weapons
• grew millet, rice, wheat
Indus China