Download Important: Please cite page and paragraph to support your answers

Mrs. K. Jones
12/3/13
Chapter 6: Mesopotamia Fill-in Notes and Study Guide
* Important: Please cite page and paragraph to support your answers.
I. Geography and Climate
Mesopotamia is the land between _________________, the ______________ River and the
___________________ River. The climate of the Mesopotamian plain included hot, dry summers with
____________________ in the spring and fall. The ancient Sumerians handled the climate problems by
creating __________________________________. The ancient Sumerian city-states were first ruled by
______________________. Then, military rulers rose to power as kings because they protected the
___________________ from enemies.
II. Name The Ruler
a. Sargon
b. Shamshi-Adad
e. King Nebuchandnezzar
c. Hammurabi d. King Tiglath-Pileser III
f. King Nabonidus
g. King Adad Nirari
1. ________________ created the world’s first empire by conquering the Sumerian city-states.
2. __________________ became king by murdering the king of Kish, taking his throne, and building his
own army.
3. __________________ built the Assyrian Empire into a trade and military power.
4. ___________________ punished the Jews of Judah severely when they refused to pay taxes.
5. ____________________ created the Babylonian Empire and came to rule all of Mesopotamia.
6. ____________________ developed and made public an organized system of laws.
7. ______________________ was responsible for the Babylonians’ major building projects, such as the
rebuilding of the ziggurat.
8. ____________________ ruled the Assyrian Empire and took over their age-old rival, but created
many enemies by forcing the conquered people to move away from their homelands.
III. True or False
If a statement is true, write “true” on the line below it. If it is false, change the
word in dark type to make it true.
1. After Sargon conquered Sumer, he washed his weapons in the Atlantic Ocean.
________________________________________________________________________________
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Mrs. K. Jones
12/3/13
2. The Babylonians were known for their powerful military.
_______________________________________________________________________________
3. The Assyrians dealt with the possibility of rebellion by relocating the people they conquered.
_______________________________________________________________________________
4. When the Jewish people of Jerusalem rebelled against the Babylonians, the Jewish people were
forced into slavery.
_______________________________________________________________________________
5. King Nebuchadnezzar punished the Jewish people of Judah severely when they refused to pay taxes.
_________________________________________________________________________________
6. The Babylonians were remembered for their achievements in astronomy and mathematics.
__________________________________________________________________________________
7. In 1849 and 1852 archeologists found 25,000 clay tablets written in French- the library of the Assyrian
king Ashurbanipal. They contained writings of the Sumerians and Babylonians, whose cultures the king
admired.
__________________________________________________________________________________
IV. Complete the Sentence
1. Each ancient Sumerian city-state was ruled by _______________________________________.
2. The main job of the ancient Sumerian administrator was to _____________________________.
3. The religion of the ancient Sumerians was a kind of polytheism. In other words, they believed in
_______________________________________________.
4. Cuneiform writing used _________________________.
V. Know how to read and interpret timelines and telescoping timelines.
VI. Be able to answer the following short response and essay questions:
1. How did the Sumerians response to their needs lead to the development of civilization?
2. How did the Sumerians forms of writing change over time?
3. Did Hammurabi bring justice to all of his subjects? Explain.
4. What did the Assyrians and Babylonians hope to gain by expanding their empires?
5. People who were conquered by the Babylonians were sometimes forced into slavery. What does this
tell you about the beliefs and values of the Babylonians?
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