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Early Humans and the Rise of Civilization (Unit 1 Review)

Total questions: 41

Worksheet time: 21mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

Social scientists are scholars who study

a)

animal behavior

b)

dinosaur skeletons

c)

human society

d)

astronomy

2.

Which of these activities would an archaeologist most likely do?

a)

make maps

b)

examine objects

c)

read old newspapers

d)

study Earth's features

3.

People who study the past are most like

a)

artists

b)

builders

c)

detectives

d)

teachers

4.

An object made or used by people in the past is called

a)

an artifact

b)

a document

c)

a ritual

d)

a theory

5.

Why do historians read diaries and letters from the past?

a)

to agree on plans for the future

b)

to compare their ideas of history

c)

to learn to speak an ancient language

d)

to find out what happened and why

6.

What is the evidence that prehistoric cave artists built wood structures (scaffolding) to stand on?

a)

Many trees grew in the area.

b)

The ancient planks are still there.

c)

Pictures of scaffolding have been found.

d)

Some paintings are too high to be reached from the floor.

7.

Which clue to the past has been found near the artwork displayed in parts of caves?

a)

lamps for burning animal fat

b)

maps of the land nearby

c)

masks in the shape of birds

d)

prayer books for ceremonies

8.

Why are ancient handprints found on cave walls very small?

a)

The cave ceilings were very low.

b)

The prints were made by children.

c)

People long ago were not as big as people today.

d)

The smallest members of the group stayed home to paint.

9.

Which question about the past does cave art most help to answer?

a)

What did the people look like?

b)

What animals lived in the area?

c)

Waht language did people speak?

d)

What did geometric shapes mean?

10.

The environment of Sumer was

a)

low and flat, with little rain

b)

hilly and dry, with many stones

c)

thickly forested, with heavy storms

d)

high and cold, with sharp mountain peaks

11.

The name of Mesopotamia comes from its location, which was

a)

between two rivers.

b)

in mountain foothills.

c)

near a region of many conflicts.

d)

at the site of the earliest cities.

12.

Why were Sumerian communities called city-states?

a)

Each of them kept written records.

b)

They were all part of one great empire.

c)

They all depended on each other for water.

d)

Each of them had its own ruler and farmland.

13.

Which fact allowed Neolithic people to farm in the foothills of the Zagros mountains?

a)

Goats can live on dry grass.

b)

The region had plenty of rain.

c)

Shallow canals watered the fields.

d)

Harsh climates are good for grains.

14.

What solution did people in the Zagros foothills find to fix the problem of food shortages?

a)

building terraces

b)

moving to the south

c)

constructing reservoirs

d)

joining villages together.

15.

What was the chief purpose of dams and reservoirs?

a)

to allow travel by boat

b)

to make it easier to fish

c)

to store water for later use

d)

to protect villages from attack

16.

Why was silt a problem for the people of Sumer?

a)

It dried up the rivers.

b)

It crumbled the city walls

c)

It clogged the irrigation canals

d)

It ruined the soil for planting.

17.

Why did the villages of Sumer depend on each other?

a)

They formed caravans to safely visit the mountains

b)

They cooperated to keep the water system working.

c)

They exchanged different kinds of natural resources.

d)

They had to fight off attaches from empires to the east.

18.

Using natural resources found in the environment, Sumerians built strong walls with

a)

bricks made of mud.

b)

logs with pointed tips

c)

reeds cut near the rivers

d)

rocks shaped into squares.

19.

The people of Sumer constructed moats to

a)

get crops to grow better.

b)

protect cities from attack.

c)

make villages work together.

d)

bring drinking water into towns.

20.

The Sumerian civilization had a social structure with different social levels and jobs. Ao social structure is

a)

the way a civilization is organized.

b)

how many taxes a king collects from slaves.

c)

the way scribes record social events.

d)

how the government treats the lower classes.

21.

Small, mud brick houses at the edge of the city were the homes of

a)

slaves.

b)

traders.

c)

potters.

d)

famers.

22.

Which of these inventions most affected the food supply of Sumer?

a)

the arch

b)

the plow

c)

the wheel

d)

the chariot

23.

Which Sumerian belief about the king helped strengthen the social order?

a)

He was supported by the gods.

b)

He cared most about the poor.

c)

He consulted with wise advisers

d)

He wanted everyone to be happy.

24.

The building in the picture was most closely related to which of these features of Sumerian civilization

a)

food

b)

writing

c)

religion

d)

government

25.

Which invention made it possible for Sumerian armies to use chariots?

a)

wheel

b)

swords

c)

sledge

d)

horseshoes

26.

Which invention added strength and beauty to Sumerian buildings?

a)

glass

b)

paints

c)

arches

d)

concrete

27.

What evidence found by archaeologists showed that Sumerians were not prehistoric?

a)

ziggurats

b)

city walls

c)

written records

d)

stone statues.

28.

Records of the goods people exchanged were made on

a)

metal coins.

b)

clay tablets.

c)

animal hides.

d)

flattened reeds.

29.

The Sumerians were a civilization but not an empire. What feature did the Akkadian, Babylonian, and Assyrian empires have that the Sumerians lacked?

a)

Rulers claimed to get power from the gods.

b)

One government ruled several groups.

c)

Many beautiful works of art were produced.

d)

Public works such as irrigation were organized.

30.

Which of these leaders of empires came first?

a)

Cyrus

b)

Sargon

c)

Hammurabi

d)

Nebuchandnzzar

31.

The Akkadians used steles to

a)

attack enemy forces

b)

get water for farming

c)

record important events

d)

make objects from metal

32.

Which of these did the Akkadians use to gain power over Sumer?

a)

military strategy

b)

economic wealth

c)

religious teachings

d)

complex technology

33.

For what is Hammurabi best remembered?

a)

a code of laws

b)

a style of battle

c)

a hanging garded

d)

a system of canals

34.

How was the legal system of Babylon more advanced than that of other societies at the time?

a)

It put an end to slavery.

b)

It used mild punishments.

c)

It gave women some rights.

d)

I treated all classes the same.

35.

Which city was the capital of the Assyrian Empire?

a)

Ur

b)

Agad

c)

Babylon

d)

Nineveh

36.

What was the purpose of the Assyrian aqueducts?

a)

to bring water to the city

b)

to raise crops in the dry soil

c)

to let boats pass between rivers

d)

to protect the palace from attack

37.

Why did Nebuchadnezzar build two walls, some towers, and a moat around his capital?

a)

to make farmers stay outside

b)

to protect the city from attacks

c)

to keep his army from revolting

d)

to isolate his people from outsiders

38.

A problem that all four Mesopotamian empires had was difficulty in

a)

choosing strong leaders

b)

trading with other empires

c)

controlling such a large area

d)

keeping track of their history

39.

One way archaeologists learn about early humans is through

a)

cave art.

b)

skeletons.

c)

artifacts.

d)

all of the above

40.

Between 4000 and 1000 B.C.E., many smaller tribes were combined into

a)

larger city-states

b)

small empires

c)

two governments

d)

fallen civilizations

41.

Throughout ancient history, human settlement has depended on

a)

climate.

b)

geography.

c)

physical features.

d)

all of the above.