Ancient Civilizations: Ancient River Valley Civilization

Ancient River Valley Civilizations

Computers, airplanes, space travel, and huge cities, how did we get here? It all started with the ancient river valley civilizations of Mesopotamia, Egypt, China, and the Indus River Valley. When comparing these ancient civilizations what did they all have in common? What made them unique?

To go from hunter-gatherers to a civilization requires three things; a reliable source of water, a surplus of food, and division of labor.The most important thing that all ancient river valley civilizations had in common were rivers. Egypt had the Nile river, Mesopotamia had the Tigris and the Euphrates rivers, China had the Yellow and Yangtze rivers and the Indus River Valley Civilization had the Indus river.

All of these ancient civilizations worshipped many gods and goddesses. The Mesopotamians worshiped An, the sky god, Ninhursag, the mother of all living things, Inanna, the goddess of love and war, and many others. The Egyptians worshipped Re, the god of the sun, Horus, the god of the sky and of pharaoh`s, and Osiris, the god of the underworld, ruler of the dead, and many others. The Chinese believed that the rivers, forests, and mountains were alive with spirits. They also worshiped the dragon and their ancestors. They believed the dragon was an all powerful god that looked out for humans. They also worshiped their ancestors, believing that they lived in the heavens after they died and took interest in their grandson or granddaughters lives. The peoples of the Indus River Valley Civilization had many gods and goddesses, just like the other civilizations. The ancient river valley civilizations of Mesopotamia, Egypt, China, and the Indus River differed greatly in food. Ancient Mesopotamians meals normally consisted of bread and beer. Egyptians normally ate onions, beans, and lentils, and the rich ones could eat of the variety of crops that grew in Egypt - dates, figs, and grapes. The Chinese mostly ate rice and millet, sometimes with a few vegetables on the top for flavor. The people of the Indus River Valley Civilization ate lots of bread and beer, and the rich ones might have enjoyed some fruits. The different civilizations also developed different things to improve their society. Mesopotamians were the first ancient people to create an organized, permanent set of laws - the code of Hammurabi. Ancient Egypt was the first ancient river valley civilization to invent sails. They use these sails to ride up and down the Nile River trading