Polity Language List
A viewset for viewing and editing Polity Languages.
GET /api/general/polity-languages/
{ "count": 611, "next": "https://seshatdata.com/api/general/polity-languages/?page=2", "previous": null, "results": [ { "id": 461, "year_from": 1716, "year_to": 1814, "description": "", "note": null, "finalized": true, "created_date": "2023-08-24T09:20:46.372060Z", "modified_date": "2023-08-24T09:20:46.372075Z", "tag": "TRS", "is_disputed": false, "is_uncertain": false, "expert_reviewed": true, "drb_reviewed": false, "name": "Polity_language", "language": "Spanish", "polity": { "id": 570, "name": "es_spanish_emp_2", "start_year": 1716, "end_year": 1814, "long_name": "Spanish Empire II", "new_name": "es_spanish_emp_2", "polity_tag": "LEGACY", "general_description": null, "shapefile_name": null, "private_comment": null, "created_date": null, "modified_date": "2023-08-23T12:08:55.435366Z", "home_nga": null, "home_seshat_region": { "id": 18, "name": "Southern Europe", "subregions_list": "Iberia, Italy", "mac_region": { "id": 5, "name": "Europe" } }, "private_comment_n": { "id": 1, "text": "NO_PRIVATE_COMMENTS" } }, "comment": null, "private_comment": { "id": 1, "text": "NO_PRIVATE_COMMENTS" }, "citations": [], "curator": [] }, { "id": 611, "year_from": null, "year_to": null, "description": "", "note": null, "finalized": false, "created_date": "2024-04-12T09:07:49.808054Z", "modified_date": "2024-04-12T09:07:49.808079Z", "tag": "TRS", "is_disputed": false, "is_uncertain": false, "expert_reviewed": false, "drb_reviewed": false, "name": "Polity_language", "language": "German", "polity": { "id": 565, "name": "at_habsburg_1", "start_year": 1454, "end_year": 1648, "long_name": "Austria - Habsburg Dynasty I", "new_name": "at_habsburg_1", "polity_tag": "OTHER_TAG", "general_description": "Frederick III from the House of Habsburg was crowned Holy Roman Emperor in 1452, marking the beginning of an almost unbroken line of Habsburg Emperors.§REF§Heinig, Kaiser Friedrich III. (1440-1493).<a href=\"https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/LA5W94UA\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"fw-bolder\"> <b> Zotero link: LA5W94UA</b></a>§REF§\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nHe elevated the Duchy of Austria to Archduchy, a unique title specifically created for the House of Habsburg which elevated the Archduke above all other Dukes which signifies Austria's position of power and influence within the Holy Roman Empire (HRE), but it was through the astute marriage policies—often summarized by the motto \"Let others wage war, but you, happy Austria, marry\"—that they significantly expanded their power.§REF§Judson, The Habsburg Empire.<a href=\"https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/SFXDYXYU\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"fw-bolder\"> <b> Zotero link: SFXDYXYU</b></a>§REF§\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nNotably, the marriage of Maximilian I to Mary of Burgundy in 1477 brought the Habsburgs into possession of the Burgundian Netherlands, a valuable and strategically located set of territories.\r\nThe reign of Maximilian I (1493-1519) also saw further consolidation of Habsburg power within the HRE, culminating in his grandson Charles V's election as Holy Roman Emperor in 1519. Charles V's vast empire, spanning from Spain to parts of Italy, Germany, and the Americas, marked the peak of Habsburg power, embodying the phrase \"the empire on which the sun never sets.\" His reign was marked by religious upheaval, including the Reformation, and constant military engagements, most notably against France and the Ottoman Empire.§REF§Judson, The Habsburg Empire.<a href=\"https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/SFXDYXYU\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"fw-bolder\"> <b> Zotero link: SFXDYXYU</b></a>§REF§\r\n\r\n\r\nThe Kingdom of Bohemia was incorporated into Habsburg domains during this period. The process began with the marriage of Ferdinand I, a Habsburg, to Anna of Bohemia and Hungary in 1521, strategically positioning the Habsburgs for a claim to the Bohemian throne. The opportunity for direct control came in 1526, following the Battle of Mohács, after which Ferdinand I claimed the thrones of Bohemia and Hungary due to the death of Louis II, who died without an heir at the battle.§REF§Jaroslav Pánek and Oldřich Tůma, A History of the Czech Lands (Prague: Karolinum Press, 2009).<a href=\"https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/5MFK58ZP\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"fw-bolder\"> <b> Zotero link: 5MFK58ZP</b></a>§REF§\r\n\r\n\r\nThe period also witnessed the beginning of the long-standing struggle with the Ottoman Empire, including the first siege of Vienna in 1529, which marked the Ottoman Empire's furthest advance into Europe. The military engagements against the Ottomans continued for decades, influencing the political and military strategies of the Habsburgs.§REF§Klaus-Jürgen Bremm, Die Türken Vor Wien: Zwei Weltmächte Im Ringen Um Europa.<a href=\"https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/VYHYLAE2\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"fw-bolder\"> <b> Zotero link: VYHYLAE2</b></a>§REF§\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nThe period culminated in the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648) , a defining conflict of this era. The war started as a religious conflict but evolved into a broader power struggle within Europe. The Habsburgs' role in the war was central, with Ferdinand II's attempts to consolidate Catholic power within the Empire leading to widespread conflict. The war concluded with the Peace of Westphalia in 1648, which had profound implications for the Habsburgs and the HRE, leading to the recognition of the sovereignty of the constituent states of the Empire and a decline in the central power of the Emperor.§REF§Arndt, Der Dreißigjährige Krieg.<a href=\"https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/PULFEDKX\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"fw-bolder\"> <b> Zotero link: PULFEDKX</b></a>§REF§", "shapefile_name": null, "private_comment": "", "created_date": null, "modified_date": "2024-03-12T10:04:15.712719Z", "home_nga": null, "home_seshat_region": { "id": 15, "name": "Central Europe", "subregions_list": "Germany, Switzerland, Poland, Austria, Hungary, Czechia, Slovakia", "mac_region": { "id": 5, "name": "Europe" } }, "private_comment_n": { "id": 1, "text": "NO_PRIVATE_COMMENTS" } }, "comment": null, "private_comment": null, "citations": [], "curator": [] }, { "id": 283, "year_from": null, "year_to": null, "description": " Khmer or Cambodian§REF§(<a class=\"external free\" href=\"http://www.ethnologue.com/language/khm\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.ethnologue.com/language/khm</a>)§REF§ 'The Khmer language, which is distantly related to Vietnamese and many minority languages spoken in mainland Southeast Asia, belongs to the Mon-Khmer subset of the Austroasiatic family of languages. Over fifty distinct Austroasiatic languages are spoken across a wide swath of the Asian main- land, stretching from eastern India westward to Vietnam. Of these languages, only Khmer and Mon possess alphabets of their own.The Mons and the Khmers are also the only speakers of Austroasiatic languages to practice settled agri- culture. The earliest evidence of written Khmer comes from an inscription incised in southern Cambodia of the seventh century C.E., using an alphabet derived from southern India, which, in modified form, remains in use in contemporary Cambodia. The Thais adapted the alphabet for their own use in the thirteenth century C.E.'§REF§(Chandler 2004, p. 729)§REF§ 'Linguistically and genetically an Austro-Asiatic group, the Mon belong to the Mon-Khmer ethnological unit. Archaeological remains have shown that they inhabited the area of the Mekong Delta and Tonle Sap regions of present- day Cambodia, northeast Thailand, and around the Gulf of Thailand from at least the beginning of the Common Era (C.E.). Perhaps they date even earlier, as evidence of an Austro-Asiatic group has been found in western Thailand in Kanchanaburi Province near the village of Ban Kao, dating from Neolithic times (10,000 B.C.E.). Archaeological remains indicate that a Mon civilization based on Theravada Buddhism was present in northeast Thailand up to around the early ninth century, when it was overtaken by the Khmers of Angkor expanding from cen- tral Cambodia at the beginning of the reign of Jayavarman II (770/790/802?-834 C.E.).'§REF§(James 2004, p. 904)§REF§ 'In northeast Thailand, for example, most Hinayana Buddhist stupas yielded to the standardized prasat structures of Angkorian Hinduism or Mahayana Buddhism.58 In 1200 people who spoke Khmer as their primary tongue probably formed a majority in the Cambodian plain, the Mekong basin as far north as That Phanom, much of the Chi and Mun river valleys, and the area im- mediately north and east of present-day Bangkok.59 But the lowlands also contained very substantial non-Khmer populations. Those parts of the Chaophraya basin subject to Angkor, for example, were dominated by Mon- and later by Tai-speakers, both of whom tended to be more attached to Hinayana Buddhism than to Hinduism. The basin also in- cluded people who in later times might be labeled Malay, Cham, or Karen.60 Angkor itself by 1297, according to Zhou Daguan, had Siamese (Tai) settlers as well as a large population of enslaved hill peoples, who were treated as a race apart. Each city and village in Cambodia, he added, had its own Khmer dialect.61'§REF§(Lieberman 2003, p. 231)§REF§ 'Here are the most salient traits of the Post-Classic: [...] Theravada Buddhism as the state religion, with Pali rather than Sanskrit as its language.'§REF§(Coe 2003, p. 195)§REF§ 'Here are the most salient traits of the Post-Classic: [...] Middle Khmer replaces Old Khmer as the language of the people and of the court.'§REF§(Coe 2003, p. 195)§REF§ 'Secondly, during the period in question and even long afterwards, the Cambodian and Thai courts were inextricably linked. Khmer intellectuals were steeped in Thai language and literature, and had come to think that the Ayutthaya chronicles were something to imitate; thus, they forced the Cambodian chronicles into a Thai model.'§REF§(Coe 2003, p. 199)§REF§", "note": null, "finalized": true, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "tag": "TRS", "is_disputed": false, "is_uncertain": false, "expert_reviewed": true, "drb_reviewed": false, "name": "language", "language": "Mon", "polity": { "id": 43, "name": "KhCambd", "start_year": 1432, "end_year": 1594, "long_name": "Khmer Kingdom", "new_name": "kh_khmer_k", "polity_tag": "LEGACY", "general_description": "This polity covers the post-Angkor period of Cambodia's history from the early 15th to the end of the 16th century CE. In 1432, the magnificent city of Angkor was sacked by the forces of King Trailok ‒ of the increasingly powerful Thai Kingdom of Ayutthaya ‒ who carried off the Khmer royal regalia as a symbol of their victory. §REF§ (Stark 2006, 146, 164) Miriam T. Stark. 2006. 'From Funan to Angkor: Collapse and Regeneration in Ancient Cambodia', in <i>After Collapse: The Regeneration of Complex Societies</i>, edited by Glenn M. Schwartz and John J. Nichols, 144-67. Tucson, AZ: University of Arizona Press. §REF§ §REF§ (Hall 2011, 233) Kenneth R. Hall. 2011. <i>A History of Early Southeast Asia: Maritime Trade and Social Development, 100-1500</i>. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield. §REF§ A Khmer royal presence continued at Angkor in reduced form until around 1504, when the rulers retreated to a site near Phnom Penh on the Mekong River, southeast of Tonlé Sap Lake. §REF§ (Coe 2003, 208-09) Michael D. Coe. 2003. <i>Angkor and the Khmer Civilization</i>. New York: Thames & Hudson. §REF§ §REF§ (Andaya 1992, 402-59) Barbara Watson Andaya. 1992. 'Political Development between the Sixteenth and Eighteenth Centuries', in <i>The Cambridge History of Southeast Asia, Vol. I: From Early Times to c. 1800</i>, edited by Nicholas Tarling, 137-82. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. §REF§ However, Thai strength in the region continued to grow at the expense of the Khmer court, and in 1594 the then-capital Lovek was also attacked by the Thais, forcing the Cambodian king to flee to Laos. §REF§ (Coe 2003, 210) Michael D. Coe. 2003. <i>Angkor and the Khmer Civilization</i>. New York: Thames & Hudson. §REF§ <br>Due to the Angkor kings' waning fortunes and endemic warfare with Ayutthaya, §REF§ (Andaya 1992, 421) Barbara Watson Andaya. 1992. 'Political Development between the Sixteenth and Eighteenth Centuries', in <i>The Cambridge History of Southeast Asia, Vol. I: From Early Times to c. 1800</i>, edited by Nicholas Tarling, 137-82. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. §REF§ it is difficult to identify the 'peak' of this polity. Indeed, the post-Angkor period is sometimes referred to somewhat dismissively as the 'Middle Period' of Cambodian history, §REF§ (Thompson 1997, 22) Ashley Thompson. 1997. 'Changing Perspectives: Cambodia after Angkor', in <i>Sculpture of Angkor and Ancient Cambodia: Millennium of Glory</i>, edited by Helen I. Jessop and Thierry Zephir, 22-32. Washington, DC: National Gallery of Art. §REF§ but it should be noted that this term tends to also encompass the span of time between 1594 and the establishment of the French Protectorate in 1863. §REF§ (Coe 2003, 195) Michael D. Coe. 2003. <i>Angkor and the Khmer Civilization</i>. New York: Thames & Hudson. §REF§ <br><i>Population and political organization</i><br>Although centralized Khmer power was much weaker than in former centuries, and very few inscriptions survive to throw light on political organization, §REF§ (Thompson 1997, 22-23) Ashley Thompson. 1997. 'Changing Perspectives: Cambodia after Angkor', in <i>Sculpture of Angkor and Ancient Cambodia: Millennium of Glory</i>, edited by Helen I. Jessop and Thierry Zephir, 22-32. Washington, DC: National Gallery of Art. §REF§ Khmer royals did still rise up periodically to assert their authority. For instance, historical accounts indicate that a king called Ang Chan reconquered Angkor in the 16th century and built a golden palace. §REF§ (Coe 2003, 208-09) Michael D. Coe. 2003. <i>Angkor and the Khmer Civilization</i>. New York: Thames & Hudson. §REF§ Meanwhile, the new capital on the lower Mekong was international in outlook, with quarters for Malay, Chinese and Japanese traders, §REF§ (Coe 2003, 208-09) Michael D. Coe. 2003. <i>Angkor and the Khmer Civilization</i>. New York: Thames & Hudson. §REF§ and some post-Classic Khmer kings had Japanese and Portuguese guards in their entourage. §REF§ (Jacq-Hergoualc'h and Smithies 2007, 98) M. Jacq-Hergoualc'h and M. Smithies. 2007. <i>The Armies of Angkor</i>. Bangkok: Orchid Press. §REF§ <br>More generally, this period was characterized by increasing commercial, religious and political connections within mainland Southeast Asia and greater integration into global trade networks, §REF§ (Andaya 1992, 411-12) Barbara Watson Andaya. 1992. 'Political Development between the Sixteenth and Eighteenth Centuries', in <i>The Cambridge History of Southeast Asia, Vol. I: From Early Times to c. 1800</i>, edited by Nicholas Tarling, 137-82. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. §REF§ especially after the arrival of the Portuguese in 1511. §REF§ (Hall 2011, 35-36) Kenneth R. Hall. 2011. <i>A History of Early Southeast Asia: Maritime Trade and Social Development, 100-1500</i>. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield. §REF§ Wars between mainland Southeast Asian rulers did not preclude the development of a common, 'hybrid' culture among the wider population. §REF§ (Andaya 1992, 411-12) Barbara Watson Andaya. 1992. 'Political Development between the Sixteenth and Eighteenth Centuries', in <i>The Cambridge History of Southeast Asia, Vol. I: From Early Times to c. 1800</i>, edited by Nicholas Tarling, 137-82. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. §REF§ Likewise, one reason for the relocation of the Khmer capital (in addition to Thai attacks and drought coupled with 'intense monsoons') §REF§ (Buckley et al. 2010, 6748) Brendan M. Buckley, Kevin J. Anchukaitisa, Daniel Penny, Roland Fletcher, Edward R. Cook, Masaki Sano, Le Canh Nam, Aroonrut Wichienkeeo, Ton That Minh and Truong Mai Hong. 2010. 'Climate as a Contributing Factor in the Demise of Angkor, Cambodia'. <i>Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</i> 107 (15): 6748-51. §REF§ was likely 'a desire for greater participation in seaborne trade'. §REF§ (Andaya 1992, 410) Barbara Watson Andaya. 1992. 'Political Development between the Sixteenth and Eighteenth Centuries', in <i>The Cambridge History of Southeast Asia, Vol. I: From Early Times to c. 1800</i>, edited by Nicholas Tarling, 137-82. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. §REF§ ", "shapefile_name": null, "private_comment": null, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "home_nga": { "id": 17, "name": "Cambodian Basin", "subregion": "Siam", "longitude": "103.866700000000", "latitude": "13.412500000000", "capital_city": "Angkor Wat", "nga_code": "KH", "fao_country": "Cambodia", "world_region": "Southeast Asia" }, "home_seshat_region": { "id": 41, "name": "Mainland", "subregions_list": "Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, south Vietnam", "mac_region": { "id": 10, "name": "Southeast Asia" } }, "private_comment_n": { "id": 1, "text": "NO_PRIVATE_COMMENTS" } }, "comment": null, "private_comment": { "id": 1, "text": "NO_PRIVATE_COMMENTS" }, "citations": [], "curator": [] }, { "id": 52, "year_from": null, "year_to": null, "description": " Ancient Egyptian? \"nothing is really known about the spoken language.\" §REF§(Bard 2000, 64)§REF§", "note": null, "finalized": true, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "tag": "TRS", "is_disputed": false, "is_uncertain": false, "expert_reviewed": true, "drb_reviewed": false, "name": "language", "language": "suspected unknown", "polity": { "id": 514, "name": "EgDyn1*", "start_year": -3100, "end_year": -2900, "long_name": "Egypt - Dynasty I", "new_name": "eg_dynasty_1", "polity_tag": "LEGACY", "general_description": "The First Dynasty of Egypt (c. 3100‒2900 BCE) was a relatively geographically constricted ancient state located near the Nile delta of Egypt, which was first unified under a ruler called Menes. §REF§ (David and David 2002, 86) R. David and A. E. David. 2002. <i>Biographical Dictionary of Ancient Egypt</i>. London: Routledge. §REF§ <br><i>Population and political organization</i><br>Kings of the First Dynasty were buried in the royal cemetery in the Umm el-Qa'ab area at Abydos in Upper Egypt, where funerary enclosures and a mortuary cult supported an ideology of divine kingship. §REF§ (Bard 2000, 41) Kathryn A. Bard. 2000. 'The Emergence of the Egyptian State (c. 3200-2686 BC)', in <i>The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt</i>, edited by Ian Shaw, 57-82. Oxford: Oxford University Press. §REF§ However, it is believed that Memphis, downriver at the neck of the delta, was the main administrative centre because tombs of administrative officials have been discovered nearby. §REF§ (Bard 2000, 64-65) Kathryn A. Bard. 2000. 'The Emergence of the Egyptian State (c. 3200-2686 BC)', in <i>The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt</i>, edited by Ian Shaw, 57-82. Oxford: Oxford University Press. §REF§ Also known as the White Walls, §REF§ (Malek 2000, 104) Jaromir Malek. 2000. 'The Old Kingdom (c. 2686-2160 BC)', in <i>The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt</i>, edited by Ian Shaw, 83-107. Oxford: Oxford University Press. §REF§ apparently after the colour of the palace enclosure walls, §REF§ (Thompson 2012, 1) Dorothy J. Thompson. 2012. <i>Memphis under the Ptolemies</i>. 2nd ed. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. §REF§ Memphis probably had at least 6,000 residents at a population density of 193 per hectare. §REF§ (Mumford 2010, 331) Gregory D. Mumford. 2010. 'Settlements - Distribution, Structure, Architecture: Pharaonic', in <i>A Companion to Ancient Egypt, Volume 1</i>, edited by Alan B Lloyd, 326-49. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell. §REF§ The government of the Early Dynasties is thought to have developed significant divisions of labour and a more hierarchical structure under King Djer, who introduced permanent institutions, §REF§ (Engel 2013, 20-38) Eva-Maria Engel. 2013. 'The Organisation of a Nascent State: Egypt until the Beginning of the 4th Dynasty', in <i>Ancient Egyptian Adminstration</i>, edited by Juan Carlos Moreno García, 19-40. Leiden: Brill. §REF§ although Egyptologist Hratch Papazian stresses that a true hierarchical bureaucracy emerged 'only during the latter parts of the Old Kingdom'. §REF§ (Papazian 2013, 67-68) Hratch Papazian. 2013. 'Departments, Treasuries, Granaries and Work Centers', in <i>Ancient Egyptian Adminstration</i>, edited by Juan Carlos Moreno García, 41-83. Leiden: Brill. §REF§ Writing had been in use since the Protodynastic period ('Dynasty 0', or the later Naqada periods), §REF§ (Bard 2000, 75) Kathryn A. Bard. 2000. 'The Emergence of the Egyptian State (c. 3200-2686 BC)', in <i>The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt</i>, edited by Ian Shaw, 57-82. Oxford: Oxford University Press. §REF§ when hieroglyphs were used for labels such as those found in the tomb of U-j at Abydos, dating to around 3150 BCE. §REF§ (Bard 2000, 60) Kathryn A. Bard. 2000. 'The Emergence of the Egyptian State (c. 3200-2686 BC)', in <i>The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt</i>, edited by Ian Shaw, 57-82. Oxford: Oxford University Press. §REF§ <br>Regional centres of the First Dynasty included Hierakonpolis, Abydos, and minor centres further south at Naga-el-Deir and Aswan. First-Dynasty Egypt was likely not yet divided into the clearly demarcated provinces, controlled by local governors, that we find in later periods. §REF§ (Moreno García 2013) Juan Carlos Moreno García. 2013. 'Building the Pharaonic State: Territory, Elite, and Power in Ancient Egypt during the 3rd Millennium BCE', in <i>Experiencing Power - Generating Authority: Cosmos and Politics in Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia</i>, edited by J. A. Hill, Ph. H. Jones, A. J. Morales, 185-217. Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press. §REF§ There is no clear evidence for professional priests or large-scale religious organization, but there may have been temple compounds within settlements, serving different ritual functions from the funerary complexes located outside the towns. §REF§ (Bard 2000, 78) Kathryn A Bard. 2000. 'The Emergence of the Egyptian State (c.3200-2686 BC)' in <i>The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt</i> edited by Ian Shaw. Oxford: Oxford University Press. §REF§ <br>The Egyptian population during the Early Dynastic period is difficult to determine, but the archaeologist Bruce Trigger estimated that there could have been over 2 million people living in the Nile Valley at this time. §REF§ (Trigger 1983, 51) Bruce G. Trigger. 1983. 'The Rise of Egyptian Civilization', in <i>Ancient Egypt: A Social History</i> edited by Bruce G. Trigger, Barry J. Kemp, David O'Connor and Alan B Lloyd, 1-70. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. §REF§ ", "shapefile_name": null, "private_comment": null, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "home_nga": { "id": 5, "name": "Upper Egypt", "subregion": "Northeastern Africa", "longitude": "32.714706000000", "latitude": "25.725715000000", "capital_city": "Luxor", "nga_code": "EG", "fao_country": "Egypt", "world_region": "Africa" }, "home_seshat_region": { "id": 4, "name": "Northeast Africa", "subregions_list": "Egypt and Sudan (the Nile Basin)", "mac_region": { "id": 2, "name": "Africa" } }, "private_comment_n": { "id": 1, "text": "NO_PRIVATE_COMMENTS" } }, "comment": null, "private_comment": { "id": 1, "text": "NO_PRIVATE_COMMENTS" }, "citations": [], "curator": [] }, { "id": 53, "year_from": null, "year_to": null, "description": " Ancient Egyptian? \"nothing is really known about the spoken language.\" §REF§(Bard 2000, 64)§REF§", "note": null, "finalized": true, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "tag": "TRS", "is_disputed": false, "is_uncertain": false, "expert_reviewed": true, "drb_reviewed": false, "name": "language", "language": "NO_VALUE_ON_WIKI", "polity": { "id": 515, "name": "EgDyn2*", "start_year": -2900, "end_year": -2687, "long_name": "Egypt - Dynasty II", "new_name": "eg_dynasty_2", "polity_tag": "LEGACY", "general_description": "The Second Dynasty of Egypt (c. 2900‒2687 BCE) was a relatively geographically constricted state, centred near the Nile delta of Egypt and extending as far south as Aswan and the First Cataract of the Nile. Founded by Hotepsekhemwy, the kings of the Second Dynasty initially ruled over a centralized state, but as the period progressed they had to contend with disorder and civil war that lasted until the last ruler, Khasekhemwy (c. 2714‒2687 BCE). §REF§ (El-Shahawy 2005, 31) A El-Shahawy. 2005. <i>The Egyptian Museum in Cairo</i>. Cairo: American University in Cairo Press. §REF§ §REF§ (Dodson 2016, 9) Aidan Dodson. 2016. 'Go West: On the Ancient Means of Approach to the Saqqara Necropolis', in <i>Mummies, Magic and Medicine in Ancient Egypt: Multidisciplinary Essays for Rosalie David</i>, edited by Campbell Price, Roger Forshaw, Andrew Chamberlain and Paul Nicholson, 3-18. Manchester: Manchester University Press. §REF§ The restoration of central authority after this period ushered in the classic Old Kingdom period, widely considered a high point of ancient civilization.<br><i>Population and political organization</i><br>Controlled by a god-king who presided over an administration with specialized overseers, §REF§ (Moreno García 2014) Juan Carlos Moreno García. 2014. 'Invaders or Just Herders? Libyans in Egypt in the Third and Second Millennia BCE'. <i>World Archaeology</i> 46: 610-23. §REF§ Memphis is considered the main administrative centre of the Early Dynastic period because tombs of administrative officials are located nearby. §REF§ (Bard 2000, 64-65) Kathryn A. Bard. 2000. 'The Emergence of the Egyptian State (c. 3200-2686 BC)', in <i>The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt</i>, edited by Ian Shaw, 57-82. Oxford: Oxford University Press. §REF§ Also known as the White Walls, §REF§ (Malek 2000, 104) Jaromir Malek. 2000. 'The Old Kingdom (c. 2686-2160 BC)', in <i>The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt</i>, edited by Ian Shaw, 83-107. Oxford: Oxford University Press. §REF§ apparently after the colour of the palace enclosure walls, §REF§ (Thompson 2012, 1) Dorothy J. Thompson. 2012. <i>Memphis under the Ptolemies</i>. 2nd ed. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. §REF§ Memphis probably had at least 6,000 residents at a population density of 193 per hectare. §REF§ (Mumford 2010, 331) Gregory D. Mumford. 2010. 'Settlements - Distribution, Structure, Architecture: Pharaonic', in <i>A Companion to Ancient Egypt, Volume 1</i>, edited by Alan B Lloyd, 326-49. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell. §REF§ The government of the Early Dynasties is thought to have developed significant divisions of labour and a more hierarchical structure under King Djer, who introduced permanent institutions, §REF§ (Engel 2013, 20-38) Eva-Maria Engel. 2013. 'The Organisation of a Nascent State: Egypt until the Beginning of the 4th Dynasty', in <i>Ancient Egyptian Administration</i>, edited by Juan Carlos Moreno García, 19-40. Leiden: Brill. §REF§ although Egyptologist Hratch Papazian stresses that a true hierarchical bureaucracy emerged 'only during the latter parts of the Old Kingdom'. §REF§ (Papazian 2013, 67-68) Hratch Papazian. 2013. 'Departments, Treasuries, Granaries and Work Centers', in <i>Ancient Egyptian Administration</i>, edited by Juan Carlos Moreno García, 41-83. Leiden: Brill. §REF§ Writing in this period was now well established; it had been present since the late Predynastic period ('Dynasty 0'), §REF§ (Bard 2000, 75) Kathryn A. Bard. 2000. 'The Emergence of the Egyptian State (c. 3200-2686 BC)', in <i>The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt</i>, edited by Ian Shaw, 57-82. Oxford: Oxford University Press. §REF§ when hieroglyphs were used for labels such as those found in the tomb of U-j at Abydos, dating to around 3150 BCE. §REF§ (Bard 2000, 60) Kathryn A. Bard. 2000. 'The Emergence of the Egyptian State (c. 3200-2686 BC)', in <i>The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt</i>, edited by Ian Shaw, 57-82. Oxford: Oxford University Press. §REF§ <br>Regional centres of the Second Dynasty included Hierakonpolis, Abydos, and minor centres further south at Naga-el-Deir and Aswan. Evidence for a system of territorial organization comes from thousands of seal stamps discovered in the tomb of Khasekhemwy, the last king of the dynasty; they mention some historical provinces along with 'administrative titles and the names of the king'. §REF§ (Moreno García 2013, 190) Juan Carlos Moreno García. 2013. 'Building the Pharaonic State: Territory, Elite, and Power in Ancient Egypt during the 3rd Millennium BCE', in <i>Experiencing Power - Generating Authority: Cosmos and Politics in Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia</i>, edited by J. A. Hill, Ph. H. Jones, A. J. Morales, 185-217. Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press. §REF§ However, Second-Dynasty Egypt was likely not yet divided into the clearly demarcated provinces, controlled by local governors, that we find in later periods. §REF§ (Moreno Garcia 2013, 190-192) Juan Carlos Moreno Garcia. 'Building the Pharaonic state: Territory, elite, and power in ancient Egypt in the 3rd millennium BCE' in <i>Ancient Egyptian Administration</i> edited by Juan Carlos Moreno Garcia. Leiden: Brill. §REF§ Abydos appears to have been the most significant cult centre. Its royal cemetery reveals the increasing elaboration of the ideology of kingship through the mortuary cult, and its monumental architecture has been interpreted as the expression of a 'state religion' on a grander scale than in previous periods. §REF§ (Bard 2000, 66-67) Kathryn A. Bard. 2000. 'The Emergence of the Egyptian State (c. 3200-2686 BC)', in <i>The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt</i>, edited by Ian Shaw, 57-82. Oxford: Oxford University Press. §REF§ <br>The Egyptian population during the Early Dynastic period is difficult to determine, but the archaeologist Bruce Trigger estimated that there could have been over 2 million people living in the Nile Valley at this time. §REF§ (Trigger 1983, 51) Bruce G. Trigger. 1983. 'The Rise of Egyptian Civilization', in <i>Ancient Egypt: A Social History</i> edited by Bruce G. Trigger, Barry J. Kemp, David O'Connor and Alan B Lloyd, 1-70. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. §REF§ ", "shapefile_name": null, "private_comment": null, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "home_nga": { "id": 5, "name": "Upper Egypt", "subregion": "Northeastern Africa", "longitude": "32.714706000000", "latitude": "25.725715000000", "capital_city": "Luxor", "nga_code": "EG", "fao_country": "Egypt", "world_region": "Africa" }, "home_seshat_region": { "id": 4, "name": "Northeast Africa", "subregions_list": "Egypt and Sudan (the Nile Basin)", "mac_region": { "id": 2, "name": "Africa" } }, "private_comment_n": { "id": 1, "text": "NO_PRIVATE_COMMENTS" } }, "comment": null, "private_comment": { "id": 1, "text": "NO_PRIVATE_COMMENTS" }, "citations": [], "curator": [] }, { "id": 59, "year_from": null, "year_to": null, "description": " probably very similar to Archaic Egyptian", "note": null, "finalized": true, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "tag": "TRS", "is_disputed": false, "is_uncertain": false, "expert_reviewed": true, "drb_reviewed": false, "name": "language", "language": "suspected unknown", "polity": { "id": 511, "name": "EgNaqa1", "start_year": -3800, "end_year": -3550, "long_name": "Naqada I", "new_name": "eg_naqada_1", "polity_tag": "LEGACY", "general_description": "The Naqada is a Predynastic archaeological culture located in Upper Egypt, the strip of land flanking the Nile river south of the Faiyum region and north of the First Cataract. Named after the site where British archaeologist Flinders Petrie uncovered a necropolis of over 3000 graves in the late 19th century, §REF§ (Midant-Reynes 2000, 41) Béatrix Midant-Reynes. 2000. 'The Naqada Period (c. 4000-3200 BC)', in <i>The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt</i>, edited by Ian Shaw, 41-56. Oxford: Oxford University Press. §REF§ the Naqada culture is dated from around 3800 to 3100 BCE. §REF§ (Dee et al. 2013, 5) Michael Dee, David Wengrow, Andrew Shortland, Alice Stevenson, Fiona Brock, Linus Girdland Flink and Christopher Bronk Ramsey. 2013. 'An Absolute Chronology for Early Egypt Using Radiocarbon Dating and Bayesian Statistical Modelling'. <i>Proceedings of the Royal Society A</i> 469 (2159). DOI: 10.1098/rspa.2013.0395. §REF§ The Naqada has been subdivided into three periods ‒ the Amratian, Gerzean, and Semainean ‒ as well as, more recently, into Naqada IA-C, IIA-D, and IIIA-D. §REF§ (Stevenson 2016, 424) Alice Stevenson. 2016. 'The Egyptian Predynastic and State Formation'. <i>Journal of Archaeological Research</i> 24: 421-68. §REF§ §REF§ (Dee et al. 2013, 2) Michael Dee, David Wengrow, Andrew Shortland, Alice Stevenson, Fiona Brock, Linus Girdland Flink and Christopher Bronk Ramsey. 2013. 'An Absolute Chronology for Early Egypt Using Radiocarbon Dating and Bayesian Statistical Modelling'. <i>Proceedings of the Royal Society A</i> 469 (2159). DOI: 10.1098/rspa.2013.0395. §REF§ Seshat's 'Naqada 1' (3800-3550 BCE) corresponds to the Naqada IA-IIB phases; Naqada 2 (3550-3300 BCE) to IIC-IID; and Naqada 3 (3300-3100 BCE) to IIIA-IIIB. We end Naqada 3 with the IIIB-C transition, because the First Dynasty of the Egyptian state is considered to begin with the accession of King Aha in Naqada IIIC. §REF§ (Dee et al. 2013, 2) Michael Dee, David Wengrow, Andrew Shortland, Alice Stevenson, Fiona Brock, Linus Girdland Flink and Christopher Bronk Ramsey. 2013. 'An Absolute Chronology for Early Egypt Using Radiocarbon Dating and Bayesian Statistical Modelling'. <i>Proceedings of the Royal Society A</i> 469 (2159). DOI: 10.1098/rspa.2013.0395. §REF§ Naqada III is also sometimes referred to as the Protodynastic period or 'Dynasty 0'.<br>Early Naqada archaeological material is clustered around the key sites of Naqada itself, Abydos, and Hierakonpolis (ancient Nekhen) in the fertile land nestled around the 'Qena bend' of the Nile. §REF§ (Bard 1994, 267) Kathryn A. Bard. 1994. 'The Egyptian Predynastic: A Review of the Evidence'. <i>Journal of Field Archaeology</i> 21 (3): 265-88. §REF§ However, from the late Naqada II onwards, there is an archaeologically visible expansion of the culture both southwards along the Nile and northwards into Lower Egypt (the Delta), eventually reaching as far north as the Levant in Naqada IIIA-B. §REF§ (Stevenson 2016, 442-43) Alice Stevenson. 2016. 'The Egyptian Predynastic and State Formation'. <i>Journal of Archaeological Research</i> 24: 421-68. §REF§ <br><i>Population and Political Organization</i><br>The 4th millennium BCE was a crucial period for Egyptian state formation. Prior to roughly 3800 BCE, Upper Egypt was inhabited by seasonally mobile farmers and herders, constituting an archaeological culture known as the Badarian. §REF§ (Stevenson 2016, 422, 428-29) Alice Stevenson. 2016. 'The Egyptian Predynastic and State Formation'. <i>Journal of Archaeological Research</i> 24: 421-68. §REF§ However, the Naqada periods brought a series of key social transformations to the region, including increasing inequality, a greater commitment to sedentary settlement and cereal farming, the emergence of full-time craft specialists, and, towards the end of the millennium, the invention of writing. §REF§ (Stevenson 2016, 431-32, 434) Alice Stevenson. 2016. 'The Egyptian Predynastic and State Formation'. <i>Journal of Archaeological Research</i> 24: 421-68. §REF§ §REF§ (Hendrickx 2011, 93) Stan Hendrickx. 2011. 'Crafts and Craft Specialization', in <i>Before the Pyramids: The Origins of Egyptian Civilization</i>, edited by Emily Teeter, 93-98. Chicago: Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago. §REF§ §REF§ (Wengrow 2011, 99) David Wengrow. 2011. 'The Invention of Writing in Egypt', in <i>Before the Pyramids: The Origins of Egyptian Civilization</i>, edited by Emily Teeter, 99-103. Chicago: Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago. §REF§ The growth of hierarchical social structures and the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt laid the foundations for the divine kings and complex bureaucracy of the Old Kingdom and beyond.<br>During Naqada I, new forms of political organization appeared ‒ relatively swiftly compared to other prehistoric cultures ‒ in the upper Nile Valley. §REF§ (Stevenson 2016, 431-32) Alice Stevenson. 2016. 'The Egyptian Predynastic and State Formation'. <i>Journal of Archaeological Research</i> 24: 421-68. §REF§ According to the Egyptologist Branislav Anđelković, previously autonomous agricultural villages began to band together to form 'chiefdoms' or 'proto-nomes' between Naqada IA and IB (a 'nome' was an administrative division in the later Egyptian state). §REF§ (Anđelković 2011, 28) Branislav Anđelković. 2011. 'Political Organization of Egypt in the Predynastic Period', in <i>Before the Pyramids: The Origins of Egyptian Civilization</i>, edited by Emily Teeter, 25-32. Chicago: Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago. §REF§ In Naqada IC, even larger political entities ‒ 'nome pre-states' ‒ started to form, centred on Naqada, Abydos and Hierakonpolis. It has been suggested that a 'primitive chiefdom' centred around a 'royal' authority based at Hierakonpolis, had formed by around 3700 BCE. §REF§ (García 2013, 187-88) Juan Carlos Moreno García. 2013. 'Building the Pharaonic State: Territory, Elite, and Power in Ancient Egypt during the Third Millennium BCE', in <i>Experiencing Power, Generating Authority: Cosmos, Politics, and the Ideology of Kingship in Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia</i>, edited by Jane A. Hill, Philip Jones, and Antonio J. Morales, 185-217. Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press. §REF§ Not all researchers agree with this terminology, believing that it creates the impression of an inexorable march towards state formation, and some prefer to stress the fragile and experimental nature of early complex social formations in Upper Egypt. §REF§ (Stevenson 2016, 422, 427) Alice Stevenson. 2016. 'The Egyptian Predynastic and State Formation'. <i>Journal of Archaeological Research</i> 24: 421-68. §REF§ However, the term chiefdom remains in common usage as a label for the new ranked societies of the early 4th millennium. §REF§ (Stevenson 2016, 422) Alice Stevenson. 2016. 'The Egyptian Predynastic and State Formation'. <i>Journal of Archaeological Research</i> 24: 421-68. §REF§ §REF§ (Bard 2017, 2) Kathryn A. Bard. 2017. 'Political Economies of Predynastic Egypt and the Formation of the Early State'. <i>Journal of Archaeological Research</i> 25: 1-36. §REF§ §REF§ (Koehler 2010, 32) E. Christiana Koehler. 2010. 'Prehistory', in <i>A Companion to Ancient Egypt, Volume 1</i>, edited by Alan B. Lloyd, 25-47. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell. §REF§ In the Naqada II period, 'proto-states' formed, and by the Naqada III we can speak of kings and a centralized government ruling over a unified Upper and Lower Egypt. §REF§ (Anđelković 2011, 29-30) Branislav Anđelković. 2011. 'Political Organization of Egypt in the Predynastic Period', in <i>Before the Pyramids: The Origins of Egyptian Civilization</i>, edited by Emily Teeter, 25-32. Chicago: Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago. §REF§ <br>We lack firm figures for the population of Egypt during the Naqada. At the beginning of the period, most inhabitants of Upper Egypt were living in small villages. §REF§ (Anđelković 2011, 28) Branislav Anđelković. 2011. 'Political Organization of Egypt in the Predynastic Period', in <i>Before the Pyramids: The Origins of Egyptian Civilization</i>, edited by Emily Teeter, 25-32. Chicago: Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago. §REF§ However, as the 4th millennium progressed, archaeologists can discern a process of urbanization and aggregation into larger political units. The largest known settlement, Hierakonpolis, grew into a regional centre of power in the 3800‒3500 BCE period §REF§ (Friedman 2011, 34) Renée Friedman. 2011. 'Hierakonpolis', in <i>Before the Pyramids: The Origins of Egyptian Civilization</i>, edited by Emily Teeter, 33-44. Chicago: Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago. §REF§ and may have reached a population of between 5,000 and 10,000 people in the late Naqada I. §REF§ (Hoffman, Hamroush and Allen 1986, 181) Michael Allen Hoffman, Hany A. Hamroush and Ralph O. Allen. 1986. 'A Model of Urban Development for the Hierakonpolis Region from Predynastic through Old Kingdom Times'. <i>Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt</i> 23: 175-87. §REF§ Other researchers consider this figure 'inflated' §REF§ (Stevenson 2016, 436) Alice Stevenson. 2016. 'The Egyptian Predynastic and State Formation'. <i>Journal of Archaeological Research</i> 24: 421-68. §REF§ and point to recent evidence from the Abydos region for low population numbers throughout the Predynastic period. §REF§ (Patch 2004, 914) Diana Craig Patch. 2004. 'Settlement Patterns and Cultural Change in the Predynastic Period', in <i>Egypt at Its Origins: Studies in Memory of Barbara Adams</i>, edited by S. Hendrickx, R. F. Friedman, K. M. Ciałowicz and M. Chłodnicki, 905-18. Leuven: Uitgeverij Peeters en Departement Oosterse Studies. §REF§ ", "shapefile_name": null, "private_comment": null, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "home_nga": { "id": 5, "name": "Upper Egypt", "subregion": "Northeastern Africa", "longitude": "32.714706000000", "latitude": "25.725715000000", "capital_city": "Luxor", "nga_code": "EG", "fao_country": "Egypt", "world_region": "Africa" }, "home_seshat_region": { "id": 4, "name": "Northeast Africa", "subregions_list": "Egypt and Sudan (the Nile Basin)", "mac_region": { "id": 2, "name": "Africa" } }, "private_comment_n": { "id": 1, "text": "NO_PRIVATE_COMMENTS" } }, "comment": null, "private_comment": { "id": 1, "text": "NO_PRIVATE_COMMENTS" }, "citations": [], "curator": [] }, { "id": 322, "year_from": null, "year_to": null, "description": null, "note": null, "finalized": true, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "tag": "TRS", "is_disputed": false, "is_uncertain": false, "expert_reviewed": true, "drb_reviewed": false, "name": "language", "language": "Xianbei", "polity": { "id": 438, "name": "MnXianb", "start_year": 100, "end_year": 250, "long_name": "Xianbei Confederation", "new_name": "mn_xianbei", "polity_tag": "LEGACY", "general_description": "The Orkhon Valley lies either side of the Orkhon River, in north-central Mongolia. Between about 100 and 250 CE, it was under the control of the Xianbei, pastoralists who also relied on hunting and, to a lesser extent, the cultivation of wheat, barley, and millet. §REF§ (Rogers 2012, 223) §REF§ By 170 CE, the Xianbei empire extended 3,000 km along its east-west axis and 1,500 km along its north-south one, for a total of approximately 4,500,000 squared kilometers. §REF§ (Rogers 2012, 223) §REF§ The most powerful Xianbei ruler, Tanshihuai (r. 136-181), divided his multiethnic empire into three parts (middle, eastern, and western); the nomadic peoples that occupied each part were ruled by the elders of the largest sites, though all elders were in turn subordinate to Tanshihuai himself. §REF§ (Kradin 2011, 200-201) §REF§ Not many population estimates could be found in the literature, though Kradin provides an estimate of about 500,000 people, based on the fact that, under Tanshihuai's rule, the Xianbei army included 100,000 horsemen: Kradin argues that a total population of 500,000 is possible because all adult men were likely potential warriors, and they likely made up one-fifth of the population. §REF§ (Kradin 2011, 201) §REF§ ", "shapefile_name": null, "private_comment": null, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "home_nga": { "id": 24, "name": "Orkhon Valley", "subregion": "Mongolia", "longitude": "102.845486000000", "latitude": "47.200757000000", "capital_city": "Karakorum", "nga_code": "MN", "fao_country": "Mongolia", "world_region": "Central Eurasia" }, "home_seshat_region": { "id": 9, "name": "Mongolia", "subregions_list": "Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, the steppe part of Manchuria", "mac_region": { "id": 3, "name": "Central and Northern Eurasia" } }, "private_comment_n": { "id": 1, "text": "NO_PRIVATE_COMMENTS" } }, "comment": null, "private_comment": { "id": 1, "text": "NO_PRIVATE_COMMENTS" }, "citations": [], "curator": [] }, { "id": 61, "year_from": null, "year_to": null, "description": " probably very similar to Archaic Egyptian", "note": null, "finalized": true, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "tag": "TRS", "is_disputed": false, "is_uncertain": false, "expert_reviewed": true, "drb_reviewed": false, "name": "language", "language": "suspected unknown", "polity": { "id": 513, "name": "EgNaqa3", "start_year": -3300, "end_year": -3100, "long_name": "Egypt - Dynasty 0", "new_name": "eg_naqada_3", "polity_tag": "LEGACY", "general_description": "The Naqada is a Predynastic archaeological culture located in Upper Egypt, the strip of land flanking the Nile river south of the Faiyum region and north of the First Cataract. Named after the site where British archaeologist Flinders Petrie uncovered a necropolis of over 3000 graves in the late 19th century, §REF§ (Midant-Reynes 2000, 41) Béatrix Midant-Reynes. 2000. 'The Naqada Period (c. 4000-3200 BC)', in <i>The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt</i>, edited by Ian Shaw, 41-56. Oxford: Oxford University Press. §REF§ the Naqada culture is dated from around 3800 to 3100 BCE. §REF§ (Dee et al. 2013, 5) Michael Dee, David Wengrow, Andrew Shortland, Alice Stevenson, Fiona Brock, Linus Girdland Flink and Christopher Bronk Ramsey. 2013. 'An Absolute Chronology for Early Egypt Using Radiocarbon Dating and Bayesian Statistical Modelling'. <i>Proceedings of the Royal Society A</i> 469 (2159). DOI: 10.1098/rspa.2013.0395. §REF§ The Naqada has been subdivided into three periods ‒ the Amratian, Gerzean, and Semainean ‒ as well as, more recently, into Naqada IA-C, IIA-D, and IIIA-D. §REF§ (Stevenson 2016, 424) Alice Stevenson. 2016. 'The Egyptian Predynastic and State Formation'. <i>Journal of Archaeological Research</i> 24: 421-68. §REF§ §REF§ (Dee et al. 2013, 2) Michael Dee, David Wengrow, Andrew Shortland, Alice Stevenson, Fiona Brock, Linus Girdland Flink and Christopher Bronk Ramsey. 2013. 'An Absolute Chronology for Early Egypt Using Radiocarbon Dating and Bayesian Statistical Modelling'. <i>Proceedings of the Royal Society A</i> 469 (2159). DOI: 10.1098/rspa.2013.0395. §REF§ Seshat's 'Naqada 1' (3800-3550 BCE) corresponds to the Naqada IA-IIB phases; Naqada 2 (3550-3300 BCE) to IIC-IID; and Naqada 3 (3300-3100 BCE) to IIIA-IIIB. We end Naqada 3 with the IIIB-C transition, because the First Dynasty of the Egyptian state is considered to begin with the accession of King Aha in Naqada IIIC. §REF§ (Dee et al. 2013, 2) Michael Dee, David Wengrow, Andrew Shortland, Alice Stevenson, Fiona Brock, Linus Girdland Flink and Christopher Bronk Ramsey. 2013. 'An Absolute Chronology for Early Egypt Using Radiocarbon Dating and Bayesian Statistical Modelling'. <i>Proceedings of the Royal Society A</i> 469 (2159). DOI: 10.1098/rspa.2013.0395. §REF§ Naqada III is also sometimes referred to as the Protodynastic period or 'Dynasty 0'.<br>Early Naqada archaeological material is clustered around the key sites of Naqada itself, Abydos, and Hierakonpolis (ancient Nekhen) in the fertile land nestled around the 'Qena bend' of the Nile. §REF§ (Bard 1994, 267) Kathryn A. Bard. 1994. 'The Egyptian Predynastic: A Review of the Evidence'. <i>Journal of Field Archaeology</i> 21 (3): 265-88. §REF§ However, from the late Naqada II onwards, there is an archaeologically visible expansion of the culture both southwards along the Nile and northwards into Lower Egypt (the Delta), eventually reaching as far north as the Levant in Naqada IIIA-B. §REF§ (Stevenson 2016, 442-43) Alice Stevenson. 2016. 'The Egyptian Predynastic and State Formation'. <i>Journal of Archaeological Research</i> 24: 421-68. §REF§ <br><i>Population and Political Organization</i><br>The 4th millennium BCE was a crucial period for Egyptian state formation. Prior to roughly 3800 BCE, Upper Egypt was inhabited by seasonally mobile farmers and herders, constituting an archaeological culture known as the Badarian. §REF§ (Stevenson 2016, 422, 428-29) Alice Stevenson. 2016. 'The Egyptian Predynastic and State Formation'. <i>Journal of Archaeological Research</i> 24: 421-68. §REF§ However, the Naqada periods brought a series of key social transformations to the region, including increasing inequality, a greater commitment to sedentary settlement and cereal farming, the emergence of full-time craft specialists, and, towards the end of the millennium, the invention of writing. §REF§ (Stevenson 2016, 431-32, 434) Alice Stevenson. 2016. 'The Egyptian Predynastic and State Formation'. <i>Journal of Archaeological Research</i> 24: 421-68. §REF§ §REF§ (Hendrickx 2011, 93) Stan Hendrickx. 2011. 'Crafts and Craft Specialization', in <i>Before the Pyramids: The Origins of Egyptian Civilization</i>, edited by Emily Teeter, 93-98. Chicago: Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago. §REF§ §REF§ (Wengrow 2011, 99) David Wengrow. 2011. 'The Invention of Writing in Egypt', in <i>Before the Pyramids: The Origins of Egyptian Civilization</i>, edited by Emily Teeter, 99-103. Chicago: Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago. §REF§ The growth of hierarchical social structures and the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt laid the foundations for the divine kings and complex bureaucracy of the Old Kingdom and beyond.<br>During Naqada I, new forms of political organization appeared ‒ relatively swiftly compared to other prehistoric cultures ‒ in the upper Nile Valley. §REF§ (Stevenson 2016, 431-32) Alice Stevenson. 2016. 'The Egyptian Predynastic and State Formation'. <i>Journal of Archaeological Research</i> 24: 421-68. §REF§ According to the Egyptologist Branislav Anđelković, previously autonomous agricultural villages began to band together to form 'chiefdoms' or 'proto-nomes' between Naqada IA and IB (a 'nome' was an administrative division in the later Egyptian state). §REF§ (Anđelković 2011, 28) Branislav Anđelković. 2011. 'Political Organization of Egypt in the Predynastic Period', in <i>Before the Pyramids: The Origins of Egyptian Civilization</i>, edited by Emily Teeter, 25-32. Chicago: Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago. §REF§ In Naqada IC, even larger political entities ‒ 'nome pre-states' ‒ started to form, centred on Naqada, Abydos and Hierakonpolis. It has been suggested that a 'primitive chiefdom' centred around a 'royal' authority based at Hierakonpolis, had formed by around 3700 BCE. §REF§ (García 2013, 187-88) Juan Carlos Moreno García. 2013. 'Building the Pharaonic State: Territory, Elite, and Power in Ancient Egypt during the Third Millennium BCE', in <i>Experiencing Power, Generating Authority: Cosmos, Politics, and the Ideology of Kingship in Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia</i>, edited by Jane A. Hill, Philip Jones, and Antonio J. Morales, 185-217. Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press. §REF§ Not all researchers agree with this terminology, believing that it creates the impression of an inexorable march towards state formation, and some prefer to stress the fragile and experimental nature of early complex social formations in Upper Egypt. §REF§ (Stevenson 2016, 422, 427) Alice Stevenson. 2016. 'The Egyptian Predynastic and State Formation'. <i>Journal of Archaeological Research</i> 24: 421-68. §REF§ However, the term chiefdom remains in common usage as a label for the new ranked societies of the early 4th millennium. §REF§ (Stevenson 2016, 422) Alice Stevenson. 2016. 'The Egyptian Predynastic and State Formation'. <i>Journal of Archaeological Research</i> 24: 421-68. §REF§ §REF§ (Bard 2017, 2) Kathryn A. Bard. 2017. 'Political Economies of Predynastic Egypt and the Formation of the Early State'. <i>Journal of Archaeological Research</i> 25: 1-36. §REF§ §REF§ (Koehler 2010, 32) E. Christiana Koehler. 2010. 'Prehistory', in <i>A Companion to Ancient Egypt, Volume 1</i>, edited by Alan B. Lloyd, 25-47. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell. §REF§ In the Naqada II period, 'proto-states' formed, and by the Naqada III we can speak of kings and a centralized government ruling over a unified Upper and Lower Egypt. §REF§ (Anđelković 2011, 29-30) Branislav Anđelković. 2011. 'Political Organization of Egypt in the Predynastic Period', in <i>Before the Pyramids: The Origins of Egyptian Civilization</i>, edited by Emily Teeter, 25-32. Chicago: Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago. §REF§ <br>We lack firm figures for the population of Egypt during the Naqada. At the beginning of the period, most inhabitants of Upper Egypt were living in small villages. §REF§ (Anđelković 2011, 28) Branislav Anđelković. 2011. 'Political Organization of Egypt in the Predynastic Period', in <i>Before the Pyramids: The Origins of Egyptian Civilization</i>, edited by Emily Teeter, 25-32. Chicago: Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago. §REF§ However, as the 4th millennium progressed, archaeologists can discern a process of urbanization and aggregation into larger political units. The largest known settlement, Hierakonpolis, grew into a regional centre of power in the 3800‒3500 BCE period §REF§ (Friedman 2011, 34) Renée Friedman. 2011. 'Hierakonpolis', in <i>Before the Pyramids: The Origins of Egyptian Civilization</i>, edited by Emily Teeter, 33-44. Chicago: Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago. §REF§ and may have reached a population of between 5,000 and 10,000 people in the late Naqada I. §REF§ (Hoffman, Hamroush and Allen 1986, 181) Michael Allen Hoffman, Hany A. Hamroush and Ralph O. Allen. 1986. 'A Model of Urban Development for the Hierakonpolis Region from Predynastic through Old Kingdom Times'. <i>Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt</i> 23: 175-87. §REF§ Other researchers consider this figure 'inflated' §REF§ (Stevenson 2016, 436) Alice Stevenson. 2016. 'The Egyptian Predynastic and State Formation'. <i>Journal of Archaeological Research</i> 24: 421-68. §REF§ and point to recent evidence from the Abydos region for low population numbers throughout the Predynastic period. §REF§ (Patch 2004, 914) Diana Craig Patch. 2004. 'Settlement Patterns and Cultural Change in the Predynastic Period', in <i>Egypt at Its Origins: Studies in Memory of Barbara Adams</i>, edited by S. Hendrickx, R. F. Friedman, K. M. Ciałowicz and M. Chłodnicki, 905-18. Leuven: Uitgeverij Peeters en Departement Oosterse Studies. §REF§ ", "shapefile_name": null, "private_comment": null, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "home_nga": { "id": 5, "name": "Upper Egypt", "subregion": "Northeastern Africa", "longitude": "32.714706000000", "latitude": "25.725715000000", "capital_city": "Luxor", "nga_code": "EG", "fao_country": "Egypt", "world_region": "Africa" }, "home_seshat_region": { "id": 4, "name": "Northeast Africa", "subregions_list": "Egypt and Sudan (the Nile Basin)", "mac_region": { "id": 2, "name": "Africa" } }, "private_comment_n": { "id": 1, "text": "NO_PRIVATE_COMMENTS" } }, "comment": null, "private_comment": { "id": 1, "text": "NO_PRIVATE_COMMENTS" }, "citations": [], "curator": [] }, { "id": 23, "year_from": null, "year_to": null, "description": " §REF§<a class=\"external free\" href=\"http://www.ethnologue.com/language/hmd\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://www.ethnologue.com/language/hmd</a>§REF§", "note": null, "finalized": true, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "tag": "TRS", "is_disputed": false, "is_uncertain": false, "expert_reviewed": true, "drb_reviewed": false, "name": "language", "language": "Hmong-Mien", "polity": { "id": 470, "name": "CnHQngL", "start_year": 1701, "end_year": 1895, "long_name": "Hmong - Late Qing", "new_name": "cn_hmong_1", "polity_tag": "LEGACY", "general_description": "The Hmong are an agricultural people who have inhabited southern China for about 2000 years. §REF§ (Diamond 2009, 3) Diamond, Norma. 2009. “Culture Summary: Miao.” eHRAF World Cultures. <a class=\"external free\" href=\"http://ehrafworldcultures.yale.edu/document?id=ae05-000\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://ehrafworldcultures.yale.edu/document?id=ae05-000</a>. Seshat URL: <a class=\"external free\" href=\"https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/Z9NGT72X\" rel=\"nofollow\">https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/Z9NGT72X</a>. §REF§ Made up of several distinct cultures, they are also known as the Miao, an insulting term that loosely translates to 'barbarians' or 'bumpkins'. §REF§ (Fadiman 1997) Fadiman, Anne. 1997. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux. §REF§ The Qing Dynasty was marked by a series of Hmong uprisings, first in western Hunan from 1795 to 1806 CE, and then in Guizhou from 1854 to 1872. §REF§ (Diamond 2009, 3) Diamond, Norma. 2009. “Culture Summary: Miao.” eHRAF World Cultures. <a class=\"external free\" href=\"http://ehrafworldcultures.yale.edu/document?id=ae05-000\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://ehrafworldcultures.yale.edu/document?id=ae05-000</a>. Seshat URL: <a class=\"external free\" href=\"https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/Z9NGT72X\" rel=\"nofollow\">https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/Z9NGT72X</a>. §REF§ <br><i>Population and political organization</i><br>Throughout most of Hmong history, Chinese governmental control was imposed indirectly through native headmen known as <i>tusi</i>, who were responsible for keeping the peace, tax collection and organizing corvée labour. §REF§ (Diamond 2009, 3) Diamond, Norma. 2009. “Culture Summary: Miao.” eHRAF World Cultures. <a class=\"external free\" href=\"http://ehrafworldcultures.yale.edu/document?id=ae05-000\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://ehrafworldcultures.yale.edu/document?id=ae05-000</a>. Seshat URL: <a class=\"external free\" href=\"https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/Z9NGT72X\" rel=\"nofollow\">https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/Z9NGT72X</a>. §REF§ During the Republican period, the Chinese government attempted to assimilate the Hmong as much as possible and heavily discouraged displays of Hmong ethnicity. §REF§ (Diamond 2009, 3) Diamond, Norma. 2009. “Culture Summary: Miao.” eHRAF World Cultures. <a class=\"external free\" href=\"http://ehrafworldcultures.yale.edu/document?id=ae05-000\" rel=\"nofollow\">http://ehrafworldcultures.yale.edu/document?id=ae05-000</a>. Seshat URL: <a class=\"external free\" href=\"https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/Z9NGT72X\" rel=\"nofollow\">https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/Z9NGT72X</a>. §REF§ <br>In 1954, the population of the Hmong was estimated at 150,000. §REF§ (Graham 1954, 1) Graham, David Crockett. 1954. Songs and Stories of the Ch’uan Miao. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution. Seshat URL: <a class=\"external free\" href=\"https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/TWKSXKI8\" rel=\"nofollow\">https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/TWKSXKI8</a>. §REF§ Secure population estimates for earlier periods are lacking but the Hmong may have numbered around 200,000 during the Qing Dynasty.", "shapefile_name": null, "private_comment": "", "created_date": null, "modified_date": "2024-01-17T15:40:48.319562Z", "home_nga": { "id": 22, "name": "Southern China Hills", "subregion": "South China", "longitude": "103.991730960000", "latitude": "27.538834142800", "capital_city": "Guizhou", "nga_code": "YUN", "fao_country": "China", "world_region": "East Asia" }, "home_seshat_region": { "id": 59, "name": "South China", "subregions_list": "Yangtze Basin and South China", "mac_region": { "id": 4, "name": "East Asia" } }, "private_comment_n": { "id": 1, "text": "NO_PRIVATE_COMMENTS" } }, "comment": null, "private_comment": { "id": 1, "text": "NO_PRIVATE_COMMENTS" }, "citations": [], "curator": [] }, { "id": 612, "year_from": null, "year_to": null, "description": "\"Emerging from their heartland in the vicinity of Uraiyur along the banks of the river Kaveri in the mid-9th century, they soon controlled the entire Tamil-speaking area.\"§REF§(Mahalakshmi 2016: 1), Mahalakshmi, Rakesh. 2016. ‘Chola (Cola) Empire’. In The Encyclopedia of Empire, edited by John M. MacKenzie, 1st ed., 1–7. Wiley. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118455074.wbeoe366. Zotero ID: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/ET6Z69AC.§REF§", "note": null, "finalized": false, "created_date": "2024-05-08T11:22:08.546703Z", "modified_date": "2024-05-08T13:12:10.216457Z", "tag": "TRS", "is_disputed": false, "is_uncertain": false, "expert_reviewed": false, "drb_reviewed": false, "name": "Polity_language", "language": "Tamil", "polity": { "id": 397, "name": "InChol*", "start_year": 849, "end_year": 1280, "long_name": "Chola Empire", "new_name": "in_chola_emp", "polity_tag": "LEGACY", "general_description": "This polity was founded in the mid-ninth century CE, when members of the Chola dynasty, centred in the fertile Kaveri delta of Tamil Nadu, began a series of territorial conquests. At their peak in the eleventh century, they ruled over large parts of southern India and north-central Sri Lanka.§REF§(Mahalakshmi 2016: 1), Mahalakshmi, Rakesh. 2016. ‘Chola (Cola) Empire’. In The Encyclopedia of Empire, edited by John M. MacKenzie, 1st ed., 1–7. Wiley. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118455074.wbeoe366. Zotero ID: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/ET6Z69AC.§REF§", "shapefile_name": null, "private_comment": "", "created_date": null, "modified_date": "2024-05-08T13:11:53.749070Z", "home_nga": null, "home_seshat_region": { "id": 40, "name": "Southern South Asia", "subregions_list": "Southern India and Sri Lanka", "mac_region": { "id": 9, "name": "South Asia" } }, "private_comment_n": { "id": 1, "text": "NO_PRIVATE_COMMENTS" } }, "comment": null, "private_comment": null, "citations": [], "curator": [] } ] }