Adler and Pouwels's WORLD CIVILIZATIONS offers broad-based coverage of the world's major civilizations, in a brief-chapter format that presents information in manageable segments. The focused treatment of topics throughout history covers every major epoch and follows general patterns and processes, while illuminating history through specific examples and a particular emphasis on social and cultural topics.

Table of Contents:
Part I: FROM HUMAN ORIGINS TO AGRARIAN COMMUNITIES, c. 100,000–500 BCE. 1. The Earliest Human Societies. 2. Mesopotamia. 3. Early Africa and Egypt. 4. Central Asia and India's Beginnings. 5. New Civilizations and Empires in Western and Central Asia. 6. Ancient China to 221 BCE. 7. The Settlement of the Americas and the Pacific Islands. WORLDVIEW I: FROM HUMAN ORIGINS TO AGRARIAN COMMUNITIES, 100,000–500 BCE. Part II: CLASSICAL CIVILIZATIONS OF THE WORLD, 500 BCE–800 CE. 8. The Greek Adventure. 9. Greek Humanism, 800–100 BCE. 10. Rome from City-State to Empire. 11. The Roman Empire and the Rise of Christianity in the West, 31 BCE –800 CE. 12. Iran, India, and “Global” Trade. 13. Imperial China in Its Golden Age. WORLDVIEW II: CLASSICAL CIVILIZATIONS OF THE WORLD, 500 BCE–800 CE. Part III: THE POST-CLASSICAL ERA, 800–1500 CE. 14. The Americas to the Fifteenth Century. 15. Islam. 16. Mature Islamic Society and the First Global Civilization. 17. Africa from Axum to 1400. 18. The Mongols Unify Eurasia. 19. Japan and Southeast Asia. 20. The European Middle Ages, c. 800-1500. 21. The Late European Middle Ages and the Renaissance. WORLDVIEW III: THE POST-CLASSICAL ERA, 800–1500 CE. Part IV: EXPANDING WEBS OF INTERACTION, 1400–1700 CE. 22. A Larger World Opens. 23. Religious Divisions and Political Consolidation in Europe. 24. The Gunpowder Empires of Western and Southern Asia. 25. Africa in the Era of Expansion. 26. China from the Ming Through the Early Qing Dynasty. 27. Japan and Southeast Asia in the Era of European Expansion. 28. From Conquest to Colonies in Hispanic America. WORLDVIEW IV: EXPANDING WEBS OF INTERACTION, 1400–1700 CE. Part V: REVOLUTIONS AND THE AGE OF EMPIRE, 1600–1914. 29. The Scientific Revolution and Its Enlightened Aftermath. 30. Liberalism and the Challenge to Absolute Monarchy. 31. The Early Industrial Revolution. 32. Europe: New Ideas and New Nations. 33. Advanced Industrial Society. 34. The Islamic World, 1600–1917. 35. India and Southeast Asia under Colonial Rule. 36. European Imperialism and Africa During the Age of Industry. 37. China in the Age of Imperialism. 38. Latin America from Independence to Dependent States. 39. Modern Science and its Implications. WORLDVIEW V: REVOLUTIONS AND THE AGE OF EMPIRE, 1600–1914. Part VI: TOWARDS A GLOBALIZED WORLD, 1914–PRESENT. 40. World War I and Its Disputed Settlement. 41. A Fragile Balance: Europe in the Twenties. 42. The Soviet Experiment to World War II. 43. Totalitarianism Refined: The Nazi State. 44. East Asia in a Century of Change. 45. World War II. 46. The Cold World War. 47. Decolonization of the Non-Western World. 48. The New Asia. 49. Africa's Decolonization and Independence. 50. Latin America in the Twentieth Century. 51. The Reemergence of the Muslim World. 52. Collapse and Reemergence in Communist Europe. 53. A New Millennium. WORLDVIEW VI: TOWARDS A GLOBALIZED WORLD, 1914–PRESENT. Glossary. Answers to Test Your Knowledge. Index.