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By the end of this unit I will be able to:
1) Describe the physical geography of the
Fertile Crescent and the impact it had on
peoples’ lives.
1) Explain the process that led to the creation
of the first city-states.
1) Present Sumerian achievements in culture
and science.
1) Describe the achievements of the
Babylonian civilization.
1) Map the locations of the Hittites,
Assyrians, and Chaldeans.
UNIT ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS
At the end of this unit there will be an assessment
during which you will be expected to answer 3 of the
following questions (picked at random by myself)
What impact did the Tigris and Euphrates have on life in
Mesopotamia?
What allowed people in Mesopotamia to create the first cities?
What role did Sargon play in the rise of the Akkadian Empire?
Why was the invention of Cuneiform an important step in human
history?
How did the art and architecture of Sumer show the power and
wealth of its rulers?
Why was Hammurabi's Code an important step in legal history?
In what ways did the Assyrians create and run their empire?
2) Show the expansion of the Phoenicians
and their contributions to later
civilizations.
In what ways was the alphabet an improvement over earlier forms of
writing?
NAME ________________________________________________________________________
UNIT VOCAB
City State – A city and the surrounding area under a single
ruler of government.
Division of Labor – A system in which an individual
specializes in a single task.
Epics – Long stories telling tales of heroes and their
adventures.
Fertile Crescent – An area of rich farmland between the
Mediterranean and Persian Gulf.
Hierarchy – The division of people based on their wealth,
rank, birth, class, or race.
Irrigation – The supplying of water to plants and land to help
farming.
Mesopotamia – The lands between the Tigris and Euphrates
Rivers.
Monarch – The king or queen of a people.
Polytheism – The belief in many gods or goddesses.
Silt – A mix of fertile soil and rock deposited by rivers.
Surplus – Having more of an item than is needed.
Ziggurat – A large mud-brick building used for religious and
government purposes.
Fertile Crescent
Mesopotamia
Silt
Irrigation
City-state
Polytheism
Ziggurat
Surplus
Epics
Monarch
Division of Labor
Hierarchy
MESOPOTAMIA
What impact did the Tigris and Euphrates have on life in
Mesopotamia?
What allowed people in Mesopotamia to create the first cities?
AGENDA
• Reading : The Geography of Mesopotamia
• Notes : Farming & Division of Labor
• Map Making : Basics of Mesopotamian Geography.
• Essential Questions : Short answer
MESOPOTAMIA
The Tigris and Euphrates rivers are the most important physical features of the region sometimes known as
Mesopotamia. Mesopotamia means “between the rivers” in Greek. The region called Mesopotamia lies between Asia
Minor and the Persian Gulf. The region is part of a larger area called the Fertile Crescent, a large arc of rich, or fertile,
farmland. The Fertile Crescent extends from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean Sea.
Mesopotamia was actually made of two parts. Northern Mesopotamia was a plateau bordered on the north and the
east by mountains. Southern Mesopotamia was a flat plain. The Tigris and Euphrates rivers flowed down from the hills
into this low-lying plain.
Hunter-gatherer groups first settled in Mesopotamia more than 12,000 years ago. Over time, these people learned
how to plant crops to grow their own food. Every year, floods on the Tigris and Euphrates brought silt to the land. The
fertile silt made the land ideal for agriculture. The first farming settlements formed as early as 7000 BC. Farmers grew
wheat, barley, and other grains. Livestock, birds, and fish were also good sources of food. Plentiful food led to
population growth, and villages formed. Eventually, these early villages developed into the world’s first civilization.
MAP
On the map sheet find and label:
The Tigris & Euphrates Rivers.
The Mediterranean and Persian
Gulf.
The Taurus and Zagros Mountains.
The Syrian Desert.
The Tigris and Euphrates rivers are the most important physical features of the
region sometimes known as Mesopotamia. Mesopotamia means “between
the rivers” in Greek. The region called Mesopotamia lies between Asia Minor
and the Persian Gulf. The region is part of a larger area called the Fertile
Crescent, a large arc of rich, or fertile, farmland. The Fertile Crescent extends
from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean Sea.
Mesopotamia was actually made of two parts. Northern Mesopotamia was a
plateau bordered on the north and the east by mountains. Southern
Mesopotamia was a flat plain. The Tigris and Euphrates rivers flowed down
from the hills into this low-lying plain.
Hunter-gatherer groups first settled in Mesopotamia more than 12,000 years
ago. Over time, these people learned how to plant crops to grow their own
food. Every year, floods on the Tigris and Euphrates brought silt to the land.
The fertile silt made the land ideal for agriculture. The first farming
settlements formed as early as 7000 BC. Farmers grew wheat, barley, and
other grains. Livestock, birds, and fish were also good sources of food.
Plentiful food led to population growth, and villages formed. Eventually, these
early villages developed into the world’s first civilization.
MESOPOTAMIA
The Tigris and Euphrates rivers are the most important physical features of the region sometimes known as
Mesopotamia. Mesopotamia means “between the rivers” in Greek. The region called Mesopotamia lies between Asia
Minor and the Persian Gulf. The region is part of a larger area called the Fertile Crescent, a large arc of rich, or fertile,
farmland. The Fertile Crescent extends from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean Sea.
Mesopotamia was actually made of two parts. Northern Mesopotamia was a plateau bordered on the north and the
east by mountains. Southern Mesopotamia was a flat plain. The Tigris and Euphrates rivers flowed down from the hills
into this low-lying plain.
Hunter-gatherer groups first settled in Mesopotamia more than 12,000 years ago. Over time, these people learned
how to plant crops to grow their own food. Every year, floods on the Tigris and Euphrates brought silt to the land. The
fertile silt made the land ideal for agriculture. The first farming settlements formed as early as 7000 BC. Farmers grew
wheat, barley, and other grains. Livestock, birds, and fish were also good sources of food. Plentiful food led to
population growth, and villages formed. Eventually, these early villages developed into the world’s first civilization.
MAP
On the map sheet find and label:
The Tigris & Euphrates Rivers.
The Mediterranean and Persian
Gulf.
The Taurus and Zagros Mountains.
The Syrian Desert.
FARMING
Farming in Mesopotamia was difficult because
of unpredictable water supply.
The land often alternated between periods of
drought and flooding.
What would cause drought or flooding?
To solve their water problem, people dug canals
and ditches to control the flow of water and
prevent flooding.
DIVISION OF LABOR
In Mesopotamia a single farmer could grow
enough food to support several people.
With division of labor societies became more
complex as people specialized in different jobs.
What jobs would a larger settlement need people to
do?
By 4000 BC the largest settlements had
developed into cities with populations of
around 10,000 people.
MESOPOTAMIA
The Tigris and Euphrates rivers are the most important physical features of the region sometimes known as
Mesopotamia. Mesopotamia means “between the rivers” in Greek. The region called Mesopotamia lies between Asia
Minor and the Persian Gulf. The region is part of a larger area called the Fertile Crescent, a large arc of rich, or fertile,
farmland. The Fertile Crescent extends from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean Sea.
Mesopotamia was actually made of two parts. Northern Mesopotamia was a plateau bordered on the north and the
east by mountains. Southern Mesopotamia was a flat plain. The Tigris and Euphrates rivers flowed down from the hills
into this low-lying plain.
Hunter-gatherer groups first settled in Mesopotamia more than 12,000 years ago. Over time, these people learned
how to plant crops to grow their own food. Every year, floods on the Tigris and Euphrates brought silt to the land. The
fertile silt made the land ideal for agriculture. The first farming settlements formed as early as 7000 BC. Farmers grew
wheat, barley, and other grains. Livestock, birds, and fish were also good sources of food. Plentiful food led to
population growth, and villages formed. Eventually, these early villages developed into the world’s first civilization.
MAP
On the map sheet find and label:
The Tigris & Euphrates Rivers.
The Mediterranean and Persian
Gulf.
The Taurus and Zagros Mountains.
The Syrian Desert.
MAP
On the map sheet find and label:
The Tigris & Euphrates Rivers.
The Mediterranean and Persian Gulf.
The Taurus and Zagros Mountains.
The Syrian Desert.
What impact did the Tigris and Euphrates have on life in Mesopotamia?
What allowed people in Mesopotamia to create the first cities?