Civilisation?

1. Civilisation? WHAT IS A

2. When did you last hear this? EEEEEE!!!!!! So UNCIVILISED!!!!!!!!!!

3. “uncivilised”??? • We use such terms to criticise actions which we dislike. • But WHERE did such a term come from?

4. How did we get the word ‘Civilisation’ ? • Our modern word ‘Civilisation’ comes from the Latin word ‘Civilis’ (citizen) • ‘Civilis’ was related to: • the word ‘Civis’ (a city resident) • polite behaviour expected of a citizenin a city. • Even today, we describe good manners as “being civil”

5. How did we get the word ‘Civilisation’ ? • Hence the word “CIVILISATION” was formed to describe a society which: • Lived in cities • Behaved politely • Obeyed the government and law • This English word came into use around 1857 AD.

6. What’s the opposite of “civilised”? • BARBARIC! • The Greeks labelled anyone whose language they could not understand as a “Barbarian” – their words sounded like “Bar! Bar!” to their ears! • It came to mean anyone thought to be crude, foreign, violent and uneducated, and lived outside a city

7. What comes before a ‘civilisation’? • Humans originally lived as small family groups of hunter-gatherers • They moved from place to place seeking food • So how did we come to live in large cities?

8. What comes before a ‘civilisation’? • We have already learned that civilisations are mostly found: • In favourable climates where crops can grow • Near rivers which provide fertile soil for food • Larger numbers of humans were attracted to these areas • Eventually humans learned the art of FARMING • Large amounts of food could be grown in one place • There was no longer a need to move around seeking food • As there was sufficient food, time and manpower could be spent making other items like clothes and houses

9. Remember your Art and Craft Activity? • You can see from your own experience that societies benefit from: • Having surplus food • Having a large population • Trading with others • Knowing how to write

10. What comes before a ‘civilisation’? • Refer to Textbook 5A pg. 46 • What four stages of development do human settlements progress through? • As human settlements grew, so did: • The population • The size of buildings • The power of leaders (they had more people to control) • Their ability to produce goods for trade

11. Sumerian ode to city life • The Sumerians created the first known civilisation. • They wrote the first great work of literature (the Epic of Gilgamesh) • In this long poem, the hero praises one of world’s earliest cities: • Look at the walls of Uruk, • gleaming like burnished bronze; • Inspect its inner wall, • the like of which no man can equal!

12. Sumerian cities • http://archaeologyillustrated.com/file/128/ur-city-of-abraham.-temple-complex-of-the-moon-god-nanna.-2000-bc.html

13. Sumerian cities • http://www.crystalinks.com/sumerart.html

14. What comes before a ‘civilisation’? • Think: What other consequences did settled life bring? • When humans began farming, it meant that they claimed land as their own and gathered surplus food • However only some areas were fertile. Crops might also fail in some areas • As such, not all societies were equally prosperous • What do you think increasingly happened between societies as a result?

15. So what IS a civilisation?? • Believe it or not, there is NO single definition that everyone in the world agrees on. NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

16. Features of a civilisation • DON’T PANIC! • While there is no perfect definition, most scholars agree that great civilisations share the following features: • Cities • A system of government • Economic activities which showed division of labour • (i.e. people had specialised roles) • A form of writing • Knowledge of mathematics, science and technology • Sophisticated arts and craftsmanship • Sophisticated architecture

17. Remember your “Art and Craft” activity earlier? • As you have discovered for yourselves, division of labour is a crucial foundation of civilisation • Writing also brings advantages for a society, by allowing communication without speech

18. Features of a civilisation • Let’s examine these features more closely: • CITIES • Settlements grow in size over time, from villages to towns and finally cities (see Textbook 5A pg. 46) • Cities are the largest human settlements • A SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT • Cities have a king or government to lead them • The cities and area controlled by a king or government make up a COUNTRY • The city where the king or government rules from is the CAPITIAL CITY

19. Features of a civilisation • Economic activities which showed division of labour • People had specialised roles • e.g. potter, musician, scribe • This was possible when basic food needs were taken care of • Not everybody was needed for farm work, and they could engage in other specialised jobs • Can you imagine trying to create EVERYTHING which you need by yourself? • It is far better for people to create different items or services, then exchange them or sell them to each other

20. Features of a civilisation • A form of writing • With writing, man could record knowledge without having to rely on memory • This allowed for growth of all forms of knowledge, leading to: • Knowledge of mathematics, science and technology

21. Features of a civilisation • Sophisticated arts and craftsmanship / • Sophisticated architecture • With specialised jobs and advanced techniques, ancient civilisations created stunning artwork and structures • Some have survived for thousands of years • Even today, we might find it hard to match some of their achievements

22. Other Common Features • Religious Belief • Social Structure • Agriculture and Irrigation systems • Sports and Games

23. Features of a civilisation • When we finish studying each civilisation, you will be given this worksheet. • It will help you identify how EACH civilisation shows these features. • At the end of the year, you can compare ALL the civilisations.