Deck 2: The First Complex Societies in the Eastern Mediterranean, ca 4000 - 550 B.C.E.

Question 1

Scholars called the language of the earliest written documents ____ because of the geographical region where it evolved.

A)Anatolian.
B)Mid-Eastern.
C)Mesopotamian.
D)Urukian.
E)Sumerian.

Answer 1

Sumerian.

Question 2

The epic Gilgamesh,one of the earliest recorded works of literature,tells the story of the area that is given credit for establishing the first complex societies,which is called

A)Egypt.
B)Turkey.
C)Spain.
D)Mesopotamia.
E)Africa.

Answer 2

Mesopotamia.

Question 3

What was the one purpose of river channels along the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers?

A)To provide water for urban use.
B)To protect cities from attack.
C)To develop foreign trade.
D)Irrigation.
E)To divert water to the sea.

Answer 3

Irrigation.

Question 4

What is meant when a writing system is described as phonetic?

A)It has developed both small and capital lettering.
B)It has a specific and recognizable symbol for each word.
C)The writing system is based on sound.
D)It has combined symbols and sounds from many languages.
E)It has developed a written language that can be read only by priests.

Question 5

Which of the following best describes a "city-state" in ancient Mesopotamia?

A)The ruler governs both the city center and the surrounding areas.
B)There were regional capitals with governors.
C)Merchants controlled the city centers due to trade.
D)Temple priests ruled on behalf of royalty.
E)None of these choices.

Question 6

The epic story Gilgamesh is used by historians to

A)Provide information about the early history of Uruk.
B)Follow the migrations of Homo sapiens.
C)Describe how Mesopotamians created a large empire that reached to the borders of India.
D)Describe the early development of monarchies.
E)Explain, in detail, the assault and destruction of Uruk.

Question 7

The modern name for the region of Mesopotamia is

A)Iraq and eastern Syria.
B)Egypt and Sudan.
C)Arabia.
D)Iran.
E)Yemen and Oman.

Question 8

The defining characteristics of a complex and large urban center includes all of the following except

A)Large urban centers with populations in the tens of thousands.
B)Specialized labor.
C)Complex writing systems.
D)Social stratifications.
E)Rulers held in high regard.

Question 9

Unlike Neolithic communities,complex societies had larger surpluses and believed___________________were entitled to a large share.

A)Their rulers.
B)Their gods. 
C)Their priests.
D)All of these choices.
E)None of these choices

Question 10

A very significant transformation in technology in Ancient Mesopotamia was the

A)Catapult.
B)Astrolabe.
C)Gunpowder.
D)Bow and arrow.
E)Wheel.

Question 11

Before they became kings,Mesopotamian rulers such as Gilgamesh were probably descendants of

A)Priests.
B)Prominent families.
C)Farmers.
D)Scribes.
E)Judges.

Question 12

The name "Mesopotamia," given to the region between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers,is this language's term for "between the rivers".

A)Latin.
B)Sumerian.
C)Greek.
D)Arabic.
E)Egyptian.

Question 13

Most early Sumerian writing consisted of

A)Temple accounts.
B)Personal letters.
C)Law codes.
D)Trade description.
E)Political treatises.

Question 14

As one of the leading cities of its time,which of the following characteristics of Uruk defined it as a complex society?

A)Its population reached 10,000.
B)All inhabitants were land owners.
C)Society was egalitarian.
D)It was ruled by tribal chiefs.
E)Its residents pursued specialized occupations.

Question 15

By 3100 B.C.E.,what was the approximate population of Uruk,the first large city in Mesopotamia?

A)1 million.
B)1,000.
C)10,000.
D)50,000.
E)About 500,000.

Question 16

What important narrative of the Hebrew Bible is also a part of Gilgamesh's epic travels?

A)The creation of man.
B)Heaven and hell.
C)The Ten Commandments.
D)The end of the Sumerian world.
E)The Great Flood.

Question 17

By 2500 B.C.E.,how did early Mesopotamians improve the wheel?

A)They made wheels from lighter metal.
B)They made wheels from heavier wood.
C)Spokes were added.
D)Wheels were lined with leather.
E)Special animal fat was used to reduce friction.

Question 18

In the epic of Gilgamesh,the titular hero and Enkidu kill the ferocious monster Humbabathat was guarding

A)The entrance to the underworld.
B)The city treasure of Sumer.
C)A cedar forest.
D)The city of Uruk.
E)Gilgamesh the king.

Question 19

Mesopotamian farmers had advanced tools made of

A)Stone.
B)Bone.
C)Copper.
D)Bronze.
E)Wood.

Question 20

In the story of Gilgamesh,what rank in his society did the title character have?

A)Scribe.
B)King.
C)Merchant.
D)Farmer.
E)Priest.

Question 21

Sargon changed the language of government and daily life in his empire from Sumerian to

A)Akkadian.
B)Hebrew.
C)Greek.
D)demotic.
E)Babylonian.

Question 22

Who was credited with founding the First Dynasty,consolidating all of Egypt into a single kingdom approximately 3200-3000 B.C.E.?

A)Sargon.
B)Narmer.
C)Tut.
D)Manetho.
E)Enkidu.

Question 23

In conquering peoples of many different languages,religions,and traditions over a vast area,Sargon of Akkad developed the world's first

A)Military state ruled by a governor.
B)State ruled by temple priests.
C)Empire.
D)Theocracy.
E)Government with elected officials.

Question 24

Why were so many Egyptian records lost and so much of its history only know through carved stone?

A)Flooding destroyed records each year.
B)Tablets from the area broke down easily because of the amount of sand in the clay.
C)Records were destroyed as new pharaohs ascended into power.
D)Records written on easily decomposable papyrus were lost.
E)Tombs holding records were too damp.

Question 25

Egypt receives almost all of its water from

A)The Tigris and Euphrates Rivers.
B)The Mediterranean Sea.
C)The Nile River.
D)The Red Sea.
E)Man-made dams.

Question 26

What evidence is there,from this time,that war was frequent between city-states?

A)Increasing numbers of bronze weapons.
B)More artistic depictions of battle victories. 
C)Cities were protected by high walls.
D) All of these choices
E) only b. and c.

Question 27

In the ancient Mesopotamian religion,what was the most powerful deity?

A)Goddess of water.
B)God of beer.
C)Healing god.
D)Storm god..
E)God of love.

Question 28

Scribes were so valuable in Egypt because they

A)Comprised the largest number of chariot soldiers.
B)Were largely responsible for the care and maintenance of the temples.
C)Were the major advisors to the pharaoh.
D)Were in charge of keeping written records.
E)Were in charge of building the pharaoh's tomb.

Question 29

Hammurabi's Code contained all the following provisions concerning women except that

A)Women could not inherit wealth.
B)Women could be drowned for adultery.
C)Women could initiate divorce proceedings.
D)All marriages had to be signed in legal documents.
E)Women could present their grievances to a judge and court.

Question 30

Since the pharaoh was often occupied by ritual duties,who was the chief advisor to the pharaoh and the only person permitted to meet with him alone?

A)The high priest.
B)The eldest scribe.
C)The vizier.
D)His oldest sibling.
E)His mother.

Question 31

Which of the following terms is used to describe Egyptian writing?

A)Sanskrit.
B)Hieroglyphs.
C)Sumerian.
D)Hittite.
E)Nubian.

Question 32

An early version of Gilgamesh indicates that the king ruled with the assistance of

A)The temple priests.
B)A co-king.
C)A royal consort.
D)Enkidu.
E)One or more assemblies.

Question 33

According to Egyptian belief,Ka was a life force in everyone's body.What sustained this force?

A)Good works.
B)Contributions to the temple.
C)Body energy.
D)Obedience to the pharaoh.
E)Military service to the pharaoh.

Question 34

After the death of Hammurabi,who destroyed Babylonia in 1595 B.C.E.?

A)Egyptians.
B)Sumerians.
C)Hittites.
D)Huns.
E)Phoenicians.

Question 35

When pharaohs did not control vast regions in ancient Egypt,they were classified as "intermediate periods." How are periods of strong governments in Egypt classified?

A)Ruler periods.
B)Empires.
C)City-states.
D)Kingdoms.
E)Stratified states.

Question 36

The characteristics of the Nile River include all of the following except

A)It flows north.
B)It is fed by the headwaters of Lake Victoria.
C)Its cataracts form natural barriers against enemies.
D)It has areas of rapids and cataracts.
E)It flows west and east.

Question 37

Why was Ishtar important to the Sumerians?

A)She was the goddess of fertility.
B)She was the goddess of the harvest.
C)She was the goddess that protected the city.
D)He was the greatest general of the time.
E)He was the high priest of the temple.

Question 38

Craftsmen and farmers,which formed the illiterate majority in Egypt,were important to the pharaoh because they

A)Provided him with human sacrifices.
B)Gave the pharaoh one of their children to serve in the court or temple.
C)Served on juries and judged cases.
D)Served in the pharaoh's army.
E)Gave him part of their harvest and provided him with labor.

Question 39

Enkidu was killed by the gods because he

A)Refused to marry Ishtar.
B)Had killed Gilgamesh.
C)Challenged the place of the gods in Sumerian society.
D)Killed the bull that was sent to punish Gilgamesh.
E)Led an army against Uruk.

Question 40

The Great Pyramid was built between 2589 and 2566 B.C.E.because it

A)Would receive human sacrifices for the gods.
B)Was to be the largest temple ever built in Egypt.
C)Was used to ask the gods to relieve the ongoing drought of the time.
D)Housed the life-force of Khufu.
E)Served as a warehouse for grains to be given to commoners.

Question 41

Please define the following key terms.
Mesopotamia

Question 42

The Hebrew bible was assembled when the Hebrews had been conquered by

A)Assyria.
B)Persia.
C)Hittites.
D)Babylon.
E)Hyksos.

Question 43

For the first time in the Middle Kingdom,the pharaoh

A)Built a pyramid for his tomb.
B)Had his corpse mummified.
C)Issued a written law code.
D)United upper and lower Egypt.
E)Conquered land outside of Egypt.

Question 44

During the Middle Kingdom,trade outside Egypt increased and included areas in

A)Nubia.
B)Lebanon.
C)Syria.
D)Palestine.
E)All of these choices.

Question 45

Why was Hatshepsut a conspicuous part of Egyptian history?

A)A new religion was created during this time.
B)A new capital was built near present-day Cairo.
C)She was the only woman pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty. 
D)He was the youngest pharaoh to rule in the Eighteenth Dynasty.
E)Egyptian military conquests extended into India, under the rule of this pharaoh.

Question 46

The ancient Hebrews believed that the most important event in their history was

A)God's choice of Abraham to lead his people.
B)Abraham and his wife promised God that they would have no children.
C)The death of Isaac ended the practice of human sacrifice among ancient Hebrews.
D)Abraham led the ancient Hebrews to the present site of Egypt.
E)Abraham was able to speak directly with God's messenger the angel Gabriel.

Question 47

Please define the following key terms.
Gilgamesh

Question 48

One of the last pharaohs of the New Kingdom,and one who saw many of the rulers of powerful neighboring kingdoms as "brothers",was

A)Ramesses II.
B)Tutankhamen.
C)Narmer.
D)Hatshepsut.
E)Akhenaten.

Question 49

The Hittites were the first speakers of what language family to create a complex society?

A)Indo-European.
B)Semitic.
C)Afro-Asiatic.
D)Bantu.
E)Akkadian.

Question 50

Which of these is true of the workers who built the Great Pyramid?

A)Only male workers were used.
B)No slave labor was involved.
C)Laborers were sacrificed when the chamber was completed.
D)Skilled laborers were the only ones allowed to work on the pyramid.
E)Architects were brought in from Mesopotamia.

Question 51

What was one important political development of Egypt's pharaohs of the Eighteenth Dynasty of the New Kingdom Era?

A)Egypt was ruled by military generals.
B)Egypt exchanged diplomats with outside kingdoms including Crete and Cyprus.
C)The pharaoh ruled with a council of regional governors.
D)Temple priests became the heads of government behind weak pharaohs.
E)Foreigners rulers became pharaohs.

Question 52

After death,Egyptians had to appear before ________(the god of the underworld)to determine who would be allowed to enter the realm of eternal happiness.

A)Osiris.
B)Amun-Ra.
C)Aten.
D)Wen-Amun.
E)Ka.

Question 53

What was the geographical base of the Hitittes,Egypt's major rival?

A)Anatolia.
B)Crete.
C)Cyprus.
D)Nubia.
E)Iran.

Question 54

How did the Egyptians display their veneration of the Sun God Amun-Ra,who they believed helped them expel the Hyksos?

A)They made offerings of ivory.
B)They built a temple to Ra at Kush.
C)They built a large temple to him at Karnak.
D)They made human sacrifices at major temples.
E)The pharaoh ordered a yearly sacrifice of the children.

Question 55

The story of Wen-Amun's voyage to Lebanon and Cyprus emphasized

A)The weakness of Egypt.
B)The power of Amun-Ra.
C)A successful system of international credit.
D)The importance of travel and credit during the development of the international system.
E)The advanced development of navigational tools.

Question 56

The Book of the Dead,contained detailed instructions regarding

A)The fate of the living upon the death of a loved one.
B)The fate of animals upon death.
C)What the deceased should say upon encountering Osiris.
D)The fate of those who did not believe in the gods. 
E)None of these choices. 

Question 57

The Hyksos were able to defeat the Egyptians in part because

A)The Egyptians had strong wood and horn bows.
B)The Egyptians had a much smaller army.
C)The Hyksos were allied with the Hittites.
D)The Hyksos possessed horse-drawn chariots and strong bows.
E)Egypt lacked strong leadership.

Question 58

Nubia's most valuable natural resource was

A)Cedar.
B)Obsidian.
C)Lapis lazuli.
D)Gold.
E)Copper.

Question 59

The Hebrews believed in one god they called

A)Amun-Ra.
B)Osiris.
C)Anu.
D)Bel.
E)Yahweh.

Question 60

One of the key Assyrian methods of ruling conquered peoples was to resettle conquered enemy rulers and

A)craftsmen.
B)Free the priestly class to show leniency.
C)To adopt local gods as their own.
D)Marry with conquered royal families.
E)Collected texts from conquered cities.

Question 61

Please define the following key terms.
City-state

Question 62

Please define the following key terms.
pharaoh

Question 63

Please define the following key terms.
complex society

Question 64

Please define the following key terms.
Hittites

Question 65

Please define the following key terms.
papyrus

Question 66

Please define the following key terms.
bronze

Question 67

Please define the following key terms.
Cuneiform

Question 68

Please define the following key terms.
iron

Question 69

Please define the following key terms.
Sargon of Akkad

Question 70

Please define the following key terms.
Nubia

Question 71

Please define the following key terms.
Babylon

Question 72

Please define the following key terms.
Jew

Question 73

Please define the following key terms.
Sumerian

Question 74

Please define the following key terms.
Hammurabi

Question 75

Please define the following key terms.
scribes

Question 76

Please define the following key terms.
wheel

Question 77

Please define the following key terms.
hieroglyphs

Question 78

Please define the following key terms.
monotheism

Question 79

What constitutes a complex society and how do they compare with the Neolithic communities that came before?

Question 80

Please define the following key terms.
empire