1. The Early Greeks Get Ready to Read Section Overview
This section describes the impact of geography on ancient Greece and the rise of the Minoan and Mycenaean civilizations.

2. Get Ready to Read (cont.)
The Early Greeks
Get Ready to Read (cont.)
Focusing on the Main Ideas
The geography of Greece influenced where people settled and what they did.
The Minoans earned their living by building ships and trading.
Mycenaeans built the first Greek kingdoms and spread their power across the Mediterranean region.

3. Get Ready to Read (cont.)
The Early Greeks
Get Ready to Read (cont.)
Focusing on the Main Ideas (cont.)
Colonies and trade spread Greek culture and spurred industry.
The idea of citizenship developed in Greek city-states.

4. Get Ready to Read (cont.)
The Early Greeks
Get Ready to Read (cont.)
Locating Places
Crete (KREET)
Mycenae (my·SEE·nee)
Peloponnesus (PEH·luh·puh·NEE·suhs)
Meeting People
Agamemnon (A·guh·MEHM·nahn)

5. Get Ready to Read (cont.)
The Early Greeks
Get Ready to Read (cont.)
Building Your Vocabulary
peninsula (puh·NIHN·suh·luh)
colony (KAH·luh·nee)
polis (PAH·luhs)
agora (A·guh·ruh)
Reading Strategy
Finding Details Draw a diagram like the one on page 116 of your textbook. In each oval write one detail about a polis.

6. The Geography of Greece
The Early Greeks
The Geography of Greece
Mainland Greece is a mountainous peninsula—a body of land with water on three sides.
The Ionian Sea is to the west of Greece, the Aegean Sea is to the east, and the Mediterranean Sea is to the south.
Ancient Greeks were fishers, sailors, traders, and farmers.
(page 117)

7. The Geography of Greece
The Early Greeks
The Geography of Greece
Although Greece’s rocky soil made it difficult to farm, people could grow wheat, barley, olives, and grapes in the favorable climate.
(page 117)

8. How might a peninsula be affected by its surrounding water?
The Early Greeks
How might a peninsula be affected by its surrounding water?
Land might be limited
the climate might be positively or adversely affected
occupations of the people might be ocean-related, such as sailing and fishing
All of the above
[Default]
[MC Any]
[MC All]

9. The Early Greeks The Minoans
The ruins of the Minoan civilization, the first civilization to arise in Greece, are on the island of Crete.
Artifacts at the palace at Knossos reveal the riches of the Minoan people, such as wine, oil, jewelry, and statues.
The Minoan people were traders, traveling by ship to trade with other countries.
(page 118)

10. The Early Greeks The Minoans (cont.)
The Minoan civilizations collapsed around 1450 B.C., although historians disagree on the cause of the Minoan destruction.
(page 118)

11. True False The Early Greeks
Historians know the Minoans were a wealthy people because Artifacts at the palace of Knossos included items only wealthy people would have, such as bathrooms.
True
False

12. The First Greek Kingdoms
The Early Greeks
The First Greek Kingdoms
The first Greek kings were Mycenaean leaders, whose people invaded the Greek mainland around 1900 B.C.
The center of the Mycenaean kingdom was a palace surrounded by large farms.
The Mycenaeans began trading with the Minoans and learned much about Minoan culture.
(pages 119–120)

13. The First Greek Kingdoms (cont.)
The Early Greeks
The First Greek Kingdoms (cont.)
Before collapsing around 1100 B.C., the Mycenaean civilization was the most powerful on the Mediterranean.
The Dark Age occurred between 1100 B.C. and 150 B.C. and was a time of less trade and poverty among people.
The Dorians invaded Greece, bringing new weapons and farming technology to the Greek people.
(pages 119–120)

14. The First Greek Kingdoms (cont.)
The Early Greeks
The First Greek Kingdoms (cont.)
The Greeks learned about an alphabet from the Phoenicians, one of their trading partners.
The Greek alphabet had 24 letters that stood for different sounds.
(pages 119–120)

15. What was one positive result of the Dark Age?
The Early Greeks
What was one positive result of the Dark Age?
[Default]
[MC Any]
[MC All]
Greeks left the mainland and settled in other countries. This helped spread Greek culture.
Light bulbs were invented.

16. The Early Greeks A Move to Colonize
After the Dark Age, Greek people began to set up colonies in other countries.
This colonization spread Greek culture.
Trade between colonists and the parent cities grew, and soon merchants were trading goods for money instead of more goods.
(page 121)

17. What invention allowed merchants to trade for money?
The Early Greeks
What invention allowed merchants to trade for money?
[Default]
[MC Any]
[MC All]
The Greeks began minting coins, which allowed merchants to trade for money.
The printing press

18. The Early Greeks The Polis
A polis, or city-state, was like an independent country.
City-states varied in size and population.
An acropolis, located at the top of a hill, was the main gathering place of the city-state.
An agora, or open area, served as a market and as a place for people to meet and debate issues.
(pages 122–123)

19. The Early Greeks The Polis (cont.)
The Greeks were the first people to develop the idea of citizenship, in which citizens of a country are treated equally and have rights and responsibilities.
In Greek city-states, only free, native-born, land-owning men could be citizens.
Citizens could vote, hold office, own property, and defend themselves in court.
(pages 122–123)

20. The Early Greeks The Polis (cont.)
The military of the city-states was made of ordinary citizens, not nobles.
These citizens were called hoplites and fought each battle on foot instead of on horses.
(pages 122–123)

21. The Early Greeks True False
Ancient Greeks decided that only free, native-born, land-owning men could be citizens. In modern United States, men and women, native-born and naturalized people can be citizens, whether they own property or not.
True
False

22. Trading pottery and stone vases made the Minoans wealthy.
The Early Greeks
Trading pottery and stone vases made the Minoans wealthy.
True
False

23. City-states were tiny independent countries.
The Early Greeks
City-states were tiny independent countries.
True
False

24. Summarize What changes occurred in Greece during the Dark Age?
The Early Greeks
Summarize What changes occurred in Greece during the Dark Age?
Trade slowed
poverty took hold
people stopped farming
people stopped teaching writing and craftwork
many Greeks moved elsewhere
All of the above
[Default]
[MC Any]
[MC All]

25. The Early Greeks True False
Three rights granted to Greek citizens that American citizens have today are: voting, holding office, and owning property.
True
False

26. Link to Economics Why did the use of money help trade to grow?
The Early Greeks
Link to Economics Why did the use of money help trade to grow?
[Default]
[MC Any]
[MC All]
Money is small and easier to trade than bartered goods.
More money = more problems
If you plant a coin and water it, a money tree will grow.

27. The Early Greeks Discuss the following statement:
“The geography of Greece influenced where people settled and what they did.”