Week Eight Blog Post

There were a few patterns that persisted through 3rd wave civilizations. The first was the globalization of civilization. The second pattern was that older civilizations either persisted or were reconstructed. The third was that there was more extensive interaction between peoples at this time more than ever. This was due to long-distance trade and large empires that promoted cross-cultural interactions. The most influential part of 3rd wave civilizations would have to be the rise of Islam. The 3rd millennium is mostly about men's history but women played an important role too.

In terms of trade, it diminished the economic self-sufficiency of local societies. Trade also promoted social mobility. Trade transformed the political life of civilizations too.

Silk Roads made exchange across Eurasia possible. Silk Roads began through indirect trade between pastoral and agricultural people. They especially prospered when large states provided security for them on the roads. Silk was a major luxury good that was in high demand throughout Afro-Eurasian routes. However, the Silk Road's focus on luxury goods limited its direct impact on most people. But a lot of people gave up work to produce these luxury goods. Cultures spread on the Silk Roads, like Buddhism and Hinduism. Doctrines for these also changed along the roads. Diseases spread, like smallpox, measles, and bubonic plague.

There were also sea roads that made exchange across the Indian Ocean possible. Commerce on the Indian Ocean existed since the First Civilizations. It picked up during second-wave civilizations because mariners learned to ride the monsoons. Two major processes changed the Afro-Eurasian landscape and made Indian Ocean exchange important. The first was the economic and political revival of China. The second was the rise of Islam. Oceanic commerce affected Southeast Asia and East Africa the most, by political change and cultural change. In Southeast Asia, there were new cities, states, and kingdoms emerged that were shaped by commerce. Oceanic commerce spread Indian culture in this area, like political and religious ideas (Buddhism and Hinduism). In East Africa, the civilization of Swahili emerged, which consisted of a set of commercial city-states. There were many commercial opportunities because of African goods, which created a merchant class. Unlike the interior, Swahili was urban. Each city-state was politically independent, like Greece. Swahili was predominately Islamic.

Another kind of road were the sand roads, which helped exchange across the Sahara. Saharan trade or West African trade began among agricultural people. Camels were introduced at the beginning of the Common Era, which provided a way to transport goods across the hot desert. Camels traveled in caravans across the desert. States, empires, and city states were formed in the West African desert area. These were mainly monarchies which drew on wealth from trade. Hierarchies began to form in these areas. Slavery also became common.

In the Western Hemisphere, trade was completely different. There were limited interactions due to the absence of animals and transportation. There were also wide geographic and environmental differences that existed on the Western hemisphere that didn't pose a problem on the other side of the world. The most dense network communications existed in Mesoamerica and the Andes.

Week Seven Blog Post

There were many other significant civilizations than those in Eurasia. In Africa, there were 3 civilizations that are worth noting. First, there was the Meroe civilization. It was located in the Nile Valley, just south of Egypt. It was governed by an all-powerful and sacred monarch. There were a wide variety of economic specialties in this civilization among the people. Meroe had rainfall-based agriculture, which meant that the people weren't dependent on irrigation. Meroe also had a wealthy and strong military power. This civilizations declined because of deforestation and loss of resources. Second, there was the Axum civilization. The economic system in this civilization was based on a productive agricultural system that used a plow-based farming system. Axum had excellent long-distance commerce. Unlike many other civilizations at the time, Christianity became the main religion around the area. Axum declined because of environmental issues and altered trade routes (due to the rise of Islam). Third, there were several Niger Valley civilizations. These civilizations didn't have states. Instead, they had complex urban centers that operated without state authority. They kind of resembled the Indus Valley civilization. There were clusters of economically specialized settlements around a larger, central town. Niger Valley civilizations had occupational castes. They also had long-distance commerce like the Axum civilization.

In Mesoamerica, there were 2 notable civilizations. The first was the Maya civilization. There were a ton of intellectual and artistic achievements made in this civilization. Intellectuals, probably priests, plotted planets, studied mathematics, and created an elaborate writing system. Mayans engineered the landscape for sustainable agriculture for their people. This civilization had a highly fragmented political system with no central authority, frequent warfare, and sacrifices of prisoners of war. It declined because of ecological and political reasons. The second was Teotihuacan. There isn't much known about this civilization, except the fact that they had an impressive city.

In the Andes, there were 4 notable civilizations. First, there was the Chavin. There was obviously an elite class and ordinary people. It is apparent through the types of houses that were found there. Chavin artwork tells us a lot about their gods and their religious life. Chavin was definitely more of a religious cult than a civilization. Second, there was the Moche. This civilization had a complex irrigation system. It was governed by warrior priests who conducted human sacrifices. The working people clearly had superb skills. The Moche civilization declined because of ecological disruption and hostile neighbors. Third, there were the Wari and Tiwanaku civilizations. Wari was located in the northern highlands, while Tiwanaku was located to the south. Both of these civilizations were centered in big urban capitals and their governments collected surplus food in case of drought. Neither civilization controlled a continuous band of territory. Wari used elaborate system of hillside terracing and irrigation. Tiwanaku used a raised field system. Wari's cities were built according to a common plan with highways, making it obvious that there was a tighter political system there than Tiwanaku. The Wari and Tiwanaku civilizations had little contact with each other. Both civilizations ended up abandoning their cities.

In terms of communities, there were a few worth noting. The first was the agricultural Bantu in Africa. These people encountered hunter-gatherers and had several advantages over them. First, agriculture was greater for the economy than hunter-gathering. Second, they brought diseases to the hunter-gatherers, who didn't have immunity to these diseases. Third, they brought iron tools and weapons. These Bantu people became "forest specialists". They had less strict gender systems than other civilizations. Their political systems varied. Their religion was based on ancestral and nature spirits.

The next community was located in North America. The Pueblo people first built houses, then started to build pueblos. Dependence on agriculture, increasing population, and exchange gave rise to the pueblos. These people abandoned their communities. The next community was located in the Eastern Woodlands. This area had a completely independent Agricultural Revolution. The people here would build mounds for burial rituals or to predict lunar eclipses. The rise of the growing of corn helped increase population and create more complex societies there. Like the Pueblo people, these people also abandoned their communities.

Week Six Blog Post

Some key ideologies originated in Eurasia. These include Confucianism, Daoism, Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism, the Greek way of knowing, and Christianity.

Social arrangements differed among places in Eurasia. For instance, in China, the highest social rank was an elite of officials. These elite of officials were trained as scholars in Confucian teachings. They were mostly wealthy men, but a man from a lower class could prove themselves bright enough to be sponsored to train and enter this higher class. The next social rank belonged to the landlord class. These people were very wealthy because of their land. They were also powerful and prestigious because of their quality education and membership to the elite class. The next social rank were the peasants. Peasants made up most of the population. They lived extremely vulnerable lives. Yet, peasants in China were viewed as the backbone of the country by higher classes. Peasants were honored, but still oppressed by society. Merchants weren't as respected as the peasant class. They were considered to be "greedy" and "materialistic". Their activity was controlled by the state authority, as they could grow to be significantly wealthy.

In India, there was a caste system. Birth determined peoples' social status. There was little possibility for social mobility. Inequalities caused by the caste system were considered to be ordained by the gods and natural. Origins of the caste system is still unknown and debated by historians. The caste system went from priests, to warriors and rulers, to commoners, to servants, then to untouchables.

Slavery was a large-scale social arrangement in the Roman Empire. Even non-wealthy people, former slaves, and even slaves themselves could own slaves. Most of the slaves in the Roman Empire were prisoners that were captured while creating the empire, which meant that the slaves were not all from a particular ethnic group. The growth of Christianity during this time didn't stop the system of slavery, which was sad. This was probably because slaves were crucial to the economy, as slaves worked a variety of jobs. Slaves could occupy some of the highest occupations or some of the lowest. Some slaves rebelled against their masters, but most went along with their slave duties.

There was strong patriarchy in China, mostly due to Confucian ideology. As Daoism became more popular than Confucianism, women were starting to become less restricted. But throughout the rise and fall of certain rulers, patriarchy became popular again.

Patriarchy in Athens and Sparta differed. Although Athens was the center of democracy and forward thinking, they were way more restrictive towards their woman than Sparta.