First Semester Study Guide (Part 1)

  1. What two archeologists are some of the first to find evidence of Prehistory in Olduvai Gorge?

Mary and Louis Leakey

  1. Who found Lucy?

Donald Johanson

  1. Lucy is named for a song by which musical group?

Beatles

  1. What are the four original civilizations? Where are they found and why?

Indus, China, Egypt, Sumer

River valleys, resources, hunting, irrigation, transportation

  1. What was the first civilization?

Mesopotamia/Sumer

  1. Who is Sargon?

Ruler of the first Empire

  1. Name three civilizations and an achievement/advancement of each.

Answers Vary

  1. List 3 branches of the Social Sciences and what they study.

Answers Vary Geography, Psychology, Anthropology, Sociology, Economics, History, political science

  1. What is the difference between History and Prehistory?

Advancement of Writing

  1. Which Hominid group do we think was the first to use fire?

Homo erectus

  1. What two groups can be found in the Hominid group Homo sapien?

Neanderthals and Anatomically Modern Humans

  1. What was the first form of writing and which civilization developed it?

Cuneiform developed by the Sumerians

  1. What affect did the Hittites have on early civilizations? How was this affect detrimental to some early civilizations? How did the secret get out?

They developed the use of iron. Those who had iron weapons had all the Power. Fall of the civilization allowed iron craftsmen to move to other areas.

  1. Why did Egyptians mummify their dead?

To preserve them for the afterlife.

  1. What is animism? What proof do we have that it existed in Prehistory?

Religion, belief that spirits are in animals, cave paintings

  1. Why are the pyramids not perfectly inline?

Egyptians did not account for the wobble of the Earth and did not use the movement of the stars in their figures.

  1. What is a bureaucracy? What are the advantages of one in the government?

Type of government that uses a hierarchy and has levels of authority and special functions for each position. Efficiency!!!!!!!

  1. What was so important about Hammurabi’s Code?

First written code of law.

  1. In what two branches can Hammurabi’s Code be broken into?

Civil and Criminal Law

  1. Which early civilization had the largest empire in the prehistoric world?

Persians

  1. What are the three similar features of Christianity, Zoroasterism, and Islam?

Judgment Day

Good vs. Evil

Monotheistic

  1. The Trojan War was between who?

Mycenae and the Trojans

  1. What was the result of the Trojan War in the Mycenean culture?

Mycenaean civilization took a step backwards and forgot writing.

  1. What is a fresco?

Paint placed on wet plaster

  1. What island is the Minoan civilization on?

Crete

  1. Where is the location of the Minoan palace?

Knossos

  1. What is the reason for the Trojan War?

Fighting over trade routes.

  1. Who wrote the Iliad and Odyssey?

Homer

  1. Why did Greece develop into separate city-states?

Mountains did not allow for a unified civilization.

  1. A Greece city-state is also known as what?

Polis

  1. The raised part of the Greek city-state where temple were located are known as what?

Acropolis

  1. What is a monarchy?

Government with hereditary rulers. Typically king/Queen.

  1. What is an oligarchy?

Government by the rich middle class. Typically a small group of people.

  1. What is an aristocracy?

Government controlled by the Noble, land-holding class.

  1. What revolt helped start the Persian War?

Ionian Revolt

  1. Describe the Battle of Marathon.

Persia attacks at Marathon, Athens overwhelms them and forces them to retreat.

  1. Describe the Battle of Thermopylae.

Persians vs. Spartans (Leonidas) , Persians continue on to burn Athens

  1. Describe the Battle of Salamis.

Persian ships are destroyed by the smaller, faster Athenian Navy. Persia is force to retreat.

  1. What is a direct democracy?

Citizens directly participate.

  1. What was Alexander the Great’s most lasting achievement?

The spread of Greek culture across his empire.

  1. What is the difference between Athens and Sparta?

Athens: democratic, navy, based culture on education and learning, logic

Sparta: warrior society ruled by kings, army, based culture on ability to fight

  1. What is rhetoric?

Art of skillful speaking.

  1. What are the advantages and disadvantages of Athens and Sparta during the Peloponnesian War?

Athens: a- Navy (Trasportation) d- Navy (Sparta is inland)

Sparta: d-slow moving army a-best military of the time

  1. Why did Socrates willingly drink poison?

To prove his loyalty to the idea of democracy.

  1. What was Plato’s point in The Republic?

Greece should be ruled by philosopher kings.

  1. Why is Herodotus so important to the study of History?

“Father of History”

Emphasized the elimination of bias

  1. Why is Thucydides so important to the study of History?

Further pushed for the elimination of bias and practiced the philosophy.