Great Ancient Civilizations of Asia Minor

By: Kenneth W. Harl, The Great Courses

Narrated by: Kenneth W. Harl

Length: 12 hrs and 11 mins

Publisher's summary

Embark on an unforgettable trip into the historical glories of the past with these 24 lectures that immerse you in the history of an often overlooked region of the ancient world.

With Professor Harl as your guide, you'll plunge into the history of Asia Minor's great ancient civilizations and come face to face with eye-opening historical milestones. Among these: the rise of the Hittites, the legendary Trojan War, the birth of Western philosophy, the fiery Greek and Persian Wars, the victories of Alexander the Great, the dawn of the Hellenistic Age, the spread of early Christianity, the golden age of Byzantium, the birth of the Ottoman Empire, and much more.

Cultural change and continuity are the main themes of these lectures. You'll come to see how each successive civilization inherited and modified the political, social, religious, and economic institutions of its predecessor. In fact, the scope of Anatolian history can be best understood as a series of major cultural and religious rewrites: first by the Hittite emperors; then by the elites of Hellenic cities; next by their Hellenized descendants in the Roman age; then by Christian emperors and bishops in the Byzantine age; and, finally, by Turkish rulers and Muslim mystics.

To give you a stronger sense of that continuity (and the various changes that are a part of it), these lectures are organized into five cultural components: Early Anatolia (from 6000 to 500 B.C.), Hellenized Anatolia (from 750 to 31 B.C.), Roman Asia Minor (from 200 B.C. to 395 A.D.), Byzantium (from 395 to 1453), and Islamic Turkey (since 1071).

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©2001 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2001 The Great Courses

Another fantastic Course

Professor Harl does an excellent job in presenting this course. His enthusiasm on the subject matter just draws you in. Asia Minor has been both the home of some incredible civilizations and has been at the cross roads between East and West and between Europe and the levant. The Hittites, Greeks, Persians, Macedonians, Romans, Byzantines, Turks, Mongols and Assyrians all vied for supremacy of this strategically located land. Fascinating course, highly recommended.

Fantastic and so easy to keep reading

Excellent survey of Anatolia and the Near East across a huge swath of history. Fast-moving, interesting, and thoroughly enjoyable.

Kenneth Harl is the best

Cohesive narrative delivered in a non dramatic but still colorful performance by Harl. Every one of his great courses is worth the listeners time and attention

Very well taught A++

Harl does a fabulous job conveying the subject matter and explaining the Asia Minor History. This is my third course of his and he is passionate about the material and that makes listening to him all the more exciting.

There Ain't Nothin Minor about this Asia!!! : )

Any additional comments?

This was a great overview of a history of Asia Minor (or Anatolia), what today would essentially be the area of the modern Republic of Turkey. Far from being an obscure topic about an obscure region, this little area is packed with history and was a major player throughout it.

You will go from prehistory and the earliest Hittite Civilizations through the continual cycles of change the region experienced. As the natural crossroads of East and West, this region continually felt the pulls of the great cultural traditions of both East and West, a dynamic which continues right up to the present. This area was constantly "remade" as it went through phases of Greek, Roman, Celtic, Byzantine, and eventually Barbarian Steppe culture. The series ends with an look at how those Turkic speaking barbarians entered and remade this peninsula one last time into what would eventually be the heartland of the Ottoman Empire and the foundation of what we know as the modern Republic of Turkey.

The Professor is amazing. I have listened to many of his works and he offers his listeners traditional history at its very best. If you enjoy a good history book or class, you will learn from and enjoy this series.

Ancient* Civilizations of Asia Minor

woah, i was supprised this got so late into antiquity cause i haven't even read julius caesar, suetonius, josephus etc yet. but then we just charged right through the crusades. should really be titled "Asia Minor from Ancient Civilizations to like, Yesterday.."

Breathtaking in scope and depth

I couldn't wait to here the next chapter. revealed ancient history about which I had only a clue.. It whet my appetite for more knowledge.

Who knew this region was so important in history?

Once again I was taken into a new world of history. I like the way he almost rushes through his material as if there is so much more to say and he is constrained by the limitations of time and space. But the pieces of history are placed together in a way that teaches more than dry facts and dates. We are swept into the flow of events. It’s as if Asia Minor is the keystone of the past.

Serious, sweeping history

Professor Harl is the most outstanding lecturer in The Great Courses. Period. This course punctuates and integrates his other offerings, helping the listener geographically center themselves in Asia Minor and observe how human culture and society evolved in that historical crossroads over centuries from the Hittites to the Ottomans. Masterful, witty, balanced, and insightful. Highly recommended!

History of Asia Minor/Turkey

This is an excellent course, in effect a sweeping history of the area now known as Turkey. I think the title is a bit misleading, since it expands beyond the ancient time period. But I think it would be ideal for someone visiting or interested in Turkey to realize all the history that has occurred in these places.

Professor Harl does his usual enthusiastic job. I have noted in some of his other courses that he often gives examples from this region (when talking about Ancient Greece, Rome, etc.) and this series gave me a deeper knowledge in this area of interest for him.

This would couple well with his lecture series on the Ottoman Empire if you are heading to the region.