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Around 1700 B.C. a system of beliefs called Judaism arose among the Israelite's, a nomadic people of the Middle East. Judaism was the first major world religion to teach monotheism, the idea that there is only one God.
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When the first Europeans reached America, there were Native Americans living there. These Native Americans living in North America were a richly diverse group of people with distinct ways of life.
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One group who lived in the eastern woodlands were the Algonquian. These people were scattered through southern Canada, the Great Lakes area, and along the Atlantic coast to Virginia.
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The Mayas started to abandon their cities. They don't really know why they left their cities it's a mystery. Disease or overpopulation may have caused the decline.
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In this time highly skilled farmers called the Hohokam dug irrigation canals in the deserts of present-day Arizona. Trade brought them in contact with people who lived on the Gulf of California. The Hohokam traded for seashells, which they used to create jewelry and religious objects.
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The Mayas built cities in what is now Mexico and Central America. These splendid contained large public plazas lined with pyramids, temples, ball courts, and nice palaces.
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Another group living in these eastern woodlands were the Iroquois. They spoke Iroquoian languages, and lived in what is now New York.
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In 1095, the leader of the Roman Catholic Church, Pope Urban ll, declared a crusade, or holy war. Its object was to win back control of the region known as the Holy Land, the land where Jesus had lived and taught.
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It reached it height from it's Muslim ruler Mansa Musa. As Mali prospered, its great city Timbuktu became a center of learning. Merchants from Mali traded throughout the region for kola nuts, food, and of course gold.
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In this time Chinese ships were sailing trade routes that stretched from Japan to East Africa. The Chinese explorer Zheng He made several voyages with a fleet of more than 300 giant ships.
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Beginning in the 1300's, there was a rebirth of learning that is known as the Renaissance. European scholars rediscovered the classical texts of ancient Greece and Rome. Artists reflected a new interest in subjects that had influenced ancient thinkers.
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In the 1400's, the Aztec armies brought half of modern day Mexico under control. The Aztecs proved to be effective but harsh rulers. Conquered tribes were forced to send treasure, food, and prisoners to their capitol.
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In the 1400's, the largest empire was not in Europe or Asia it was in South America. The vast empire of the Incas stretched down the coast of South America along the Andes, across the Atacama desert, and reached the fringes of the Amazon rain forest.
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In the 1400's Zimbabwe became the center of a flourishing empire. It lays on the trade route between the east coast and the interior of Africa. Traders passing through Zimbabwe had to pay taxes on their goods.
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During the 1500's the five nations went through a constant warfare. Finally the Iroquois leaders convinced their people to make peace. So they formed a union called the League of the Iroquois.
