Course: Ancient Middle East - selected aspects

« Back
Course title Ancient Middle East - selected aspects
Course code KBS/SBVO
Organizational form of instruction Lecture
Level of course Bachelor
Year of study 2
Semester Winter
Number of ECTS credits 4
Language of instruction Czech
Status of course Compulsory
Form of instruction Face-to-face
Work placements This is not an internship
Recommended optional programme components None
Lecturer(s)
  • Charvát Petr, Prof. PhDr. DrSc.
Course content
1) Economy of the ancient Near East; main feature of the economic structure; types of economic subjects 2) State and temple economy in Mesopotamia and their relation 3) Private sector and its position in the economy 4) Organization of the agriculture, crafts and trade 5) Contacts between the Near East and other regions 6) Characteristic features of the social structure of the ancient Near East 7) Settlement structure in the ancient Near East; city and countryside 8) Settled and nomad population; their relations 9) Family in the ancient Near East 10) State; the role of the ruler; royal ideology and propaganda 11) Cultic personnel and its functions 12) Law; codes and royal edicts; judicial practice 13) Army and military

Learning activities and teaching methods
Self-study of literature, Lecture
  • Preparation for an examination (30-60) - 65 hours per semester
  • Contact hours - 39 hours per semester
prerequisite
Knowledge
Course requires no special prior knowledge and skills.
learning outcomes
The students will have the basic knowledge of the problems connected with the economy and society of the ancient Near East, especially Mesopotamia, as well as of the current state of the study of those topics.
teaching methods
Lecture
Self-study of literature
assessment methods
Written exam
Recommended literature
  • Glassner, Jean-Jacques. Mezopotámie : 34. století př.n.l. až 539 př.n.l.. Praha : Nakladatelství Lidové noviny, 2004. ISBN 80-7106-664-8.
  • Joann?s, Francis (ed.). Dictionnaire de la civilisation mésopotamienne. Paris, Éditions Robert Laffont, 2001. ISBN 2-221-09207-4.
  • Mieroop, Marc van de. The ancient Mesopotamian city. 1st pub. New York : Oxford University Press, 1999. ISBN 0-19-815286-8.
  • Nemeth-Nejat, Karen Rhea. Daily life in ancient Mesopotamia. 1st pub. Westport : Greenwood Press, 1998. ISBN 0-313-29497-6.
  • Pecha, Lukáš. Starobabylónský stát : politický vývoj, hospodářství, státní správa. V Praze : Orientální ústav Akademie věd České republiky, 2003. ISBN 80-85425-51-3.
  • Postgate, J. N. Early Mesopotamia : society and economy at the dawn of history. London : Routledge, 1999. ISBN 0-415-11032-7.
  • Prosecký, Jiří. Encyklopedie starověkého Předního východu. Praha : Libri, 1999. ISBN 80-85983-58-3.
  • Richardson, Seth (ed.). Rebellions and Peripheries in the Cuneiform World. Haven, Connecticut: American Oriental Society, 2010. ISBN 978-0-940490-23-9.
  • Sasson, Jack M. Civilizations of the ancient Near East. Peabody, 2000. ISBN 1-56563-607-4.
  • Seri, Andrea. Local Power in Old Babylonian Mesopotamia. London: Equinox, 2005. ISBN 978-1-84553-010-5.
  • Snell, Daniel C. Life in the ancient Near East : 3100-332 B.C.E.. New Haven : Yale University Press, 1997. ISBN 0-300-07666-5.
  • Wilcke, Claus. Early ancient Near Eastern law : a history of its beginnings : the arly dynastic and sargonic periods. Winona Lake : Eisenbrauns, 2007. ISBN 978-1-57506-132-0.
  • Yoffee, Norman. Myths of the archais state : evolution of the earliest cities, states, and civilizations. Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 2005. ISBN 978-0-521-52156-7.


Study plans that include the course
Faculty Study plan (Version) Category of Branch/Specialization Recommended year of study Recommended semester
Faculty: Faculty of Arts Study plan (Version): Near Eastern Studies (15-5) Category: Social sciences 2 Recommended year of study:2, Recommended semester: Winter