1. of ancient river valley Civilizations Explain empires of Mesopotamia
Objectives
Assess knowledge
of ancient river valley
Civilizations
Explain empires of
Mesopotamia
Recognize Hispanic
Heritage month
10/7 & 10/11

2. China
Huang He River Civilization

3. Geography Important features: Mountains Himalayas Rivers Huang He
Yangtze
Deserts
Taklamakan
Gobi
Geography
Talk to your neighbor –
How did these physical
features affect the development
of ancient
Chinese
Civilizations?

4. Mountains Deserts, Ocean Rivers
Provided protection from invaders – isolated – no trade with outsiders
Mountains
Deserts, Ocean
Rivers
Provided water and fertile soil. Loess (windblown silt) from unpredictable flooding of the Huang He River replenished the soil with nutrients. It also colored the river yellow, giving it the name “Yellow River”

5. The Huang He
River has also
been called
“China’s
Sorrow” because of its
history of
devastating floods.

6. Taklamakan Desert with snow

7. The Gobi Desert

8. The Yangtze River

9. The first civilizations emerged on the Huang He River around 2000 BCE.
Political
The first civilizations emerged
on the Huang He River around
2000 BCE.
Hereditary Rule
The ruler’s son
became the ruler
after the ruler
died.
Ruling power
stayed in the
family.
China’s earliest
governments were
dynasties.
What is a dynasty?

10. There were three dynasties in Ancient China:
Political
1. The first dynasty was the Xia but little is known because there are no written records
2. The Shang dynasty followed and many artifacts and writings were found in its capital city of Anyang.

11. Anyang
Surrounded by a massive wall – 118 feet wide and 1.2 miles
What can you conclude about their government?
Political
Artifacts included the chariot and bronze weapons.
Ruled by a king

12. Some houses were larger and enclosed within the wall.
Anyang
Some houses were larger and enclosed within the wall.
Others were poorly constructed and were outside the wall.
Talk to your neighbor. Who lived within the walls and who lived outside the walls?

13. By 1027 BCE, the Shang Dynasty was overthrown and the third dynasty began called the Zhou Dynasty.
Political
Zhou rulers justified their use of force by claiming that they had the “Mandate of Heaven”

15. Ancient Dynasties of China
Political
256 BCE
1532 BCE
1027 BCE
Zhou Dynasty
begins
Shang Dynasty
Qin Dynasty
Era of
Warring States
Almost 900 years of rule
Over time, the Zhou government became de-centralized and regional nobles gained more and more power. A system of feudalism developed. What is feudalism?

16. Feudalism: A government system in which regional landowners grant land to knights or warriors in exchange for loyalty and protection.
During the last 500 years of Zhou rule, regional rulers were constantly at war with each other. This period is called the Era of Warring States.
Political

17. geography affect its economy? Talk to your neighbor.
How did China’s
geography affect its economy?
Talk to your neighbor.
Because of China’s isolation by natural barriers, there was
not much trade outside of China
Its economy was agricultural.

18. Economy
As territory in the North and South were united during the Zhou dynasty, China gained crop diversity: grains from the northern fields and rice from the south led to rise in population. Rice would become a staple in the Asian diet.

19. Economy
Because China was geographically isolated, it did not trade with other civilizations
until the Classical period (500 BCE-500 CE). In the Classical period, it would become a manufacturer to the world, trading along the Silk Road and Indian Ocean routes.
Porcelain

20. From its earliest history, Chinese culture emphasized:
Importance of family
The group is more important than the individual

21. Religious beliefs:
Ancestor worship: Deceased ancestors could bring good fortune or disaster.
Through ancestors, gods were worshipped, especially a supreme god, Shang Di.
The Chinese consulted
the gods using oracle bones.
Religion

22. Religion Questions were etched into the bones
of animals, usually turtle
shells.
The bones would then be
exposed to heat.
The cracks in the shell
were then interpreted
to see how the gods
answered.
Oracle bone

23. Society Society was comprised of nobles and peasants.
The nobles were landowners. The peasants worked the land for the nobles.

24. Society
Women were expected to obey their fathers and husbands. Their marriages were arranged when they were years old.
The most important job for a woman was to produce a son.

25. Chinese writing developed from pictographs or drawings of objects.
The system used today is directly related to the
writings found on oracle bones from the Shang dynasty.
Intellectual

26. There is no connection between written and spoken Chinese
Intellectual
There is no connection between written and spoken Chinese
Advantage: Someone can read Chinese without knowing how to speak it
Love
A common language developed during the Zhou Dynasty – Mandarin Chinese

27. Achievements Artifacts from Anyang The Shang civilization excelled
at using
bronze
for weapons,
carrying
vessels and
beautiful
objects.
Chariots
were invented
and used in battle

28. Achievements Silk production began during the Shang dynasty and
became a prized fabric of the nobles.
Silk thread from silkworms is woven to make beautiful
cloth.

29. Achievements During the Zhou Dynasty they: Built roads and canals
Developed blast furnaces that allowed them to produce cast iron

30. Coined money also developed during the Zhou Dynasty.
Achievements
Iron was used for weapons and farm tools which expanded agriculture for China’s growing cities.
Coined money also developed
during the Zhou Dynasty.