irrigation

Examples of irrigation in the following topics:

• Society Under the Zhou Dynasty

  • Under the initial period of the Zhou Dynasty (called the Western Zhou period), a number of innovations were made, rulers were legitimized under the Mandate of Heaven, a feudal system developed, and new forms of irrigation allowed the population to expand.
  • A number of important innovations took place in this period: the Zhou moved away from worship of Shangdi, the supreme god under the Shang, in favor of Tian ("heaven"), they legitimized rulers through the Mandate of Heaven (divine right to rule), they moved to a feudal system, developed Chinese philosophy, and made new advances in irrigation allowed more intensive farming, which allowed the lands of China to sustain larger populations.

• Akkadian Government, Culture, and Economy

  • The population of Akkad, like nearly all pre-modern states, was entirely dependent upon the agricultural systems of the region, which seem to have had two principal centers: the irrigated farmlands of southern Iraq and the rain-fed agriculture of northern Iraq, known as the "Upper Country. "
  • Southern Iraq during Akkadian period seems to have approached its modern rainfall level of less than one inch per year, with the result that agriculture was entirely dependent upon irrigation.
  • Before the Akkadian period, the progressive salinization of the soils, produced by poorly drained irrigation, had been reducing yields of wheat in the southern part of the country.
  • Even so, the flat country and weather uncertainties made flooding much more unpredictable than in the case of other river civilizations; serious deluges seem to have been a regular occurrence and required constant maintenance of irrigation ditches and drainage systems.
  • Nomadic Amorites from the northwest would pasture their flocks of sheep and goats to graze on the stubble watered from the river and irrigation canals.

• The Three Sovereigns

  • He is credited with the invention of various agricultural innovations, such as the hoe, plow, and axe; digging wells; irrigation techniques; and techniques of seed preservation.

• River Valley Civilizations

  • This system of government arises through the need for flood control and irrigation, which requires central coordination and a specialized bureaucracy.
  • However, it is also important to note that complex irrigation projects predated states in Madagascar, Mexico, China and Mesopotamia, and thus it cannot be said that a key, limited economic resource necessarily mandates a strong centralized bureaucracy.

• The Sumerians

  • The Ubaid period (6500-4100 BCE) saw the first settlement in southern Mesopotamia by farmers who brought irrigation agriculture.
  • Sumerians invented or improved a wide range of technology, including the wheel, cuneiform script, arithmetic, geometry, irrigation, saws and other tools, sandals, chariots, harpoons, and beer.

• Introduction to the Shang Dynasty

  • Under the Shang Dynasty, the Chinese built huge cities with strong social class divisions, expanded irrigation systems, monopolized the use of bronze, and developed a system of writing.

• The Xia Dynasty

  • However, lack of irrigation and flood protection made the region prone to frequent floods and other natural disasters.

• Ur

  • Advances during this time included the building of temples, like the Ziggurat, better agricultural irrigation, and a code of laws, called the Code of Ur-Nammu, which preceded the Code of Hammurabi by 300 years.

• The Maya People

  • Canals and irrigation schemes demanding coordinated human effort began to appear with increasing complexity and scale.
  • Lying within modern-day Guatemala City on the shores of Lake Miraflores, Kaminaljuyu developed a powerful government structure that organized massive irrigation campaigns and built numerous intricately carved stone monuments to its rulers.

• The Moche

  • Moche society was agriculturally based, but because of the arid climate, they invested heavily in the construction of a network of irrigation canals.
  • Because irrigation was the source of wealth and foundation of the empire, the Moche culture emphasized the importance of circulation and flow.