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Early River Valley Civilizations

Total questions: 56

Worksheet time: 44mins

Name
Class
Date
1.
What is the most important geographic feature to the civilizations of Egypt, Mesopotamia, Shang China, and Indus Valley? 
a)
Mountains
b)
Rivers
c)
Plateaus
d)
Deserts
2.
Indus civilization placed restrictions on marriage and employment which were based on social class.  What were Indus social classes called?
a)
Feudal System
b)
Castes
c)
Hierarchy
d)
Patriarchy
3.
The Caste system was created by the __
a)
Aryans
b)
Indians
c)
Chinese
4.

What was the first ancient city archeologists discovered in the Indus River Valley?

a)

Harrappa

b)

Pakistan

c)

Medina

d)

Anyang

5.
What was the largest trade item in ancient China?
a)
silk
b)
cattle
c)
metal
d)
coal
6.
What does Huang He translate to?
a)
red river
b)
blue river
c)
white river
d)
yellow river
7.
Shang China established a series of rulers from the same family.  What is each family rule called? 
a)
Monarchy
b)
Dynasty
c)
Dictatorship
d)
Empire
8.
The Aryans were _______________ from the North.
a)
friends of the Indus River Valley people
b)
towns in the Indus River Valley
c)
invaders
d)
a social system
9.
Monsoons with too much wind and rain came  _______________.
a)
in winter months
b)
year round
c)
in the spring time
d)
in summer months
10.
For what purpose would a Shang leader most likely use an oracle bone made from a turtle shell?
a)
to serve as a ceremonial meal
b)
to make music for his family
c)
to send messages to the nobles
d)
to ask for advice from ancestors
11.
What is the purpose of the structure pictured here?
a)
It is a temple
b)
To protect China's northern border
c)
To protect China's Southern border
d)
To protect China from India 
12.
______________ and Mohenjo-Daro were very well organized cities in the Indus River Valley.
a)
Hamahama
b)
Harappa
c)
Himalaya
d)
Hindu Kush
13.

Strong dry winds that come to India in the winter are called

a)

monsoons

b)

tsunamis

c)

hurricanes

d)

tornados

14.

The written language used by the Aryans is called ________________. The Vedas, their holy texts, were written in this language.

a)

Script

b)

Hieratics

c)

Cuneiform

d)

Sanskrit

15.

What is a characteristic of the Indus Valley civilizations?

a)

Cities were always at war

b)

Cities were designed without thinking

c)

Cities were planned and had their own plumbing and sewage systems.

d)

Cities were destroyed by invaders in horse-drawn chariots.

16.

What was a major advantage of the Chinese system of writing?

a)

People from areas outside of China could be read it

b)

People from all areas within China could read it, even if they spoke other Chinese dialects or languages

c)

The Chinese written language has not changed very much since 200 B.C.

d)

Readers needed to know only a small number of pictographs

17.

How did the Mandate of Heaven affect government in China?

a)

The Mandate of Heaven led to long periods of war among families.

b)

Religious leaders read oracle bones to select new rulers.

c)

It allowed new rulers to justify the overthrow of a declining dynasty.

d)

The ruler received a direct mandate from heaven that he should resign (quit)

18.

Which letter on this map represents the Harappan civilization?

a)

A

b)

B

c)

C

d)

D

19.

The Aryans created a social class system based on skin color and a person’s

a)

birth

b)

occupation

c)

education

d)

gender (male/female)

20.

All ancient river valley civilizations were affected by flooding. What was different about the Indus valley civilization?

a)

They also had to contend with earthquakes and heavy monsoon rains

b)

The floods were regular and predictable

c)

They lived in the Hindu Kush mountains which are full of volcanoes that regularly erupted

d)

They had developed no ships that could navigate the rivers

21.

Why do historians believe the Indus valley civilization may have been very different from the others?

a)

They were opposed to war and believed in social equality.

b)

There are no elaborate temples and palaces in the cities and no giant statues of rulers or gods.

c)

Their technology was much more advanced than the other river valley civilizations

d)

They were pastoralists

22.

How did feudalism in China fail in the end to fulfill its original purpose?

a)

Instead of maintaining Zhou control, it led to independent lords.

b)

Instead of protecting the lords, feudalism caused peasants to revolt.

c)

Feudalism caused a gap between rich and poor, and this led to unrest.

d)

Feudalism failed to maintain order when nomads invaded.

23.

Why do we know so little about the Indus Valley civilization?

a)

It existed for only a few hundred years.

b)

There are few artifacts from the Indus Valley.

c)

Its written language has not yet been deciphered.

d)

It existed in a part of the world that has been largely ignored.

24.

What natural barrier lies between India and China?

a)

Gobi Desert

b)

Yellow Sea

c)

Sahara Desert

d)

Himalaya Mountains

25.

The rise, decline, and replacement of families of rulers in China is called the

a)

Feudalism

b)

Filial Piety

c)

Dynastic Cycle

d)

Loess

26.

Civilization developed largely as a result of...

a)

The agricultural revolution

b)

Religious beliefs

c)

The domestication of animals

d)

Government and other institutions

27.

A farming method in which people clear fields by cutting and burning trees and grasses (the ashes of which serve to fertilize the soil)

a)

Slash-and-burn

b)

Irrigation

c)

Gathering

d)

Domestication

28.
What is the most important geographic feature to the civilizations of Egypt, Mesopotamia, Shang China, and Indus Valley? 
a)
Mountains
b)
Rivers
c)
Plateaus
d)
Deserts
29.

Religions, militaries, and governments are examples of

a)

Advanced cities

b)

Complex institutions

c)

Record Keeping

d)

Advanced Technology

e)

Specialized Workers

30.

Carpenters, Engineers, Teachers, Doctors, and Electricians are all examples of

a)

Improved Technology

b)

Advanced Cities

c)

Specialized Workers

d)

Record Keeping

e)

Complex Institutions

31.

Specialized workers developed in advanced societies because

a)

guilds of workers from particular professions did not want others to cut into their profits

b)

rulers wanted to create an upper and lower class to distinguish between people.

c)

merchants wanted new things to trade.

d)

there was more and increasingly complex work to do that required specialized skills.

32.

Irrigation is an example of which characteristic of civilization?

a)

Advanced Cities

b)

Specialized Workers

c)

Advanced Technology

d)

Record Keeping

e)

Complex Institution

33.

Cuneiform is ancient writing system used by Sumerians. Which trait does it belong under?

a)

Advanced Cities

b)

Record Keeping

c)

Specialized Workers

d)

Complex Institutions

e)

Advanced Technology

34.
Into what body of water do the Tigris and Euphrates flow?
a)
Mediterranean Sea 
b)
Persian Gulf
c)
Red Sea
d)
Nile River
35.

Building dikes, channels, canals, and ditches to bring water to crops

a)

irrigation

b)

nomads

c)

ziggurat

d)

scribes

36.
What was a city-state?
a)
a city that had its own ruler and government
b)
a city that was part of a much larger state or nation
c)
a city that was part of a huge empire ruled by a single king or queen
d)
an urban area within a large kingdom or empire
37.

Hammurabi's code is a famous system of laws because it ...

a)

was one of the earliest written set of laws which established concept of "justice"

b)

led directly to the development of democracy

c)

had lenient punishments

d)

was extremely unfair, causing the world's first rebellion

38.

Which of the following is NOT true of Hammurabi's code?

a)

Covered many aspects of Babylonian life, not just crimes.

b)

Many later civilizations used it as a model

c)

It treated all people the same under the law.

d)

Was carved on a large piece of stone.

39.

Sargon of Akkad created..

a)

The world's first law system

b)

The world's first weapon

c)

The world's first city

d)

The world's first empire

40.

Which of the following was NOT a challenge of Mesopotamia's geography?

a)

Fertile soil

b)

No geographical barriers

c)

Unpredictable flooding

d)

Few natural resources

41.

Which of the following was NOT an innovation of the Mesopotamians?

a)

Wheel

b)

Sail

c)

2 Wheeled Cart

d)

Writing

e)

Gunpowder

42.

The Nile River empties into which body of water?

a)

Red Sea

b)

Persian Gulf

c)

Mediterranean Sea

d)

Upper Egypt

43.

What direction does the Nile River flow?

a)

North

b)

South

c)

East

d)

West

44.

What did the Egyptians develop to help track Nile floods?

a)

a 365 day calendar

b)

irrigation

c)

pyramids

d)

mummification

45.

What is the purpose of the pyramids?

a)

tomb for the pharaohs

b)

dedication to the gods

c)

a prison for grave robbers

d)

to help determine the seasons

46.

Besides providing fertile land to create a stable food diet, what other advantage did Egypt's location provide for early Egyptians?

a)

Temples to worship in

b)

Sumerian artwork

c)

Natural barriers to protect them

d)

the Pyramids

47.

Why was the Rosetta Stone so important?

a)

It helped archaeologists decipher Egyptian writing?

b)

It gave clues about building.

c)

It was a book of the dead.

d)

It told how pharaoh's rules.

48.

Steep river rapids or waterfalls which made sail by boat almost impossible.

a)

delta

b)

canal

c)

dam

d)

cataracts

49.

Very fertile soil left by a flooding river

a)

irrigation

b)

silt

c)

pharaoh

d)

Nile

50.

The Egyptian government was based on religious authority. What is the name for this type of government?

a)

Anthropology

b)

Theocracy

c)

Democracy

d)

Theology

51.
Name the civilization: 
- Nile River
- Hieroglyphics
- Pyramids
a)
Egypt
b)
Mesopotamia/
Sumer
c)
India
d)
China
52.
Name the civilization: 
- Tigris and Euphrates
- Cuneiform
- City-States
a)
Egypt
b)
Mesopotamia/
Sumer
c)
India
d)
China
53.
Name the civilization: 
- Indus River
- Harappa
- Mohenjo Daro
a)
Egypt
b)
Mesopotamia/
Sumer
c)
India
d)
China
54.
Name the civilization: 
- Huang He (Yellow) River
- Calligraphy writing
- Paper and Silk
a)
Egypt
b)
Mesopotamia/
Sumer
c)
India
d)
China
55.
Most early religious traditions can be categorized as -
a)
Monotheistic
b)
Polytheistic
c)
Atheistic
d)
Agnostic
56.

The Neolithic Revolution occurred when people discovered how to -

a)

grow food and domesticate animals

b)

trade with others in the same river valley

c)

fight wars using metal weapons

d)

make stone temples for religious ceremonies