# data[].attributes.body
Paleolithic Age (200,000 BC - 10,000 BC)

Oldest period we know of

Basic tools made out of stone

First effective communication (language)

Mesolithic Age  (10,000 BC - 8,000 BC)

Using the land for resources

Population growth

First development of culture & society

Neolithic Age (8,000 BC - 3,000 BC)

Invention of farming

Permanent settlements

Introduction of writing systems

# data[].attributes.body
Sumer (3,200 BC - 1,900 BC)

First civilization in Mesopotamia

System of government developed

Polytheistic religion

The Bronze Age

Developed writing c. 3,000 BC

Epic of Gilgamesh

Akkad (2,400 BC - 2,200 BC)

First empire in Mesopotamia

Sargon the Great

Babylonia (1,800 BC - 1,600 BC)

Advanced astronomy & mathematics

Extensive government networks

Hammurabi

The Hittites (1,650 BC - 1,200 BC)

The Iron Age

Very warlike

First peace treaty

Phoenicia (2,000 BC - 600 BC)

Settled on the Mediterranean coast

Colonies abroad

Developed an alphabet

Focused on trade & economy rather than culture

Assyria (1,350 BC - 609 BC)

Conquest & war was central to their society

Overthrew the Babylonians, Hittites, & Phoenicians

Assyrian empire was maintained through structure & organization

Persia (539 BC - 323 BC)

Largest empire in Mesopotamia

Darius I

Bureaucratic government

Built roads through Mesopotamia

First economy with money

Monotheistic religion

# data[].attributes.body
Old Kingdom (2575 BC - 2130 BC)

Strong government

Great pyramids built

Middle Kingdom (1938-1630 BC)

No fertile soil led to a turbulent period

Corruption & rebellion

Occupied Nubia (expanded military)

Hyksos take over Egypt

New Kingdom (1539-1075 BC)

Egypt became an empire

Powerful rulers

# data[].attributes.body
Indus Peoples (2600 BC -1900 BC)

Cities were organized & well planned out

Polytheistic religion with a focus on a Mother Goddess

The Vedic Period (2000 BC - 1600 BC)

Emphasis on religion & warfare

A militarized society

Culture remembered through the Vedas

Maurya Dynasty (321 BC - 185 BC)

Spanned all three major zones of India

Bureaucratic government

Known for being strong & moral

Asoka was the strongest leader but empire was disunited after his death

Tamil Kingdoms (300 BC)

Improved harbors & left behind a rich culture

Helped link the Deccan through trade

Gupta Dynasty (320 AD - 540 AD)

Strong centralized government

People could elect representatives

Cultural emphasis on education

Developed the decimal system & languages

Life revolved around family, caste, & villages (joint family structure)

Women's rights restricted over time

# data[].attributes.body
Shang Dynasty (1766 BC - 1122 BC)

First Chinese Dynasty

Strong government with clans

Technological advancements

Zhou Dynasty (1122 BC - 256 BC)

Second Chinese Dynasty

Mandate of Heaven & Dynastic Cycle

Established Feudalism

Confucianism & Daoism were established

Silk making & writing system

Qin Dynasty (221 BC - 206 BC)

Third Chinese Dynasty

Fully unified China under one ruler (Shi Huangdi)

Created the Great Wall

Brought China into a Classical Age

Known for Legalism

Han Dynasty (206 BC - 220 AD)

Fourth Chinese Dynasty

Emperor Wudi built the Silk Road

Established bureaucracy & Civil Service System

Emphasis on Confucianism & education

Golden Age (astronomy & medicene)

# data[].attributes.body
The Minoans (1800 BC - 1400 BC)

First European civilization

Focused on sea trade

The Myceneans (1400 BC - 1200 BC)

Greek speakers who took over the Aegean Sea

The Trojan War (1250 BC)

The Iliad & the Odyssey by Homer

The Dorians (1200 - 800 BC)

Cultural Dark Age for Greece

The Rise of City-States (750 BC-400 BC)

Different forms of government

New military technology

Sparta focused on war

Athens focused on democracy & education (Solon)

The Persian & Peloponnesian Wars (400s BC)

Greek victory

Athens became the most powerful city-state

Established the Delian League

Established the Peloponnesian League

Greek power declined

Legacy of Greece

Socrates, Plato, Aristotle

Idealism in art & architecture

The Macedonian Empire (338 BC-323 BC)

Alexander the Great

Spread of Greek culture in Alexandria

Advances in math & astronomy (Pythagoras, Hippocrates)

# data[].attributes.body
The Kingdom (753 BC-509 BC)

Romulus & Remus myth

Etruscan kings took control

Established the Senate

The Republic (509 BC-27 BC)

Created the world's first republic

System of checks & balances (Laws of the 12 Tablets)

Roman society was socially & politically

The Empire (27 BC-476 AD)

The Punic Wars

Committed to imperialist policy

Increased corruption & lack of economic reform

Caesar rose to power

Octavian Augustus became the emperor

Pax Romana

Empire split in half (Diocletian & Constantine)

Occupied by enemies (Huns)

Legacy of Rome

Poets & historians

Emphasis on grandeur

Advances in science & math

Applied the Rule of Law

# data[].attributes.body
Northern Africa

Nubia, Carthage, Rome

Spread of Islam

Western Africa

Ghana

Mali (Mansa Musa)

Songhai (Askia Muhammad)

Benin & Hausa

Eastern Africa

Axum, Ethiopia, Great Zimbabwe

# data[].attributes.body
The Rise of Islam (622 AD-661 AD)

Muhammad begins the Islamic religion

5 Pillars of Islam & the Quran

Sharia Law

Building Muslim Empires (661 AD-1258 AD)
Caliphs

# data[].attributes.body
The Olmecs (1500 BC - 400 BC)
The Maya (250 AD - 900 AD)
The Aztecs (1325 AD - 1521 AD)
The Inca (1438 AD - 1535 AD)
North American Civilizations (300 AD - 1500s AD)