Deck 8: States and Empires in Asia and Africa

Question 1

Mesopotamian cuneiform has its roots in a system of clay tokens that dates back to

A) the Upper Paleolithic.
B) the ninth millennium B.C.
C) the fourth millennium B.C.
D) 1500 B.C.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

The Harappan civilization was characterized by all of the following except

A) a written script found on soapstone seals.
B) a standardized system of weights.
C) planned settlements with streets and drains.
D) highly developed craft industries.
E) beautifully colored murals depicting scenes of harvest and worship.

Answer 2

E

Question 3

During the second and third millennia B.C., the inhabitants of Mesopotamia were

A) dominated by a single empire centered at Uruk.
B) dependent on a diet of millet and pig.
C) practitioners of scapulimancy.
D) subdivided politically into a series of city-states.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

The first cities were established in

A) Mesopotamia.
B) Mesoamerica.
C) China.
D) Egypt.
E) Southeast Asia.

Question 5

Compared to ancient Mesopotamia, Indus civilization was characterized by

A) many more urban centers.
B) lavish centers.
C) more developed writing system with longer and more numerous texts.
D) a somewhat more even distribution of portable resources across social strata.

Question 6

Which of the following traits is NOT an important precondition for the development of urban state societies?

A) agricultural diversity
B) technological capabilities
C) trade and exchange networks
D) writing systems

Question 7

Key features of the Ubaid period in southern Mesopotamia were

A) large urban settlements and the establishment of the earliest states.
B) the development of the temple institution and the spread of canal irrigation.
C) beveled-rim bowls and other mold-made pottery vessels.
D) the world's earliest known written documents.

Question 8

Early Egyptian writing tended to be concerned with

A) economic transactions.
B) political/dynastic events.
C) divination.
D) architectural planning.

Question 9

Mesopotamian temples were generally associated with

A) large storage facilities.
B) major markets.
C) obsidian blade production.
D) kilns for ceramic firing.

Question 10

Which of the following characteristics of modern India does NOT have roots back to the Harappan civilization?

A) ceremonial bathing
B) the use of decorative bangles
C) the drinking of tea
D) crossed-leg posture

Question 11

Compared to Mesopotamia, ancient Egyptian society

A) was more urban (more and larger cities).
B) had fewer major centers.
C) had a writing system more focused on economy and accounting.
D) had little concern with funerary ritual.

Question 12

As early cities developed in different parts of the world, people often developed writing systems. In Mesopotamia, the earliest writing system was used primarily for

A) ritual purposes.
B) literary works.
C) accounting purposes.
D) the recording of dynastic histories.

Question 13

The city of __________ in southern Pakistan is one of the earliest cities in South Asia with evidence for baked brick buildings and drainage systems.

A) Mohenjo-daro
B) An-yang
C) Uruk
D) Gujarat
E) Jenné-jeno

Question 14

Hierakonpolis is located

A) in the Nile River valley.
B) in the Indus Valley.
C) on the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers.
D) on the Yellow River.

Question 15

Western introductions into ancient China included

A) the written script and scapulimancy.
B) millet and pigs.
C) wheat and the horse-drawn chariot.
D) ceramics and dogs.

Question 16

Compared to Mesoamerica, pyramids in Old Kingdom Egypt were NOT

A) constructed in fewer building episodes.
B) meant to be ascended.
C) larger.
D) used as royal tombs.

Question 17

Bullae are

A) large storage facilities that were associated with temples.
B) supernatural Egyptian creatures that are part bull and part human.
C) hollow clay spheres.
D) geometrically shaped clay tokens.
E) Mesopotamian tombs.

Question 18

The Narmer tablet discovered at Hierakonpolis depicts the exploits of King Narmer who

A) united Upper and Lower Egypt.
B) built the Sphinx.
C) was the leader of the Hyksos.
D) built the Great Pyramid.

Question 19

The Narmer palette records

A) the conquest of Sumer.
B) the exodus of Moses.
C) the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt.
D) the conquest of Nubia.

Question 20

Eridu is significant because it was the site of

A) the world's first city of more than 10,000 people.
B) an early Mesopotamian temple.
C) the longest cuneiform written text.
D) a decisive battle between Natufian farmers and Sumer chiefs.

Question 21

Karl Wittfogel argued that _________ was the key factor in the rise of the state.

A) population pressure
B) environmental circumscription
C) long-distance trade
D) water control

Question 22

Great Zimbabwe is NOT associated with

A) a diverse array of trade goods.
B) massive stone structures and enclosures.
C) the use of Egyptian script.
D) skilled metalwork.

Question 23

A major difference between early civilizations in the Americas and the Old World is the much greater role that domesticated animals had in the latter area. Discuss the implications of this difference.

Question 24

Compare key themes of early written texts in Mesopotamia and Mesoamerica.

Question 25

The Zhou period in China was marked by all of the following except

A) large, dense urban centers.
B) iron casting.
C) a series of devastating earthquakes.
D) wet rice agriculture

Question 26

Which of the following were important in the rise of Great Zimbabwe?

A) its seizure of the gold trade and control of exchange routes to the east African coast
B) military defeats of its nearest rivals
C) surplus production of agricultural resources
D) it's diplomatic alliance with the pharaohs of Egypt

Question 27

Which of these civilizations is NOT known for its lavish funerary rituals?

A) Ur
B) Qin
C) Old Kindgom Egypt
D) Angkor
E) Harappan

Question 28

The economy at Angkor was based on surplus ____ agriculture.

A) rice
B) maize
C) millet
D) wheat
E) sorghum

Question 29

Compare and contrast two models for the origins of the state.

Question 30

Ester Boserup has argued that __________ spurs technological change and increased food production.

A) population pressure
B) political change
C) population decline
D) warfare

Question 31

Contrast the early states of the Indus Valley with those of Mesopotamia.

Question 32

According to Zhou texts, a primary symbol of the Chinese state was

A) a cooking vessel.
B) the ruler's sword.
C) the ruler's helmet.
D) the chopstick.

Question 33

The first metal used in West Africa was

A) copper.
B) bronze.
C) iron.
D) tin.

Question 34

The argument that expanded food supply makes population growth possible is most closely associated with

A) Thomas Malthus.
B) Ester Boserup.
C) Karl Wittfogel.
D) Marshall Sahlins.

Question 35

Compare pyramid construction in Egypt and Mesoamerica.

Question 36

Recent anthropological findings suggest that hunters and gatherers have ___ leisure time than (as) farmers.

A) more
B) slightly less
C) much less
D) the same amount of

Question 37

Kingship at which of the following centers was most similar to that of the Classic Maya in Mesoamerica?

A) Angkor
B) Harappa
C) Eridu
D) Jenné-jeno
E) Great Zimbabwe

Question 38

The earliest large state in southern Africa was

A) Great Zimbabwe.
B) Mapungubwe.
C) Jenné-jeno.
D) Bambandyanalo.
E) Hierakonpolis.

Question 39

Which of the following is NOT true about Jenné-jeno?

A) With the development of regional trade networks, Jenné-jeno became an important market center.
B) Jenné-jeno was an important center of salt production.
C) Blacksmiths and coppersmiths at Jenné-jeno worked iron ore and copper that was obtained through exchange.
D) Potters at Jenné-jeno made significant quantities of well-made ceramics decorated with twine impressions.

Question 40

The Angkor state arose along a tributary of the _____ River.

A) Mekong
B) Nile
C) Euphrates
D) Niger

Question 41

Evaluate Carneiro's circumscription hypothesis for the origin of the state.

Question 42

Compare and contrast the different strategies that leaders used to legitimate their positions of power in two Old World states.

Question 43

Describe and evaluate Denise Schmandt-Besserat's model for the beginnings of writing in Mesopotamia.

Question 44

Discuss and evaluate the role of population pressure in the origins of the state.

Question 45

Discuss how the study of diet and nutrition can provide information on societal differentiation. Use examples to illustrate your arguments.