Asian History and Civilization

Foundations of History

1. Prehistory2. History

3. Civilization4. Culture5. Asian

Definition of Terms

TermsPre-history – the period of human progress before people kept written records History – comes from a Greek word ἱστορία – historia, meaning "inquiry, knowledge acquired by investigation" – a chronological record of significant events (as affecting a nation or institution) often including an explanation of their causes Civilization – An advanced state of intellectual, cultural, and material development in human society

Culture – the integrated pattern of human knowledge, belief, and behavior that depends upon the capacity for learning and transmitting knowledge to succeeding generations Asia – comes from the word Asu which means “place of the rising sun”

For the early Greeks like Aristotle…

• “History is a systematic explanation of a natural phenomenon regardless if it is chronological or not.”

Leopold Von Ranke- Father of Scientific History

Kinds of Sources

Examples of Sources

• diaries• memoirs• biography• speeches• letters• pamphlet• Statistics

• Codified laws, orders, decrees

• Government records• Inscriptions on stones,

metals• Monuments, cemeteries,

churches• Money and coins• Oral traditions

• Am I an art or science?

- History

HISTORY AS SCIENCE

• As a social science, history follows the scientific method.

HISTORY AS A SCIENCE

• History is more of a science because it is primarily based on facts

• Historian follows a rigorous method in history writing- historical methodology.

Historical Process• Choosing Framework• Gathering Data• Analyzing Data and Understanding the

Meaning and Relevance of the Data (External and Internal Criticism)

• Reconstructing History

What is historical criticism?

• In historical methodology, sources must be authentic and credible

• It examines the authenticity and credibility of sources

• It has two levels.

External criticism • Examines the physical appearance of the

document (example: color of paper used, condition and characteristics of the paper, ink used, handwriting style, etc. )

• Answers the following questions:• What, where, when and how was the document

acquired? • Is the document original or a copy of the original• Is the document primary or secondary?• Is the document authentic?

Internal criticism

• Higher level of criticism • Examines the content and interpretation of

the document • Examines the content of the document • Examine the words used in the document

HISTORY AS AN ART

• History is an art because the historian interprets facts from sources.

• When the historian writes history, it must be well-organized, coherent and elegant.

Is history related to the other social sciences?

• Use of theories and methods of other social sciences

• Led to the creation of other subfields of history

» political history» economic history

» cultural history» social history

» environmental history

Related Social ScienceSociology

Economics

Political Science

Geography

Geography - The study of the earth and its features and of the distribution of life on the earth, including human life and the effects of human activity

Political Science - The study of the processes, principles, and structure of government and of political institutions; politics.

Economics - Deals with the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services and with the theory and management of economies or economic systems.

.

Sociology - The study of human social behavior, especially the study of the origins, organization, institutions, and development of human society

Religion

Anthropology

Ethics

Psychology

Psychology - The emotional and behavioral characteristics of an individual, group, or activity

Ethics - The study of the general nature of morals and of the specific moral choices to be made by a person; moral philosophy.

Anthropology - The scientific study of the origin, the behavior, and the physical, social, and cultural development of humans.

Religion - A personal or institutionalized system grounded in such belief and worship

Archaeology - is the study of past human societies primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environment

Location, Topography, Climate and Resources

Geological Features of

Asia

Major Topographic Features• Mountain Ranges - Himalayas, Karakorum, Hindu Kush, Urals, Caucasus• Highest Mountains - Mt. Everest, Kanchenjunga, Lhotse, Makalu• Largest Lakes - Aral Sea, Lake Baikal, Caspian Sea, Dead Sea• Major Rivers - Chao Phraya, Euphrates, Ganges, Huang Ho, Indus, Irrawaddy, Jordan,Yenisey Lowest Area - Dead Sea Coast

How was Asia formed?

Continental Drift Theory• Proposed by Alfred Wegener• The world was made of a big land mass called Pangaea

Plate Tectonic Theory• Scientist believe that the outer shell of the earth is made up of

thin, rigid, plates that move relative to each other

Volcanic Theory• This theory poses that the because of violent earthquakes and

volcanic eruptions, it caused land to submerge and emerge

NORTH ASIA - characterized by a continuous cover of plants or grasslands - Grasslands are classified into 3 types: STEPPES - continuous mat of shallow-rooted short

grasses PRAIRIES - characterized by tall and deeply-rooted

grasses SAVANNAS - characterized by the mingling of forests and grasslands

• Boreal forest and taiga vegetation is found in North Asia Boreal – coniferous forest Taiga – marshy pine forest

Geography of Asia’s sub-regions

South Asia’s Geography• Home to majority of the world’s

highest mountains- Himalayan Mountain range- Mount Everest- Mount Kanchenjunga- Hindu Kush- Khyber Pass

West Asia’s Geography• 3 physical region is found in this region: Northern Tier, Arabian peninsula and the Fertile CrescentNorthern Tier – characterized by the presence of mountains

and plateausArabian peninsula – surrounded by bodies of waterFertile Crescent – consists of fertile land with sufficient water

Arabian Countries Gulf States

Saudi ArabiaLebanonJordanSyriaIraq

KuwaitAfghanistan

YemenOmanUAEQatar

BahrainIran

IsraelCyprusTurkeyGeorgiaArmenia

East Asia’s Geography

• This region is consist of various physical features• China – Gobi Desert, Mongolian and Tibetan plateaus

3 river systems: Huang Ho, Yangtze, Xi Jiang• Japan – separated from mainland East Asia by the

Korean Strait - compose of Kyushu, Shikoku, Honshu and Hokkaido

Southeast Asia’s GeographyMainland Southeast Asia• Mountainous with occasional high

plateaus• River systems include the Irrawaddy,

Salween, Chao Phraya, Mekong and Red River

Insular Southeast Asia• Made up of islands scattered over wide

stretches of bodies of water• Some of these islands are within the

“Ring of Fire”

Mainland Southeast Asia Insular Southeast Asia

MyanmarThailandVietnam

LaosCambodia

PhilippinesIndonesiaMalaysiaBrunei

SingaporeEast Timor (Timor

Leste)

Monsoons in Asia

• Northeast Monsoons – November to February (amihan) winds from the continent moves toward the bodies of water• Southwest Monsoons – May to September (habagat) winds from the bodies of water toward the continent