Practice Quiz for
Chiefdoms and States

No. of Questions= 18

INSTRUCTIONS: To answer a question, click the button in front of your choice. A response will appear in the window below the question to let you know if you are correct. Be sure to read the feedback. It is designed to help you learn the material. You can also learn by reading the feedback for incorrect answers.

1.  As some horticultural societies of the past developed more intensive agricultural subsistence patterns when their populations grew into the thousands, they were forced to create new levels of political integration in order to maintain unity and order. Which of the following did they develop first?
a) chiefdom
b) state
2.  In what way are chiefdoms similar to bands and tribes?
a) They are mostly classless societies.
b) Their top political positions are only temporary.
c) none of the above
3.  What commonly functions as a rudimentary beginning of a taxation system in chiefdoms?
a) the redistribution of surplus goods by the chief
b) the chief forcing farmers to give up some of their girls to be his wife
c) both of the above
4.  How are difficult disputes between people living in a chiefdom usually settled if an informal agreement cannot be reached by the parties?
a) A chief usually functions as an arbitrator and judge.
b) Someone from a neighboring society is asked to act as an arbitrator and judge.
c) none of the above
5.  What is the subsistence base that is almost always found among societies with a state level of political integration?
a) pastoralism
b) horticulture
c) large-scale intensive agriculture
6.  Around 4,500-5,500 years ago, kingdoms with state level political systems developed into ancient civilizations in which of the following areas?
a) northwestern Europe
b) Japan
c) Mesopotamia
d) all of the above
7.  Which of the following is likely to have pyramid shaped power relationships with a small hereditary elite class at the top headed by a king and royal family?
a) chiefdoms
b) states
c) both of the above
8.  Which of the following would be expected to have the most centralization of power?
a) chiefdom
b) state
c) both are about equal in the centralization of power.
9.  Which of the following would be most likely to have a well equipped professional army?
a) chiefdom
b) state
c) both of the above would be equally likely to have professional armies
10.  Which of the following statements concerning slaves in the ancient civilizations in Egypt and Mesopotamia is true?
a) They were often people defeated in war.
b) They were often made servants in the households of the political elites.
c) Their children could sometimes become free, wealthy, and politically powerful.
d) all of the above
11.  When did the transition from acephalous bands and tribes to chiefdoms begin?
a) 2,000-3,000 years ago
b) 4,000-5,000 years ago
c) 8,000-10,000 years ago
12.  According to this tutorial, what was the main reason that our ancestors first developed domesticated food plants and began farming.
a) A combination of a changing climate and human over population made it necessary.
b) Constant warfare demanded greater food production.
c) Curiosity driven experimentation led them to realize that farming was a better way of getting food.
13.  What is the name of the theory of state formation that the British archaeologist V. Gordon Childe developed in 1936? This theory assumed that people made rational economic decisions that led them inevitably to develop the first states.
a) voluntaristic theory
b) hydraulic theory
c) coercive theory
14.  What is the name of the theory of state formation developed during the 1950's by Karl Wittfogel and Julian Steward? This was an ecological explanation that proposed that states arose out of the need to construct and manage large-scale irrigation systems necessary for intensive agriculture within arid river valleys.
a) coercive theory
b) hydraulic theory
c) tribute theory
15.  What was the main argument of the coercive theory of early state formation? This theory was developed in the 1970's by Robert Carneiro.
a) Centralized state governments developed to mobilize and direct armies which would continue to exist as tools for controlling conquered peoples, collecting tribute, and allocating resources.
b) Food surpluses made possible by farming allowed some to become wealthier than others which resulted in greater social inequalities and the decision to develop less democratic states.
c) none of the above
16.  This tutorial concluded that the theory of early state formation that is mostly likely the best one is the _________________ .
a) coercive theory
b) hydraulic theory
c) voluntaristic theory
d) multi-cause theory
17.  Modern nation states differ from the states of the ancient civilizations in that modern states commonly have _______________________ .
a) smaller bureaucracies.
b) less social mobility
c) larger cities
d) all of the above
18.  Which of the following statements is true?
a) There is no slavery in modern nation states.
b) The human population is no longer growing in numbers.
c) Over the 21st century, much of the world very likely will face severe shortages, including those of food, drinking water, arable land, and petroleum based fuels.
d) all of the above
 
 

  
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This page was last updated on Monday, July 31, 2006.
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