Geography’s Impact on Culture and Society Essays

Bringing money to the community to build better housing, military, etc. transporting of goods also gave jobs. This helped the economy, and overall wellth of the community. Using the river as transportation could not only transport goods, but also explorers so the country could gain more land. With these advantages there also came many disadvantages.

They didn’t have the proper farmland and the same animals. Furthermore, this digressed the way their civilization spread and grew. Diamond researched and established that certain lands were blessed only due to their geographical location. The earliest civilization began in the Fertile Crescent in the Middle East. This land had rich soil and a variety of animals, which made the land promised and geographically lucky. As time passed people living in the area learned new ways to keep their civilization alive. The Fertile Crescent became known as the “Promised Land” and a way of survival was introduced as farming and the domestication of

The first topic of comparison is the prospect of culture and environment in each society. Due to cultural diffusion amongst the civilizations, except geographically isolated China, among other factors, it can be deduced that the civilizations had many similar practices. However, each society boasted distinctive qualities. Early Mesopotamia, known by the moniker of “the land between the rivers,” was a fertile plain settled near the Tigris and Euphrates rivers located in the Fertile Crescent. All of the river valley civilizations settled near a river. Egypt settled near the Nile; the Indus Valley

Geography had a tremendous impact on early civilizations, the topography of the different regions played a key role in their development and formation. This statement by Fernand Braudel “ Geography is the stage in which humanity’s endless dramas are played out” (Getz et al., Exchanges, 26) is a very moving and telling description. The terrain, whether it is natural or man made is not the end all, be all. It does however affect the stage a great deal. Mountainous areas act as blockades, which keep the societies independent, plains open up the area, and rivers enable everything to move around freely. 2

Time after time throughout history we see civilizations succeeding by rivers such as Mesopotamia, Egypt, Indus Valley and the Yellow River. One of the things the rivers provided in Mesopotamia was the “ground is extremely fertile”. The Mesopotamians used the river for irrigation and the rich soil to produce and abundance of resources to support a large population.

Ancient Mesopotamia, sometimes referred to as the “Cradle of Civilization”, was located in the Fertile Crescent between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, bringing the Greek origin of its name, of “land between rivers”. There were two very different regions in ancient Mesopotamia:

The geography of the region shaped the lives of the people in the Ancient World by allowing permanent settlements to flourish, by allowing technology to adapt, and by isolating them from other cultures. The geography of a civilization can range from mountains, deserts, oceans, and forests. This can allow for many advancements and setbacks.

Mesopotamia was an ideal place to start civilization. It has natural barriers as well, which are rivers and mountains. Because the rivers surrounded Mesopotamia, it was suitable for farming. With the Map of Mesopotamia and the Fertile Crescent seen in document 2, it can be proven that the area of Mesopotamia is located in the Fertile Crescent. In Mesopotamia, farming

Known as the “cradle of civilization”, the ancient civilization of Mesopotamia was the first known society that began near rivers. The Tigris and Euphrates were natural barriers as well as a source of maintenance for a growth in population. The rivers served as a source throughout the Fertile Crescent within Mesopotamia. These rivers provided a means of transportation which ultimately led to trading and it had fertile soil. Through trading with other civilizations such as Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro, the economy of Mesopotamia would flourish as well as incorporate cultural diffusion. Settlements were mostly situated along the river banks since the land was more fertile. The Sumerians were one set of people who occupied Mesopotamia in Sumer. The two rivers were able to help them to have urbanization, thus domesticating animals. The city of Harappa and Mohenjo- Daro are also similar to the Mesopotamian civilization because they also built cities along the Indus River, and traded during the ancient times. This river civilization corresponds to that of the Nile River that is located in Egypt. Since Egypt was a desert, the Nile River provided a slew of resources. Tigris and Euphrates were also related to the Nile River because, whenever they flooded over, it was an advantage for farmers because it fertilized the

Nomads and their chariot was such an important development that led to the growth of these early territorial states. An effect that happened from the initial development of chariots are the innovations. When migration occurred and the nomads invaded the lands, the invention of chariot was created. The horse chariot consisted of “a two-wheeled horse drawn vehicle used in warfare and later in procession and races” (textbook pg 84). In the beginning, horse chariots were made to carry and transport items from A to B, but later on, in the chapter, horse chariots became used for war purposes. The pastoralist nomads “lightened the chariots of their war horses so chariots could be pulled faster; spoked wheels made of special circular bent wood were replaced by solid-wood wheels that were heavier and prone to shatter” (textbook pg 85). Because the initial development of chariots, the

Geography is an important factor to consider when you look at this worlds past, present, or future. So whether it be the earths physical geographic features, the geopolitics stirring up trouble across the globe, or the economics of growing or shrinking countries; geography plays a major role. In todays society, geographic knowledge is one of the most important and valuable tools to possess. Without it, we are victims of ignorance and endanger ourselves, others, and the world. This ignorance, possessed by many, is posing a great risk of self-destruction. The author of “Why Geography Matters More Than Ever”, Harm de Blij, makes many strong points on this matter, but occasionally makes unsupported and unclear statements which tend to stray off topic.

The ancient lands of Mesopotamia are unknown territory for many people. It is one of the earliest civilizations in the world. The first great civilization, located between Tigris and Euphrates rivers, was developed in 3500 BC. Word “Mesopotamia” is derived from two Greek words meaning ‘land between two rivers’. The region is a vast, dry plain through which two great rivers flow. People of Mesopotamia were ‘Sumerians’. Tigris and Euphrates created fertile river basins for the region. World’s first cities grew up in Mesopotamia. The people of Mesopotamia were among the first to use the written words and a language of their own. Mesopotamia is known as the “cradle of civilization”. The Tigris and Euphrates rivers provided rich fruitful soil and

The first civilizations and the rise of empires began with small groups or villages existing with the use of hunting, fishing, and foraging. (William J. Duiker and Jackson J. Spielvogel, World History, vol. 1, 1) Within a few thousand years, people learned how to cultivate food crops and this led to an increase in population. Increased food production resulted in larger communities. The cities began to expand their cultural and religious developments leading to the beginnings of civilization. (Duiker, World History, 1) The first civilizations emerged in Mesopotamia and Egypt during the fourth and third millennia B.C.E and had various components in common. Each of these civilizations was established in a river valley so they were able to provide and produce the agricultural resources needed to survive and uphold the population. (Duiker, World History, 1) Mesopotamia developed in the valley between the Tigris and Euphrates River known as “the land between the rivers.” These rivers provided irregular and catastrophic flooding for the city-state. They created an intensive irrigation system to improve their agriculture. The first people to create Mesopotamian civilization were known as the Sumerians. These people were the first city builders and created the major city’s named Eridu, Ur, Uruk, Umma, and Lagash. These cities were built with surrounding walls and defense towers. A six-mile-long wall enclosed the city of Uruk. Mesopotamia lacked

Urbanization can be defined as a rapid shift in population of a group living in a specific area. This typically happens when the society decides that it is more advantageous to settle, rather than migrate. Throughout ancient history, we have seen various groups of civilization to adept different forms of urbanization near river valleys. These cities include the regions near Mesopotamia, Egypt and the Indus valley. Even though their lifestyle might have revolved the valley as a main source of development, their cultures and beliefs differed greatly from each other.

Mesopotamia was a successful farming community early on. Utilizing the Tigris and Euphrates rivers this community was able to create a successful way of farming through the use of irrigation and drainage ditches (Duiker & Spielvogel, 2010). Once the use of irrigation became large scale and widely used it was possible to support a larger community base and thus encouraged expansion throughout the civilization.