Non Phonetic Writing List
A viewset for viewing and editing Non-Phonetic Writings.
GET /api/sc/non-phonetic-writings/?ordering=tag
{ "count": 292, "next": "https://seshatdata.com/api/sc/non-phonetic-writings/?ordering=tag&page=2", "previous": null, "results": [ { "id": 175, "year_from": null, "year_to": null, "description": " \"There are no written records of any description to throw light on the history of West Africa before 900 A.D.\" §REF§(Bovill 1958, 51) Bovill, E W. 1958/1995. The Golden Trade of the Moors. Oxford University Press. Oxford.§REF§ \"The West Africans who laid the foundations of their medieval empires during the centuries before 900 C.E. did not develop a written language they could use to record historical events.\"§REF§(Conrad 2010, 13) Conrad, D. C. 2010. Empires of Medieval West Africa. Revised Edition. Chelsea House Publishers. New York.§REF§ Oldest example of writing in West Africa c1100 CE tomb inscription at Gao.§REF§(Davidson 1998, 44) Davidson, Basil. 1998. West Africa Before the Colonial Era. Routledge. London.§REF§", "note": null, "finalized": true, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "tag": "IFR", "is_disputed": false, "is_uncertain": false, "expert_reviewed": true, "drb_reviewed": null, "name": "non_phonetic_writing", "non_phonetic_writing": "absent", "polity": { "id": 224, "name": "MrWagdL", "start_year": 1078, "end_year": 1203, "long_name": "Later Wagadu Empire", "new_name": "mr_wagadu_3", "polity_tag": "LEGACY", "general_description": "The Kingdom of Ghana was the first documented empire of West Africa. Its dominant people, a northern Mande group known as the Soninke, called it 'Wagadu', §REF§ (Conrad 2010, 23) David C. Conrad. 2010. <i>Empires of Medieval West Africa: Ghana, Mali, and Songhay</i>. Revised Edition. New York: Chelsea House Publishers. §REF§ and Berber traders from the Sahara referred to it as 'Awkar'. §REF§ (Davidson 1998, 26) Basil Davidson. 1998. <i>West Africa before the Colonial Era</i>. London: Routledge. §REF§ The polity reached its peak in the mid-11th century: §REF§ (Davidson 1998, 34) Basil Davidson. 1998. <i>West Africa before the Colonial Era</i>. London: Routledge. §REF§ §REF§ (Conrad 2010, 33) David C. Conrad. 2010. <i>Empires of Medieval West Africa: Ghana, Mali, and Songhay</i>. Revised Edition. New York: Chelsea House Publishers. §REF§ at this stage, its influence extended east and north from the Senegal River into modern Mauritania and Mali §REF§ (Conrad 2005, 19) David C. Conrad. 2005. <i>Empires of Medieval West Africa: Ghana, Mali, and Songhay</i>. New York: Facts On File. §REF§ and it was encroaching on the Niger Inland Delta. §REF§ (Niane 1975, n.p.) Djibril Tamsir Niane. 1975. <i>Le Soudan Occidental au temps des grands empires XI-XVIe siècle</i>. Paris: Présence africaine. §REF§ §REF§ (Simonis 2010, 36) Francis Simonis. 2010. <i>L'Afrique soudanaise au Moyen Age: Le temps des grands empires (Ghana, Mali, Songhaï)</i>. Aix-Marseille: CRDP de l'Académie d'Aix-Marseille. §REF§ However, from the late 11th century CE the Ghana Empire began to decline due to a combination of environmental, social and political factors. As the desert expanded into previously productive agricultural land, §REF§ (Conrad 2010, 39) David C. Conrad, 2010. <i>Empires of Medieval West Africa: Ghana, Mali, and Songhay</i>. Revised Edition. New York: Chelsea House Publishers. §REF§ the Sosso people took control of a large region above the Upper Niger River §REF§ (Conrad 2005, 12) David C. Conrad. 2005. <i>Empires of Medieval West Africa: Ghana, Mali, and Songhay</i>. New York: Facts On File. §REF§ and the city of Walata grew in influence, taking over as the main southern terminus of the trans-Saharan trade. §REF§ (Conrad 2010, 39) David C. Conrad, 2010. <i>Empires of Medieval West Africa: Ghana, Mali, and Songhay</i>. Revised Edition. New York: Chelsea House Publishers. §REF§ The empire of Ghana officially converted to Islam in 1075‒77 CE to foster political and commercial ties with Almoravid newcomers, §REF§ (Al-Zuhri c. 1130-1155 CE in Levtzion and Spaulding 2003, 24-25) Nehemia Levtzion and Jay Spaulding, eds. 2003. <i>Medieval West Africa: Views from Arab Scholars and Merchants</i>. Princeton, NJ: Markus Wiener. §REF§ while traditional religion retained its prominence in the hinterland and among the non-elite classes. §REF§ (Lapidus 2012, 590) Ira M. Lapidus. 2012. <i>Islamic Societies to the Nineteenth Century: A Global History</i>. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. §REF§ The consensus within modern scholarship is that the relationship between the Soninke and the Almoravids was generally cordial and fruitful, that the Wagadu capital had been host to an important Muslim community in the centuries before the Almoravids arrived, and that the Wagadu conversion to Islam was in fact a gradual affair. §REF§ (El Fasi and Hrbek 1980, 100) Mohammed El Fasi and Ivan Hrbek. 1980. 'Étapes du développement de l'Islam et de sa diffusion en Afrique' in <i>Histoire Générale de l'Afrique, Vol. 3: L'Afrique du VIIe au XIe siècle</i>, edited by M. El Fasi, 81-116. Paris: UNESCO. §REF§ Ghana recovered part of its power in the 12th century. §REF§ (Conrad 2005, 12) David C. Conrad. 2005. <i>Empires of Medieval West Africa: Ghana, Mali, and Songhay</i>. New York: Facts On File. §REF§ Ultimately, however, the shift in the regional balance of power led many of the Soninke to relocate to more prosperous areas, §REF§ (Conrad 2005, 31) David C. Conrad. 2005. <i>Empires of Medieval West Africa: Ghana, Mali, and Songhay</i>. New York: Facts On File. §REF§ contributing to the spread of Islam in other areas of the Sudan. §REF§ (El Fasi and Hrbek 1980, 100) Mohammed El Fasi and Ivan Hrbek. 1980. 'Étapes du développement de l'Islam et de sa diffusion en Afrique' in <i>Histoire Générale de l'Afrique, Vol. 3: L'Afrique du VIIe au XIe siècle</i>, edited by M. El Fasi, 81-116. Paris: UNESCO. §REF§ <br><i>Population and political organization</i><br>The Wagadu empire comprised four provinces administered by a central government. §REF§ (Conrad 2005, 18) David C. Conrad. 2005. <i>Empires of Medieval West Africa: Ghana, Mali, and Songhay</i>. New York: Facts On File. §REF§ The king exerted direct authority over his kingdom; he was also head of the traditional religion and was revered as a god. §REF§ (Niane 1975, 32) Djibril Tamsir Niane. 1975. <i>Le Soudan Occidental au temps des grands empires XI-XVIe siècle</i>. Paris: Présence africaine. §REF§ Wagadu society was highly hierarchical, distinguishing between the elite warrior class and the rest of the population: professional artisans including smiths, weavers, dyers and shoemakers; farmers and herders; and slaves. §REF§ (Niane 1975, 32) Djibril Tamsir Niane. 1975. <i>Le Soudan Occidental au temps des grands empires XI-XVIe siècle</i>. Paris: Présence africaine. §REF§ These groups were further subdivided along clan lines. §REF§ (Niane 1975, 33) Djibril Tamsir Niane. 1975. <i>Le Soudan Occidental au temps des grands empires XI-XVIe siècle</i>. Paris: Présence africaine. §REF§ <br>This period was a prosperous one for the Sudanese region, which produced millet, maize, yam, groundnuts, cotton, indigo and other crops. §REF§ (Lapidus 2012, 589-90) Ira M. Lapidus. 2012. <i>Islamic Societies to the Nineteenth Century: A Global History</i>. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. §REF§ Linked into a thriving exchange sphere that stretched north to North Africa and the Mediterranean, §REF§ (Lapidus 2012, 589-90) Ira M. Lapidus. 2012. <i>Islamic Societies to the Nineteenth Century: A Global History</i>. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. §REF§ the Sudanese population exported gold, slaves, hides, and ivory and imported copper, silver beads, dried fruit and cloth. §REF§ (Lapidus 2012, 589-90) Ira M. Lapidus. 2012. <i>Islamic Societies to the Nineteenth Century: A Global History</i>. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. §REF§ All exports and imports were taxed by the centralized state. §REF§ (Niane 1975, 33) Djibril Tamsir Niane. 1975. <i>Le Soudan Occidental au temps des grands empires XI-XVIe siècle</i>. Paris: Présence africaine. §REF§ Trading outposts in Awdhagust and other Saharan towns facilitated fruitful exchange with Berbers and other groups from further afield. §REF§ (Meideros 1980, 160) Francois de Meideros. 1980. 'Les peuples du Soudan: Mouvements de populations', in <i>Histoire Générale de l'Afrique, Vol. 3: L'Afrique du VIIe au XIe siècle</i>, edited by M. El Fasi, 143-64. Paris: UNESCO. §REF§ <br>Population estimates are difficult to obtain for ancient Ghana. However, it is worth noting that its capital, the thriving trading city of Kumbi Saleh, covered 250 hectares and had a population of 15,000-20,000 people at its peak. §REF§ (Reader 1998, 280) John Reader. 1998. <i>Africa: A Biography of the Continent</i>. London: Penguin Books. §REF§ Archaeological investigations at the site have revealed two-storey stone buildings which may have contained stores on the ground floor, narrow streets with densely packed houses, a mosque, and extensive cemeteries. §REF§ (Reader 1998, 280) John Reader. 1998. <i>Africa: A Biography of the Continent</i>. London: Penguin Books. §REF§ ", "shapefile_name": null, "private_comment": null, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "home_nga": { "id": 6, "name": "Niger Inland Delta", "subregion": "Sahel", "longitude": "-3.041703000000", "latitude": "16.717549000000", "capital_city": "Timbuctu", "nga_code": "ML", "fao_country": "Mali", "world_region": "Africa" }, "home_seshat_region": { "id": 7, "name": "West Africa", "subregions_list": "From Senegal to Gabon (Tropical)", "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": 131, "year_from": null, "year_to": null, "description": " Inferred from the fact that \"most [Italian peoples before the Romans] were not even literate\" §REF§T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), p. 37§REF§, although some writing has been found in association with elite graves §REF§G. Forsythe, A Critical History of Early Rome (2006), pp. 53-58§REF§", "note": null, "finalized": true, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "tag": "IFR", "is_disputed": false, "is_uncertain": false, "expert_reviewed": true, "drb_reviewed": null, "name": "non_phonetic_writing", "non_phonetic_writing": "absent", "polity": { "id": 178, "name": "ItLatCA", "start_year": -3600, "end_year": -1800, "long_name": "Latium - Copper Age", "new_name": "it_latium_ca", "polity_tag": "LEGACY", "general_description": "The Italian Eneolithic (Eneolitico) dates from the 3rd millennium to the first centuries of the 2nd millennium BCE. It mostly corresponds to the Copper Age (Età del Rame) plus the Early Bronze Age (Prima Età del Bronzo). In Latium, the region of Central Italy that roughly matches modern-day Lazio, the main Copper Age sites include Ponte S. Pietro, Porcareccia and Rinaldone (near the modern-day city of Viterbo), Sgurgola and Casamari (near Frosinone), Castel Malnome and Ardea (near Rome), and Cantalupo Mandela (near Sabina). §REF§ (Anzidei, Sestieri and De Santis 1985, 102) Anna Paola Anzidei, Anna Maria Bietti Sestieri and Anna De Santis. 1985. <i>Roma e il Lazio dall'età della pietra alla formazione della città</i>. Rome: Quasar. §REF§ The period is characterized by low density occupation and scattered material finds, mainly grave sites; nothing in the region comparable to the complex contemporary social formations present in Egypt, China, and the Near East.<br><i>Population and political organization</i><br>None of the above-mentioned sites is considered a 'nucleated settlement', but they have all yielded useful finds: the Viterbo locations and Sgurgola are small necropolises, while miscellaneous grave goods have been unearthed at the other sites. §REF§ (Anzidei, Sestieri and De Santis 1985, 106) Anna Paola Anzidei, Anna Maria Bietti Sestieri and Anna De Santis. 1985. <i>Roma e il Lazio dall'età della pietra alla formazione della città</i>. Rome: Quasar. §REF§ Overall, it seems likely that Latium Copper Age communities were quite small — one estimate posits 100-200 inhabitants each §REF§ (Whitehouse 1992, 16) Ruth Whitehouse. 1992. <i>Underground Religion: Cult and Culture in Prehistoric Italy</i>. London: Accordia Research Centre, University of London. §REF§ — and some estimates for the Early Bronze Age even go so far as to say that each settlement probably only had a few dozen inhabitants. §REF§ (Cornell 1995, 32-35) Tim Cornell. 1995. <i>The Beginnings of Rome: Italy and Rome from the Bronze Age to the Punic Wars (c. 1000‒264 BC)</i>. London: Routledge. §REF§ The burial data appear to reflect a patriarchal, war-oriented culture: men and women are associated with very different types of grave goods, and male burials are always accompanied by weapons. §REF§ (Anzidei, Sestieri and De Santis 1985, 106) Anna Paola Anzidei, Anna Maria Bietti Sestieri and Anna De Santis. 1985. <i>Roma e il Lazio dall'età della pietra alla formazione della città</i>. Rome: Quasar. §REF§ §REF§ (Whitehouse 1992, 21) Ruth Whitehouse. 1992. <i>Underground Religion: Cult and Culture in Prehistoric Italy</i>. London: Accordia Research Centre, University of London. §REF§ ", "shapefile_name": null, "private_comment": null, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "home_nga": { "id": 1, "name": "Latium", "subregion": "Southern Europe", "longitude": "12.486948000000", "latitude": "41.890407000000", "capital_city": "Rome", "nga_code": "IT", "fao_country": "Italy", "world_region": "Europe" }, "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": 130, "year_from": null, "year_to": null, "description": " Inferred from the fact that \"most [Italian peoples before the Romans] were not even literate\" §REF§T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), p. 37§REF§, although some writing has been found in association with elite graves §REF§G. Forsythe, A Critical History of Early Rome (2006), pp. 53-58§REF§", "note": null, "finalized": true, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "tag": "IFR", "is_disputed": false, "is_uncertain": false, "expert_reviewed": true, "drb_reviewed": null, "name": "non_phonetic_writing", "non_phonetic_writing": "absent", "polity": { "id": 179, "name": "ItLatBA", "start_year": -1800, "end_year": -900, "long_name": "Latium - Bronze Age", "new_name": "it_latium_ba", "polity_tag": "LEGACY", "general_description": "The Italian Bronze Age (Età del Bronzo) starts at the tail end of the Eneolithic, but enters its mature phase between 1800 and 1200 BCE (Middle Bronze Age, Età del Bronzo Media), and begins its transition towards the Iron Age between 1200 and 1000 (Late Bronze Age, Tarda Età del Bronzo). §REF§ (Cornell 1995, 32-33) Tim Cornell. 1995. <i>The Beginnings of Rome: Italy and Rome from the Bronze Age to the Punic Wars (c. 1000‒264 BC)</i>. London: Routledge. §REF§ §REF§ (Anzidei, Sestieri and De Santis 1985, 113-48) Anna Paola Anzidei, Anna Maria Bietti Sestieri and Anna De Santis. 1985. <i>Roma e il Lazio dall'età della pietra alla formazione della città</i>. Rome: Quasar. §REF§ Because Middle Bronze Age material culture is remarkably uniform throughout the peninsula, §REF§ (Cornell 1995, 32) Tim Cornell. 1995. <i>The Beginnings of Rome: Italy and Rome from the Bronze Age to the Punic Wars (c. 1000‒264 BC)</i>. London: Routledge. §REF§ it is difficult to single out any developments that specifically distinguish Latium, the region of Central Italy that roughly corresponds to modern-day Lazio. However, it is worth noting that most sites of this period cluster along the Apennine mountain range; for this reason, Italian Bronze Age culture is sometimes referred to as 'Apennine culture' (<i>cultura appenninica</i>). §REF§ (Cornell 1995, 32) Tim Cornell. 1995. <i>The Beginnings of Rome: Italy and Rome from the Bronze Age to the Punic Wars (c. 1000‒264 BC)</i>. London: Routledge. §REF§ In the Late Bronze Age, the main cultural traditions were the Subapennine (12th century BCE, <i>subappenninica</i>) and the Proto-Villanovan (11th and 10th centuries BCE, <i>protovillanoviana</i>) §REF§ (Anzidei, Sestieri and De Santis 1985, 137-39) Anna Paola Anzidei, Anna Maria Bietti Sestieri and Anna De Santis. 1985. <i>Roma e il Lazio dall'età della pietra alla formazione della città</i>. Rome: Quasar. §REF§ These traditions brought greater sophistication in agricultural techniques, a greater number and variety of agricultural tools, and advances in metalworking. §REF§ (Cornell 1995, 32-33) Tim Cornell. 1995. <i>The Beginnings of Rome: Italy and Rome from the Bronze Age to the Punic Wars (c. 1000‒264 BC)</i>. London: Routledge. §REF§ <br><i>Population and political organization</i><br>It is difficult to infer much about the political organization of the average Italian settlement, either in the Middle or in the Late Bronze Age. There are very few signs of status differentiation, whether in burials, architecture, or material culture more generally. §REF§ (Barker 1995, 156) Graeme Barker. 1995. <i>A Mediterranean Valley: Landscape Archaeology and Annales History in the Biferno Valley</i>. London: Leicester University Press. §REF§ <br>Population was probably sparse up to the Middle Bronze Age in Italy, with settlements of no more than a few dozen inhabitants each. In contrast, the Late Bronze Age witnessed a significant demographic increase, suggested by an increased number of sites and increased site size. Settlements were probably home to a few hundred inhabitants. §REF§ (Cornell 1995, 32-33) Tim Cornell. 1995. <i>The Beginnings of Rome: Italy and Rome from the Bronze Age to the Punic Wars (c. 1000‒264 BC)</i>. London: Routledge. §REF§ ", "shapefile_name": null, "private_comment": null, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "home_nga": { "id": 1, "name": "Latium", "subregion": "Southern Europe", "longitude": "12.486948000000", "latitude": "41.890407000000", "capital_city": "Rome", "nga_code": "IT", "fao_country": "Italy", "world_region": "Europe" }, "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": 172, "year_from": null, "year_to": null, "description": " Probably no written records", "note": null, "finalized": true, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "tag": "IFR", "is_disputed": false, "is_uncertain": false, "expert_reviewed": true, "drb_reviewed": null, "name": "non_phonetic_writing", "non_phonetic_writing": "absent", "polity": { "id": 437, "name": "MnXngnE", "start_year": -1400, "end_year": -300, "long_name": "Early Xiongnu", "new_name": "mn_hunnu_early", "polity_tag": "LEGACY", "general_description": "The Orkhon Valley is located on either side of the Orkhon River, in north-central Mongolia. Here, we are interested in the phase of its prehistory in the millennium preceding the establishment of the Xiongnu empire, that is, 1400-300 BCE. Unfortunately, very little is known about this period, §REF§ (Yu 1990, 118) §REF§ though Chinese historians note that at the very end of this period the Xiongnu were one of three major steppe confederations in Mongolia more widely. §REF§ (Rogers 2012, 220) §REF§ <br>No population estimates could be found specifically for the an average independent political unit in the Orkhon Valley at this time, though it is worth noting that, according to McEvedy and Jones (1978), the total population of Siberia and Mongolia in this period did not exceed 400,000. §REF§ (McEvedy and Jones 1978, 160-156) McEvedy, Colin. Jones, Richard. 1978. Atlas of World Population History. Penguin Books Ltd. London. §REF§ Similarly, no information could be found on political organization at this time.", "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": 33, "year_from": null, "year_to": null, "description": " The earliest phonetic hieroglyphic writing was found in the tomb J at the Abytos Cemetary U - on the pottery vessels and small bone/ivory labels§REF§Köhler, E. C. \"Theories of State Formation\". [in:] Wendrich, W. [ed.]. Egyptian Archaeology. Chichester: Blackwell Publishing. pg: 41.§REF§. They are dated to Naqada IIIA. But it should be noticed that already in Naqada I, signs similar to hieroglyphs have been found, especially on the pottery vessels (pot marks). However \"none of these signs hints at the existence of phonograms, phonetic complements or detenninatives\" and \"the absence of an important component of the hieroglyphic writing system does not allow us to designate these signs as \"hieroglyphic writing\"\"§REF§Kahl, J. \"Hieroglyphic Writing During the Fourth Millennium BC: an Analysis of Systems\". Archeo-NiI 11 (2001); 122, 124.§REF§. It can be rather treated as an abstract symbolic system§REF§Meza, A. 2012. ANCIENT EGYPT BEFORE WRITING: From Markings to Hieroglyphs. Bloomington: Xlibris Corporation. pg: 25.§REF§", "note": null, "finalized": true, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "tag": "IFR", "is_disputed": false, "is_uncertain": false, "expert_reviewed": true, "drb_reviewed": null, "name": "non_phonetic_writing", "non_phonetic_writing": "absent", "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": 34, "year_from": null, "year_to": null, "description": " The earliest phonetic hieroglyphic writing was found in the tomb J at the Abytos Cemetary U - on the pottery vessels and small bone/ivory labels§REF§Köhler, E. C. \"Theories of State Formation\". [in:] Wendrich, W. [ed.]. Egyptian Archaeology. Chichester: Blackwell Publishing. pg: 41.§REF§. They are dated to Naqada IIIA. But it should be noticed that already in Naqada I, signs similar to hieroglyphs have been found, especially on the pottery vessels (pot marks). However \"none of these signs hints at the existence of phonograms, phonetic complements or detenninatives\" and \"the absence of an important component of the hieroglyphic writing system does not allow us to designate these signs as \"hieroglyphic writing\"\"§REF§Kahl, J. \"Hieroglyphic Writing During the Fourth Millennium BC: an Analysis of Systems\". Archeo-NiI 11 (2001); 122, 124.§REF§. It can be rather treated as an abstract symbolic system§REF§Meza, A. 2012. ANCIENT EGYPT BEFORE WRITING: From Markings to Hieroglyphs. Bloomington: Xlibris Corporation. pg: 25.§REF§", "note": null, "finalized": true, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "tag": "IFR", "is_disputed": false, "is_uncertain": false, "expert_reviewed": true, "drb_reviewed": null, "name": "non_phonetic_writing", "non_phonetic_writing": "present", "polity": { "id": 512, "name": "EgNaqa2", "start_year": -3550, "end_year": -3300, "long_name": "Naqada II", "new_name": "eg_naqada_2", "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": 25, "year_from": null, "year_to": null, "description": null, "note": null, "finalized": true, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "tag": "IFR", "is_disputed": false, "is_uncertain": false, "expert_reviewed": true, "drb_reviewed": null, "name": "non_phonetic_writing", "non_phonetic_writing": "absent", "polity": { "id": 510, "name": "EgBadar", "start_year": -4400, "end_year": -3800, "long_name": "Badarian", "new_name": "eg_badarian", "polity_tag": "LEGACY", "general_description": "The Badarian, a Neolithic archaeological culture located in Upper Egypt and dating from c. 4400 to 3300 BCE, was first described in 1928 by archaeologists Guy Brunton and Gertrude Caton-Thompson, who excavated in the Badari district near Assyut. §REF§ (Hassan 1988, 138) F. A. Hassan. 1988. 'The Predynastic of Egypt'. <i>Journal of World Prehistory</i> 2 (2): 135-85. §REF§ Its relationship to an earlier culture, called the Tasian, is unclear, §REF§ (Hendrickx and Vermeersch 2000, 36-40) Stan Hendrickx and Pierre Vermeersch. 2000. 'Prehistory: From the Palaeolithic to the Badarian Culture', in <i>The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt</i>, edited by Ian Shaw, 16-40. Oxford: Oxford University Press. §REF§ but there is some evidence to link it to the later Naqada I period in Upper Egypt. §REF§ (Hendrickx and Vermeersch 2000, 36-40) Stan Hendrickx and Pierre Vermeersch. 2000. 'Prehistory: From the Palaeolithic to the Badarian Culture', in <i>The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt</i>, edited by Ian Shaw, 16-40. Oxford: Oxford University Press. §REF§ Little is known of the everyday lives of the people who occupied the Badarian sites: our information comes mainly from the numerous grave sites in the region around Assyut.<br><i>Population and political organization</i><br>Research on Badarian sites has yielded a total of about 600 graves and 40 poorly documented settlements. §REF§ (Hendrickx and Vermeersch 2000, 36-40) Stan Hendrickx and Pierre Vermeersch. 2000. 'Prehistory: From the Palaeolithic to the Badarian Culture', in <i>The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt</i>, edited by Ian Shaw, 16-40. Oxford: Oxford University Press. §REF§ The culture was first identified in the el-Badari region, near the modern city of Sohag, but several small sites near the villages of Qau el-Kebir, Hammamiya, Mostagedda, and Matmar are also categorized as Badarian. §REF§ (Hendrickx and Vermeersch 2000, 36-40) Stan Hendrickx and Pierre Vermeersch. 2000. 'Prehistory: From the Palaeolithic to the Badarian Culture', in <i>The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt</i>, edited by Ian Shaw, 16-40. Oxford: Oxford University Press. §REF§ Characteristic Badarian material culture has also been discovered much further south at Mahgar Dendera, Armant, Elkab, and Hierakonpolis, as well as to the east of the Nile in the Wadi Hammamat. §REF§ (Hendrickx and Vermeersch 2000, 36-40) Stan Hendrickx and Pierre Vermeersch. 2000. 'Prehistory: From the Palaeolithic to the Badarian Culture', in <i>The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt</i>, edited by Ian Shaw, 16-40. Oxford: Oxford University Press. §REF§ <br>The archaeology of the period has inevitably been affected by the flooding of the Nile over the millennia: any larger, more permanent settlements were likely situated close to the great river and subsequently washed away or covered with alluvium. §REF§ (Hendrickx and Vermeersch 2000, 36-40) Stan Hendrickx and Pierre Vermeersch. 2000. 'Prehistory: From the Palaeolithic to the Badarian Culture', in <i>The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt</i>, edited by Ian Shaw, 16-40. Oxford: Oxford University Press. §REF§ Surviving remains come from raised desert spurs and include 'huts and windbreaks associated with hearths and large, well-shaped granary pits or silos'. §REF§ (Hassan 1988, 153) F. A. Hassan. 1988. 'The Predynastic of Egypt'. <i>Journal of World Prehistory</i> 2 (2): 135-85. §REF§ A Badarian settlement at Deir Tasa covered an area of about 5000 square metres. §REF§ (Hassan 1988, 153) F. A. Hassan. 1988. 'The Predynastic of Egypt'. <i>Journal of World Prehistory</i> 2 (2): 135-85. §REF§ At the Seshat standard of 50-200 inhabitants per hectare, this gives us an estimated population between the range of 25 and 100 inhabitants.<br>Evidence from Badarian settlements shows that the people who occupied these sites were primarily engaged in agriculture and animal husbandry, §REF§ (Hendrickx and Vermeersch 2000, 36-40) Stan Hendrickx and Pierre Vermeersch. 2000. 'Prehistory: From the Palaeolithic to the Badarian Culture', in <i>The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt</i>, edited by Ian Shaw, 16-40. Oxford: Oxford University Press. §REF§ but we know trade also occurred. Badarians imported raw materials like wood, turquoise, shells and ivory and exchanged goods with groups from as far away as Palestine, the Red Sea and Syria. §REF§ (Trigger 1983, 29) 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§ Model boats found at the site of Merimda to the north 'suggest that boats and canoes were already in use [in Egypt] before 4500 B.C.' §REF§ (Hassan 1988, 157) F. A. Hassan. 1988. 'The Predynastic of Egypt'. <i>Journal of World Prehistory</i> 2 (2): 135-85. §REF§ <br>Very little can be concluded about Badarian political and social structure, but analysis of grave goods shows that there was an unequal distribution of wealth, and that the wealthier graves tended to be kept separate within the cemeteries. §REF§ (Hendrickx and Vermeersch 2000, 36-40) Stan Hendrickx and Pierre Vermeersch. 2000. 'Prehistory: From the Palaeolithic to the Badarian Culture', in <i>The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt</i>, edited by Ian Shaw, 16-40. Oxford: Oxford University Press. §REF§ However, no monumental remains have been found so it is likely that higher-status members of society did not command a significant labour force.", "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": 66, "year_from": null, "year_to": null, "description": " \"Druids did not commit their philosophy to writing, no record exists to explain how the Celts perceived their world.\" §REF§(Allen 2007, 100)§REF§", "note": null, "finalized": true, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "tag": "IFR", "is_disputed": false, "is_uncertain": false, "expert_reviewed": true, "drb_reviewed": null, "name": "non_phonetic_writing", "non_phonetic_writing": "absent", "polity": { "id": 453, "name": "FrTeneA", "start_year": -475, "end_year": -325, "long_name": "La Tene A-B1", "new_name": "fr_la_tene_a_b1", "polity_tag": "LEGACY", "general_description": "La Tene (A-B1) was an early Iron Age culture in Europe named after an archaeological site at Lake Neuchatel in Switzerland. §REF§ (Collis 2003, 172, 217-218) §REF§ <br>The territory centered on ancient Gaul and at its height spanned areas in modern day France, Belgium, Switzerland, Austria, Southern Germany, Czechia, parts of Northern Italy, Slovenia, Hungary, and adjacent parts of the Netherlands, Slovakia, Croatia, western Romania, and western Ukraine.<br>Settlements during this period included larger towns (indicating a degree of centralization), villages and farmsteads spread throughout their territories. §REF§ (Wells 1999, 45-47) §REF§ <br>Population figures are difficult to trace, but according to our expert some estimates put the largest settlement areas during the beginning of this period at 5,000-7,000 people.", "shapefile_name": null, "private_comment": null, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "home_nga": { "id": 2, "name": "Paris Basin", "subregion": "Western Europe", "longitude": "2.312458000000", "latitude": "48.866111000000", "capital_city": "Paris", "nga_code": "FR", "fao_country": "France", "world_region": "Europe" }, "home_seshat_region": { "id": 20, "name": "Western Europe", "subregions_list": "British Isles, France, Low Countries", "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": 209, "year_from": null, "year_to": null, "description": null, "note": null, "finalized": true, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "tag": "IFR", "is_disputed": false, "is_uncertain": false, "expert_reviewed": true, "drb_reviewed": null, "name": "non_phonetic_writing", "non_phonetic_writing": "absent", "polity": { "id": 159, "name": "TrClcLT", "start_year": -5500, "end_year": -3000, "long_name": "Konya Plain - Late Chalcolithic", "new_name": "tr_konya_lca", "polity_tag": "LEGACY", "general_description": null, "shapefile_name": null, "private_comment": null, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "home_nga": { "id": 11, "name": "Konya Plain", "subregion": "Anatolia-Caucasus", "longitude": "32.521164000000", "latitude": "37.877845000000", "capital_city": "Konya", "nga_code": "TR", "fao_country": "Turkey", "world_region": "Southwest Asia" }, "home_seshat_region": { "id": 43, "name": "Anatolia-Caucasus", "subregions_list": "Turkey, Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan", "mac_region": { "id": 11, "name": "Southwest Asia" } }, "private_comment_n": { "id": 1, "text": "NO_PRIVATE_COMMENTS" } }, "comment": null, "private_comment": { "id": 1, "text": "NO_PRIVATE_COMMENTS" }, "citations": [], "curator": [] }, { "id": 154, "year_from": null, "year_to": null, "description": " \"To all appearances, writing as such, in the form of Chinese Classics, was introduced into Japan early in the fifth century as part of the great cultural influx from Paekche.\"§REF§(Frellesvig 2010, 11)§REF§ However, 'now and then Chinese characters appeared on Yayoi pottery, showing a degree of literacy among craftsmen.' §REF§Kidder Jr., J. Edward, 2007. Himiko and Japan's Elusive Kingdom of Yamatai Honolulu: Hawaii University Press. p. 113§REF§", "note": null, "finalized": true, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "tag": "IFR", "is_disputed": false, "is_uncertain": false, "expert_reviewed": true, "drb_reviewed": null, "name": "non_phonetic_writing", "non_phonetic_writing": "present", "polity": { "id": 144, "name": "JpYayoi", "start_year": -300, "end_year": 250, "long_name": "Kansai - Yayoi Period", "new_name": "jp_yayoi", "polity_tag": "LEGACY", "general_description": "The Yayoi period in the Kansai region (Yayoi period in the Kinki region) is an Iron Age period in Japan marked by the introduction of rice farming, metalworking, cloth making, and new forms of pottery from continental Asia. §REF§ (Mason 1997, 22) Mason, R,H.P and J.G. Caiger. 1997. A History of Japan. Vermont: Tuttle Publishing. Seshat URL: <a class=\"external free\" href=\"https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/HC5A5QFR\" rel=\"nofollow\">https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/HC5A5QFR</a> §REF§ The beginning of the Yayoi period was characterized by substantial changes and the introduction of new cultural features in the daily life. In the early Yayoi period (ca. 400 BCE - 200 BCE; 300 - 100 BCE) such innovations consisted of new type of houses, burial practices, settlement structures and more importantly of the introduction of full scale farming. §REF§ K. Mizoguchi, 2013. The Archaeology of Japan. From the Earliest Rice Farming Villages to the Rise of the State. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 79-80. §REF§ §REF§ Hudson, M. J., 2007. \"Japanese beginnings.\"In: W. Tsutsui (ed.), A Companion to Japanese History. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing Ltd, 20. §REF§ The new type of house, consisting of a rectangular or round sub-types,spread throughout western Japan (from Kyushu to Kansai) by the end of the Early Yayoi period. In this period settlements started being enclosed by V-sectioned ditches. §REF§ K. Mizoguchi, 2013. The Archaeology of Japan. From the Earliest Rice Farming Villages to the Rise of the State. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 84-85. §REF§ Another important change was that, in a given settlement, burial grounds were separated by the dwelling area. The dead were mostly buried in rectangular ditch-enclosed burial compounds covered by low earthen mounds. The introduction of rice paddy field agriculture had big impact in the social structure of the Japanese Yayoi communities. The archaeological evidence of paddy fields suggest that Yayoi communities were able to set up paddies in different topographic and climatic environments. Their maintenance and construction required an unprecedented scale of collaboration and social organization. §REF§ K. Mizoguchi, 2013. The Archaeology of Japan. From the Earliest Rice Farming Villages to the Rise of the State. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 120. §REF§ <br>The Middle Yayoi period saw also an increase of stone and metal tools, bronze mirrors and weapons deposited mainly as grave goods and <i>Dokatu</i> bronze bells deposited as ritual tools. The spread of bronze mirrors and metal objects can be interpreted as the result of trade contacts between western japanese chiefdoms and the Chinese Lelang commandery in Korean peninsula. §REF§ G. Barnes, 2007. State formation in Japan: Emergence of a 4th-century ruling elite. Routledge, 61-65. §REF§ During the Late Yayoi period (1/50-200 CE; 100 - 300 CE) we have marked evidence of social stratification. §REF§ K. Mizoguchi, 2013. The Archaeology of Japan. From the Earliest Rice Farming Villages to the Rise of the State. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 202-203. §REF§ <br>During the Yayoi/Kofun Transition Period (200-250/75 CE), according to Mizoguchi's periodization, §REF§ K. Mizoguchi, 2013. The Archaeology of Japan. From the Earliest Rice Farming Villages to the Rise of the State. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 214. §REF§ or the final Late Yayoi period, according to Barnes' periodization, in western Japan emerged the polity (perhaps a chiefdom) of Yamatai ruled by the queen Himiko. Unfortunately, the evidence of the presence of this polity come from the Chinese dynastic histories and there is not agreement among the scholars about the location of Yamatai. Some scholars located Yamatai in northern Kyushu, §REF§ Takemoto, T. 1983. ‘The Kyishi Dynasty’. Japan Quarterly 30 (4): 383-97. §REF§ while others located it in Kansai. §REF§ Miller, R. 1967. The Japanese language. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 16-18. §REF§ §REF§ Edwards, W., 1999. ‘Mirrors on ancient Yamato’. Monumenta Nipponica 54 (1, spring): 75-110. §REF§ The queen Himiko may have seized the power between the 189 and the 238 CE and her death could be dated to the 248 CE. §REF§ Kidder, J. E., 2007. Himiko and Japan's elusive chiefdom of Yamatai: archaeology, history, and mythology. University of Hawaii Press, 161. §REF§ <br><i>Population and political organization</i><br>In the Early Yayoi period, significant features such as ditch-enclosed settlements, paddy fields and irrigation systems required a hierarchical structure able to mobilize the needed labour force and coordinate different tasks. As consequence, the Early Yayoi period saw the emergence of a ranked society, where members of a \"warrior class\" were responsible for guaranteeing and protecting communal interests. §REF§ K. Mizoguchi, 2013. The Archaeology of Japan. From the Earliest Rice Farming Villages to the Rise of the State. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 102. §REF§ <br>In the Middle Yayoi period (ca. 200 BCE - 1/50 CE; 100 BCE - 100 CE) there is a significant increase in the population, which results in the emergence of large central-type settlements. Hence, there is a two-tiered settlement hierarchy characterized by larger villages acting as regional centres and smaller satellite settlements. A Middle Yayoi settlement was composed of several residential units (hamlets)that were part of a larger kin-based corporate group cross-cutting several different villages. §REF§ K. Mizoguchi, 2013. The Archaeology of Japan. From the Earliest Rice Farming Villages to the Rise of the State. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 120. §REF§ This would have favoured the relations and cooperation between villages on regional scale. There is a peer-polity interaction between the chiefdoms distributed in Western Japan. Each hamlet had its own burial ground and storage facilities and perhaps was occupied by 30 individuals. The regional centres of Western Japan often contained more than 3-4 hamlets and could reach an overall population higher than 200 inhabitants. More research is needed on total Yayoi population.<br>We know from the Chinese documents that the Japanese chiefs acquired the title of <i>wang</i> (king) ad consequence of the tribute they submitted to the Chinese Han dynasty trough the Lelang commandery. §REF§ G. Barnes, 2007. State formation in Japan: Emergence of a 4th-century ruling elite. Routledge, 71. §REF§ In the Middle Yayoi period burial compounds, mortuary rectangular allotments usually enclosed by a ditch and covered by an earth mound, are introduced. The spatial distribution of these burial features (usually located beside large regional centres), their skeletal remains (almost all adult males) and their grave good assemblages (bronze weapons, bronze mirrors, cylindrical beads, etc.) suggest that the individuals buried in the compounds were regional chiefs or leaders belonging to a number of corporate groups. §REF§ Mizoguchi, K., 2002. An archaeological history of Japan, 30,000 B.P. to A.D. 700. University of Pennsylvania Press, 142-47. §REF§ §REF§ K. Mizoguchi, 2013. The Archaeology of Japan. From the Earliest Rice Farming Villages to the Rise of the State. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 150-154. §REF§ Overall, the evidence suggest that the status of the elite was achieved rather than being ascribed.<br>In the Late Yayoi period, the elites started showing their dominance within a settlement by living in clear marked compounds enclosed by ditches and containing raised-floor storage buildings. In addition, clustering of iron tools have been found in proximity of the elites compounds. This evidence suggest that the elites controlled the means of production and the storage and distribution of products. §REF§ K. Mizoguchi, 2013. The Archaeology of Japan. From the Earliest Rice Farming Villages to the Rise of the State. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 202-203. §REF§ In this period in the rectangular burial compounds, not only adults, but also children and infants were buried, suggesting that the elite status was no longer achieved during their lifetimes but inherited at birth. The population saw also an intensification of inter-communal competition.", "shapefile_name": null, "private_comment": null, "created_date": null, "modified_date": null, "home_nga": { "id": 21, "name": "Kansai", "subregion": "Northeast Asia", "longitude": "135.762200000000", "latitude": "35.025280000000", "capital_city": "Kyoto", "nga_code": "JP", "fao_country": "Japan", "world_region": "East Asia" }, "home_seshat_region": { "id": 14, "name": "Northeast Asia", "subregions_list": "Korea, Japan, forest part of Manchuria, Russian Far East", "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": [] } ] }