The Hebrews, Phoenicians, and Lydians

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The Hebrews, Phoenicians, and Lydians
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Hebrews
These countries were also located in the Fertile
Crescent near Mesopotamia.
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The Hebrews (Jews)
The Hebrew Bible says that Abraham was told by
God to leave Ur in Mesopotamia and go to a new
land.
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Abraham went to Canaan which was located in
present day Israel.
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Abraham called his people the Hebrews. The Bible
says that God promised to take care of the
Hebrews if they promised to worship only one God.
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The worship of only one God is called
monotheism. The Hebrews called their religion
Judaism, it was the first monotheistic religion.
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The Hebrews lived in Canaan for some time before
moving to Egypt, where they were enslaved by the
Egyptians.
After freeing slavery in Egypt, the Hebrews
returned to Canaan.
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The Phoenicians
also lived in the Fertile Crescent. They were
known as adventurous traders. They had trading
posts along the Mediterranean Sea.
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One of the most important contributions of the
Phoenicians was that they helped develop the
modern alphabet.
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The Lydians
also lived in the Fertile Crescent. They made
trading easier by inventing the regions first
monetary system (coining money).
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Traders like the Phoenicians and the Lydians
linked various parts of the ancient world
together and spread ideas and this exchange of
goods. This is called cultural diffusion.