Tiwanaku Empire - City, Imperial State at Lake Titicaca

The Tiwanaku Empire (also spelled Tiahuanaco or Tihuanacu) was one of the first imperial states in South America, dominating portions of what is now southern Peru, northern Chile, and eastern Bolivia for approximately four hundred years (AD 550-950). The capital city, also called Tiwanaku, was located on the southern shores of Lake Titicaca, on the border between Bolivia and Peru. Tiwanaku Basin Chronology The city of Tiwanaku emerged as a major ritual-political center in the southeastern Lake Titicaca Basin as early as the Late Formative/Early Intermediate period (100 BC-AD 500), and expanded greatly in extent and monumentality during the later part of the period. After 500 AD, Tiwanaku was transformed into an expansive urban center, with far-flung colonies of its own. Tiwanaku I (Qalasasaya), 250 BC-AD 300, Late FormativeTiwanaku III (Qeya), AD 300-475Tiwanaku IV (Tiwanaku Period), AD 400-800, Andean Middle HorizonTiwanaku V, AD 800-1150hiatus Inca Empire, AD 1400-1532 Tiwanaku City The capital city of Tiwanaku lies in the high river basins of the Tiwanaku and Katari rivers, at altitudes between 3,800 and 4,200 meters (12,500-13,880 feet) above sea level. Despite its location at such a high altitude, and with frequent frosts and thin soils, perhaps as many as 20,000 people lived in the city at its heyday. During the Late Formative period, the Tiwanaku Empire was in direct competition with the Huari empire, located in central Peru. Tiwanaku style artifacts and architecture have been discovered throughout the central Andes, a circumstance that has been attributed to imperial expansion, dispersed colonies, trading networks, a spread of ideas or a combination of all these forces. Crops and Farming The basin floors where Tiwanaku city was built were marshy and flooded seasonally because of snow melt from the Quelcceya ice cap. The Tiwanaku farmers used this to their advantage, constructing elevated sod platforms or raised fields on which to grow their crops, separated by canals. These raised agricultural field systems stretched the capacity of the high plains to allow for protection of crops through frost and drought periods. Large aqueducts were also constructed at satellite cities such as Lukurmata and Pajchiri. Because of the high elevation, crops grown by the Tiwanaku were limited to frost-resistant plants such as potatoes and quinoa. Llama caravans brought maize and other trade goods up from lower elevations. The Tiwanaku had large herds of domesticated alpaca and llama  and hunted wild guanaco and vicuà ±a. Stone Work Stone was of primary importance to Tiwanaku identity: although the attribution is not certain, the city may have been called Taypikala (Central Stone) by its residents. The city is characterized by elaborate, impeccably carved and shaped stonework in its buildings, which are a striking blend of yellow-red-brown locally-available in its buildings, which are a striking blend of yellow-red-brown locally-available sandstone, and greenish-bluish volcanic andesite from farther away. Recently, Janusek and colleagues have argued that the variation is tied to a political shift at Tiwanaku. The earliest buildings, constructed during the Late Formative period, were principally built of sandstone. Yellowish to reddish brown sandstones were used in architectural revetments, paved floors, terrace foundations, subterranean canals, and a host of other structural features. Most of the monumental stelae, which depict personified ancestral deities and animate natural forces, are also made of sandstone. Recent studies have identified the location of the quarries in the foothills of the Kimsachata mountains, southeast of the city. The introduction of bluish to greenish gray andesite happens at the start of the Tiwanaku period (AD 500-1100), at the same time as Tiwanaku began to expand its power regionally. Stoneworkers and masons began to incorporate the heavier volcanic rock from more distant ancient volcanoes and igneous outgroups, recently identified at mounts Ccapia and Copacabana in Peru. The new stone was denser and harder, and the stonemasons used it to build on a larger scale than before, including large pedestals and trilithic portals. In addition, the workers replaced some sandstone elements in the older buildings with new andesite elements. Monolithic Stelae Present at Tiwanaku city and other Late Formative centers are stelae, stone statues of personages. The earliest are made of reddish-brown sandstone. Each of these early ones depicts a single anthropomorphic individual, wearing distinctive facial ornaments or painting. The persons arms are folded across his or her chest, with one hand sometimes placed over the other. Beneath the eyes are lightning bolts; and the personages are wearing minimal clothing, consisting of a sash, skirt, and headgear. The early monoliths are decorated with sinuous living creatures such as felines and catfish, often rendered symmetrically and in pairs. Scholars suggest that these might represent images of a mummified ancestor. Later, about 500 AD, the stelae change in style. These later stelae are carved from andesite, and the persons depicted have impassive faces and wear elaborately woven tunics, sashes, and headgear of elites. The people in these carvings have three-dimensional shoulders, head, arms, legs, and feet. They often hold equipment associated with the use of hallucinogens: a kero vase full of fermented chicha and a snuff tablet for hallucinogenic resins. There is more variations of dress and body decoration among the later stelae, including face markings and hair tresses, which may represent individual rulers or dynastic family heads; or different landscape features and their associated deities. Scholars believe these represent living ancestral hosts rather than mummies. Trade and Exchange After about 500 AD, there is clear evidence that Tiwanaku established a pan-regional system of multi-community ceremonial centers in Peru and Chile. The centers had terraced platforms, sunken courts and a set of religious paraphernalia in what is called Yayamama style. The system was connected back to Tiwanaku by trading caravans of llamas, trading goods such as maize, coca, chili peppers, plumage from tropical birds, hallucinogens, and hardwoods. The diasporic colonies endured for hundreds of years, originally established by a few Tiwanaku individuals but also supported by in-migration. Radiogenic strontium and oxygen isotope analysis of the Middle Horizon Tiwanaku colony at Rio Muerto, Peru, found that a small number of the people buried at Rio Muerto were born elsewhere and traveled as adults. Scholars suggest they may have been interregional elites, herders, or caravan drovers. Collapse of Tiwanaku After 700 years, the Tiwanaku civilization disintegrated as a regional political force. This happened about 1100 AD, and resulted, at least one theory goes, from the effects of climate change, including a sharp decrease in rainfall. There is evidence that the groundwater level dropped and the raised field beds failed, leading to a collapse of agricultural systems in both the colonies and the heartland. Whether that was the sole or most important reason for the end of the culture is debated. Archaeological Ruins of Tiwanaku Satellites and Colonies Bolivia: Lukurmata, Khonkho Wankane, Pajchiri, Omo, Chiripa, Qeyakuntu, Quiripujo, Juchuypampa Cave, Wata Wata Chile: San Pedro de Atacama Peru: Chan Chan, Rio Muerto, Omo Sources The best source for detailed Tiwanaku information has to be Alvaro Higuerass Tiwanaku and Andean Archaeology. Baitzel SI, and Goldstein PS. 2014. More than the sum of its parts: Dress and social identity in a provincial Tiwanaku child burial. Journal of Anthropological Archaeology 35:51-62.Becker SK, and Alconini S. 2015. Head Extraction, Interregional Exchange, and Political Strategies of Control at the Site of Wata Wata, Kallawaya Territory, Bolivia, during the Transition between the Late Formative and Tiwanaku Periods (A.D. 200-800). Latin American Antiquity 26(1):30-48.Hu D. 2017. War or peace? Assessing the rise of the Tiwanaku state through projectile-point analysis. Lithics: The Journal of the Lithic Studies Society 37:84-86.Janusek JW. 2016. Processions, Ritual Movements, and the Ongoing Production of Pre-Columbian Societies, with a Perspective from Tiwanaku. Processions in the Ancient Americas: Occasional Papers in Anthropology at Penn State 33(7).Janusek JW, Williams PR, Golitko M, and Aguirre CL. 2013. Building Taypikala: Telluric Transformations in the Lithic Production of Tiwana ku. In: Tripcevich N, and Vaughn KJ, editors. Mining and Quarrying in the Ancient Andes: Springer New York. p 65-97.Knudson KJ, Gardella KR, and Yaeger J. 2012. Provisioning Inka feasts at Tiwanaku, Bolivia: the geographic origins of camelids in the Pumapunku complex. Journal of Archaeological Science 39(2):479-491.Knudson KJ, Goldstein PS, Dahlstedt A, Somerville A, and Schoeninger MJ. 2014. Paleomobility in the Tiwanaku Diaspora: Biogeochemical analyses at Rio Muerto, Moquegua, Peru. American Journal of Physical Anthropology 155(3):405-421.Niemeyer HM, Salazar D, Tricallotis HH, and Peà ±a-Gà ³mez FT. 2015. New Insights into the Tiwanaku Style of Snuff Trays from San Pedro de Atacama, Northern Chile. Latin American Antiquity 26(1):120-136.Somerville AD, Goldstein PS, Baitzel SI, Bruwelheide KL, Dahlstedt AC, Yzurdiaga L, Raubenheimer S, Knudson KJ, and Schoeninger MJ. 2015. Diet and gender in the Tiwanaku colonies: Stable isotope analysis of human bone collagen and apatite from Moquegua, Peru. American Journal of Physical Anthropology 158(3):408-422.

The Jewish Religion - 3279 Words

In the Jewish religion, there have been many occurrences of pluralism and many movements throughout the timeline of its history, from the very beginning of Creation to this very moment. Pluralism has been an important dimension of Judaism. There have been past, present and there will be future movements of this religion because it is ever evolving and growing for and to most. In each period of Judaic history, there have been several moments of pluralism at its finest and examples of different movements. Each period, Biblical Period (Creation, Themes of the Torah, Prophets and Writings), Christianity and Judaism, medieval mysticism and philosophy to the modern movements (Orthodox, Conservative, Reconstructionist, Reform and Holocaust and Redemption Jews) gives prime examples of pluralism. The beginning of time when God created the world the book of Genesis there are two different Creation stories. Genesis 1:1 says, â€Å"In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.† Later, in Genesis 2:4, a second, different story of creation begins. The idea of two different creation stories is not confusion it shows the same events just in a different context. These two stories of how the Earth and everything on it was created was given by God to a scriber to write down the words of God. God gave two different stories to help or show his people that there and be two sides to everything, choose what you believe to be true. The stories leave room for us to rationalize what reallyShow MoreRelatedThe Jewish Religion1929 Words   |  8 Pagesat the beginning of the semester I wanted to choose something that I was interested in learning but didn’t know much about, and that’s exactly why I chose to take this Jewish Studies course. As I was raised a Catholic and attended Catholic school all my life I knew very little about the Jewish Religion. Now my knowledge of the Jewish faith has strengthened and has been fulfilled with the help of this class and Rabbi Bogot. The phrase I chose to right my term paper on is the word and meaning of MitzvahRead MoreWomen And The Jewish Religion979 Words   |  4 Pagesin societies are used as a way to establish order. By giving each person a specific role it allows them to carry out specific duties and obligations. Each religion has a certain way they perceive and treat certain people. It can be based on class, intelligence or even gender. Gender plays a big part in how a society is run. Judaism is one religion where â€Å"it believes, and continues to maintain, that within its religious life men and women have distinct and differentiated roles (Sacks, 1978).† SacksRead MoreJewish Religion And The Jewish Culture998 Words   |  4 Pages Orthodox Jewish Population Why I choose the Jewish culture as my topic The topic I choose for my topic was the Orthodox Jewish population. I choose this topic for the reason that, I really do not know that much about the Jewish culture. With that being said I am interested in knowing how they deal with a crisis, or what their belief system is when it comes to seeking help outside of their community. My objective is to identify the barriers, institutional and personal, that must be overcome beforeRead MoreChristianity And The Jewish Religion2350 Words   |  10 PagesRoman Empire, at the eastern end of the Mediterranean, a new religion, Christianity, emerged. Much of the impetus for this new religion rested in issues in the Jewish religion, including a long-standing belief in the coming of a Messiah and rigidities that had developed in the Jewish priesthood. Whether or not Christianity was created by God, as Christians believe, the early stages of the religion focused on cleansing the Jewish religion of stiff rituals and haughty leaders. It had little at firstRead MoreThe Moses Had On The Jewish Religion1438 Words   |  6 PagesKathryn Paris Humanities -2223 Prof. Reagan Smith The Importance the Moses had in the Jewish Religion For us to really understand this we must start at the beginning. Moses was born in 1393 BCE he was the third child to Jocheved and Amram, he had a brother and sister Aaron and Miriam during this time the Israelites were enslaved. Due to the many decree handed down by the rulers of the time his mother had no choice to when he was 3 months old to place him in a basket and send him down the NileRead MoreRole of Women in Jewish Religion1254 Words   |  6 PagesWe have been taught about several religions throughout this course, but one religion that has really caught me, is Judaism. There are many interesting facts about the Jewish community, religion, and such. However, I’m going to just talk about Jewish women and the roles they play in the Jewish community. In traditional Judaism, women are for the most part seen as separate but equal. Women s obligations and responsibilities are different from men s, but no less important. As a matter of fact, women’sRead MoreJudaism : The Religion Of The Jewish People826 Words   |  4 PagesJudaism is the religion of the Jewish people. It is a monotheistic religion meaning that the Jews believe in one, all powerful God. Jewish people were among the first convicts and settlers to Australia. Over many years the Jewish population in Australia grew making Judaism a more popular and known practiced religion in Australia. Judaism is a minority religion making up for around 0.3% of the Australian population. In the 2011 census 97, 335 Australians identified as Jewish with 90% of theseRead MoreComparative Religions Encyclopedia Of The Jewish People1277 Words   |  6 Pages Comparative Religions Encyclopedia Kenneth Ayres period 1 A. Abraham: Abraham and the individuals that followed him and believed what he believed, were the founders of judaism. The history of the jewish people goes back to the bronze age, somewhere in the middle east. God had provided a nomad leader for the people, and he was named Abraham. Allah: Allah is literally the islamic word for god. Allah is the only god of the Islamic religion. Allah has no gender, and allah is used as respectedRead MoreDietary Laws of the Jewish Religion Essay861 Words   |  4 PagesIn the Jewish religion dietary laws are one of the most important parts of keeping the faith. These laws are thought to be sent from God to keep the Jewish people pure. Over the year it has became easier for Jews to eat kosher but many people have chosen to assimilate with passing time. A tradition that started around 3500 years ago that has kept its importance. Around 1275 B.C.E many of the Jewish prophets started to talk about kashrut otherwise known as keeping kosher. They talked about how GodRead MoreHistory of the Jewish Religion Essay examples3601 Words   |  15 PagesHistory of the Jewish Religion The Jewish religion has also undergone many transformations over the years. It started off in its earliest years as being animistic, with Hebrews worshipping forces of nature. As a result this religion had a number of practices that concerned magic and animal sacrifices. The Hebrew religion also became polytheistic which involves several gods. Hebrew religion eventually became anthropomorphic, in which God or gods became human individuals and had human characteristics

Understanding the International Macro Economy

Question: Discuss about theUnderstanding the International Macro Economy. Answer: Introduction The most common decisive factor that is suggested by economists to determine the optimal exchange rate regime is macroeconomic as well as financial stability in the face of transient real or nominal shocks. The GCC was founded in the year 1981 with the objective of relinquishing closer ties as well as powerful links among the six member states. After the establishment of the GCC, member states signed a treaty that established the GCC Free Trade Area as well as delineated the steps for closer economic collaboration (Legrenzi 2015). The most common decisive factor suggested by theoretical literature for concluding the optimal regime of exchange rate is macroeconomic as well as economic stability in the face of real shocks. External stability is described as a balance of payments position that is not probable to lead to disruptive adjustments in the rates of exchange. The position of the balance of payment is reliable with external stability in which current account is widely in line wi th the level of equilibrium. The predictable view on the choice of regime of exchange rate is useful for macroeconomic as w,ell as financial constancy in the face of real domestic and external shocks. Fixed exchange rate is more effectual in accomplishing macroeconomic as well as financial constancy acting in response to domestic nominal shocks (Gervais, Schembri and Suchanek 2016). The weakness of oil prices led to questioning of the sustainability of the fixed rate of exchange currency systems in the GCC. There are several imperative causes to believe that low prices of energy could weaken the reliability of pegs in the region. Export revenues are mostly affected due to several oil-related goods that are considered as the major export of the Gulf countries. The foreign reserves of the central banks are likely to be drained due to the historically unrelenting current account surplus of the region that is also likely to put further pressure on the pegs (Arouri, Jouini and Nguyen 2013). Currencies mostly get prone to suffer exploratory attacks due to excess pressure on the regime of fixed rate of exchange. In this case, the exploratory attacks mostly include deflation as well as shift to a free-floating regime.The government of GCC has stated that they stay open to the choice of exchange rate arrangement under the proposed GCC currency union. Besides, several adv antages free-floating regime leads to several issues for Gulf countries. This is mostly due to the introduction of currency risks for cross-border business as well as expenditures. GCC currencies are likely to face additional pressure, as devaluation expectations are likely to generate considerable capital outflows. A balance of payment deficit of 14 percent and 21 percent are get experienced by both Saudi Arabia and Qatar respectively. This will mostly take place due to deterioration of the current account. Credibility of the fixed exchange rate mostly depends on the holdings of the foreign reserves. The largest volume of central bank reserves in the Gulf are acquired by Saudi Arabia both in absolute and comparative terms. This in turn helps to provide financial support to nine years of BoP deficit of its gross domestic product (Dell and Lawrence 2013). The rest of the GCC countries seem to appear in a meager position, if only the central bank reserves are taken into consideration. However, superior wealth fund resources are mostly not included in the reserves of central banks that could be used for monetary approach purposes. The fixed exchange regime are mostly guaranteed in the medium run due to adequate resources that are hold by authorities in the GCC countries. However, the evolution of oil prices in the long-run determines the adjustments of exchange rate (Ganguli 2016). Even Bahrain and Oman are able to endure comparatively long periods of low prices of oil as they could finance up to one year of imports with their national reserves as well as five years of a corresponding BoP deficit. The insulating properties of exchange rate regimes are affected powerfully by the structural characteristics of the GCC economies. As GCC countries may diversify in the future, flexibility of greater rate of exchange may be warranted. During t he year 2003, all the GCC countries (except Kuwait) were already pegged to the US dollar and the decision was made on the basis of the expectation that the dollar peg would maintain constancy and also reinforce confidence in the economies. GCC countries have pursued economic policies that are reliable with exchange rate pegs. Members of GCC have accumulated noteworthy foreign exchange reserves that strengthen the credibility of the peg and deject speculation against their currencies. Macroeconomic circumstance in the GCC countries has been steady for the last two decades mostly during the periods of dollar instabilities. The rate of exchange simplifies trade as well as economic transaction that lead to financial coordination among the member countries (Collins et al. 2017). Even in the absence of a well-developed domestic private market in forward exchange, risk related to exchange rate can be easily evaded as there remains a probability to work with the help of US dollar markets. W ith the given degree of variability of the GCC countries, it is tremendously difficult to conclude the rate of exchange without any impact on some of the stability characteristics. The predictable unit value of the projected GCC common currency is equal to 0.293 dollars. This rate of exchange is comparatively higher as compared to the existing currency exchange rates among the GCC countries. With cross-rates steady, intra-GCC business deal benefits as traders as well as investors do not have to take any risk that is associated with exchange rate. This in turn encourages further incorporation of members. GCC mostly considers the real exchange rate as a measure of competitiveness. The small model of GCC comprises of four equations for the real rate of exchange as well as real output and price level. The doubling-up of the real oil price appreciates the real rate of exchange of the GCC countries by about 3 percent on an average. Exchange rate arrangements other than the dollar peg could be considered in light of emerging changes in business as well as investment prototypes. With augmented mobility of capital, trade openness as well as foreign direct investment, the requirements for supporting an exchange rate peg become more challenging. The maintenance of a tight peg to the dollar forces the GCC countries to depend almost completely on fiscal policy in order to manage oil- related instability (Basher 2015). A more flexible regime of exchange rate is likely to provide these countries with another tool for adjust to oil shocks. However, the GCC countries also operate under large current account surpluses and as a result, their current exchange rate is undervalued. The dollar peg provides a powerful and easily understood anchor for monetary policy however; it is not possible to diverge too much from the rate of inflation of the US. Global competitiveness can be maintained under a fixed rate of exchange in the GCC countries due to flexibility of the labor market. The peg of the exchange rate also simplifies business as well as economic transaction. A single GCC currency float against other currencies would have the benefit of permitting the GCC countries to make the use of monetary policy in order to alleviate inflation and also non-oil productivity and to promote the expansion of the private non-oil economy. In the light of the present structural charact eristics of the GCC countries, the active monetary and exchange rate policies are put to question that whether these policies will be able to accomplish external stability (Bouoiyour and Selmi 2014). The risks that are associated with floating rates of exchange are the large swings in prices of oil that could lead to volatile rate of exchange and to larger fluctuation in non-oil productivity in the end. The implementation of basket peg may be helpful way in order to introduce several flexibility of the exchange rate. However, one of the disadvantages that are associated with basket peg is that it may diminish the microeconomic and informational advantages to maintain a constant two-sided rate of exchange. Gulf countries require to implement further long-term reforms in order to enhance the sustainability of their financial system and currency regime. Diversification is particularly requisite as it would shield the balance of payment from instability of oil price (Ghosh, Ostry and Qureshi 2015). (R) = ($) + (1 - )() Here R stands for the common currency of GCC. An optional to pegging to an individual currency, the dollar, is pegging to a basket of two currencies. However, and are constants in order to determine the nominal rate of exchange between R and the basket. In other words, the basket peg rule fixes the values of and . It can be concluded that the economies of GCC are identical in terms of their structural as well as financial fundamentals. The GCC states look identical in terms of sustainable expansion as well as price stability. It can be concluded the rate of exchange abridges trade as well as economic business that lead to financial organization among the member countries. At the exchange of GCC, real-time currency rates of exchange are provided. Due to weakness in the oil price, the sustainability of the fixed rate of exchange systems in the GCC is put to question. The currencies are mostly prone to undergo exploratory attacks mostly when fixed exchange rate are under pressure. It can concluded that the current rate of exchange for all the six countries of GCC are fixed except that of Kuwait and the exchange rate of those countries are comparatively higher than that of existing rates. References Arouri, M.E.H., Jouini, J. and Nguyen, D.K., 2013. On the relationship between world oil prices and GCC stock markets. Basher, S., 2015. Regional initiative in the Gulf Arab States: the search for a common currency.International Journal of Islamic and Middle Eastern Finance and Management,8(2), pp.185-202. Bouoiyour, J. and Selmi, R., 2014. GCC Countries and the Nexus between Exchange Rate and Oil Price: What wavelet decomposition reveals?.International Journal of Computational Economics and Econometrics,5(1), pp.55-70. Collins, R.D., Selin, N.E., de Weck, O.L. and Clark, W.C., 2017. Using inclusive wealth for policy evaluation: Application to electricity infrastructure planning in oil-exporting countries.Ecological Economics,133, pp.23-34. Dell, S. and Lawrence, R., 2013.The Balance of Payments Adjustment Process in Developing Countries: Pergamon Policy Studies on Socio-Economic Development. Elsevier. Ganguli, S., 2016. An economic analysis of sustainability of a potential GCC economic and monetary union during 2005-2014.World Journal of Entrepreneurship, Management and Sustainable Development,12(3), pp.194-206. Gervais, O., Schembri, L. and Suchanek, L., 2016. Current account dynamics, real exchange rate adjustment, and the exchange rate regime in emerging-market economies.Journal of Development Economics,119, pp.86-99. Ghosh, A.R., Ostry, J.D. and Qureshi, M.S., 2015. Exchange rate management and crisis susceptibility: A reassessment.IMF Economic Review,63(1), pp.238-276. Legrenzi, M., 2015.The GCC and the international relations of the Gulf: Diplomacy, security and economic coordination in a changing Middle East(Vol. 44). IB Tauris.