Presented By The PAS Study Group Paul Landini Anna Mendelson Sofa Getachew

Compare and contrast the Han and Greek Empires in economic organization:  Despite the fact that the Greek and Han Empires were similar in that they both used foreign trade to get the good they needed or wanted, they were really more different in that Greek had few natural resources due to unfertile land while the Han had many lucrative resources such as silk. Agriculturally, the Grecian Empire depended on slaves to farm their few crops but the Han did not use slaves  Compare and contrast two of the following societies in economic organization:  RomeMesopotamia Egypt  Though the Roman and Egyptian Empires were similar in that they used agriculture as their main economic support, they were more different because the Romans used an enormous amount of foreign and local trade to get the goods they desired. However, the Egyptians suffered from economic xenophobia, only trading with two societies. Also, the Roman economy depended heavily on slaves to grow crops and support trade. Although Egypt had slaves, they did not play as crucial a role in the economy.

-As agriculture became more efficient and food surpluses increased, the rise of a skilled working class became major in the rise of many important civilizations and empires.  In early Roman times agriculture was the basis of the Republic, but as the empire expanded individual provinces began specializing in non-agricultural occupations. This occurred because some people no longer needed to cultivate land and became involved in crafts and commerce.

-Most civilizations had very wealthy aristocrats who often owned large plots of land and allowed peasants/slaves to work own them for a portion of their harvest.  Examples include the growth of latifundias in Rome due to those who served in the military having their land stolen by aristocrats. In addition, the Han Chinese aristocrats who also began dominating large pieces of land with great anger by the government who hoped to decrease the power of the aristocratic class are examples of this continuity. This continuity most likely occurred because the aristocratic class often had a lot of political power which in turn allowed them to be economically and agriculturally successful.

-Regardless of many moves towards specialized industries and economic activities, agriculture remained one of the dominant economic activities for civilizations that were able to grow large quantities of food.  Whether looking at Rome, Mesopotamia, or Egypt the need to grow food for the growing population remained a major concern regardless of the many new economic activities. This occurred because without modern innovations agriculture was still in a rather primitive stage which increased the need for agricultural laborers. Regardless of the growth of cities and society, agriculture was mainly dominant due to the need to feed the population

Change: During the Neolithic Period people moved from nomadic lifestyles to agricultural lifestyles.  Theories suggest that people were drawn to agriculture for it obvious advantages  Farmers were able to push out nomads due to the long-term advantages of agriculture (population growth) Civilizations started making crafts and excelling in the arts, a trend beginning with the Mesopotamians  The rise of agriculture meant that surpluses were being built: surpluses allowed portions of people to become skilled in other professions Civilizations trade increases as technology got better  Romans built extensive concrete roads while the Han Empire built the Silk Road; these advancements allowed faster travel and more uniform commerce

 Pastoralism- important because most newly formed neolithic communities depended on pastoral life for everyday needs  Iron Age- during the iron age many civilizations become more efficient in all aspects warfare(weapons), tools, and trade(for iron)  Slave- empires such as the Roman and Greek Empires used slaves as household laborers and sometimes their entire economy was dependent on slaves for agricultural surpluses  Commerce- during and after the times of the Minoan and Mycenaen civilizations, empires/civilizations began to depend on commerce for the things they did not possess  Pax Romana- the safety guaranteed by the Roman government throughout the empire. This encouraged the flow of commerce throughout the empire.

 Indian Ocean Maritime System- formed a commercial connection between eastern China, India, and the African coast. Even caused the development of the Funan civilization in south east Asia  Trans- Saharan Route- linked North Africa to sub- saharan Africa and made trans-African trade possible  Silk Road- importance lies in the fact that it was so far stretched that it made it possible for the Han dynasty to trade with the Roman Empire. Also connected China to the Middle East, Central Asia, and Iran.  Third- Century crisis- the period in which economic decline, change of rulers, and invasion threatened the Roman Empire. To recover, Diocletian imposed maximum prices for goods, this brought about the formation of the black market that ignored the government’s prices.  Funan- a wealthy city-state in the Malaysian Isthmus. Funan was centered on the Vietnamese rice growing region and controlled commerce across south east Asia.