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Unit 2: Mesopotamia The Cradle of Civilization Step 1 Excite History is His Story What state do you live in? Have you ever talked to someone from another state or city and compared differences? What about someone from another country? Do you know where New York City and Washington, D.C. are located? Do you know the major Interstate nearest your home? Set a timer for ten minutes and role play. Someone in your family should pretend they are from another country (they happen to speak English but they have never been to America). Act as if you are describing the area you in which you live to that person. Limit your description to a ten-square-mile area from your home. Do not mention your state or the United States. When your time is up, switch roles and change sides. How well could you explain so that the other person understood America based on your description? What about the governmental system? the religions? the customs? the geography? To truly understand a person, you need to look at the big picture. You are about to study the very first civilizations of the world. The regions of Mesopotamia, Egypt (the Nile Valley), and the Indus Valley are the three main areas for studying how people of the world first came together to create civilizations and empires. The history curricula of American public schools focuses on how the civilizations began and the important contributions made by the Mesopotamians. This unit will include the beginnings of civilizations and contributions, but with a focus on Bible location and events. Pay close attention to the maps and time line in this unit. These visual graphs will help you understand the chronology of Bible events and the geographical locations within the rise of the ancient civilizations. You’ll get a grasp of the ancient Near East cultures, learning what they tell us of the days in which Bible stories were written and of the events and conditions which they relate or reflect. By the time you finish this unit , you will have completed several maps, and you should be able to draw a map of the Fertile Crescent area, as well as understand the major events in this time period without any references. Step 2 Examine Mesopotamia is called the Cradle of Civilization. “Mesopotamia,” “the country between the two rivers,” is the name given by the ancient Greeks and Romans to the region between the Euphrates and the Tigris rivers (Genesis 24:10). Resources recommended in dseveral lessons, sseveral units, hother HOW Units. k Key Resource (see beginning of unit or page 32). Heart of Wisdom Publishing 111 Ancient History: Adam to Messiah Ancient Near East Mesopotamia is a large part of the Fertile Crescent, a crescent-shaped area stretching from the Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf, through the Tigris and Euphrates valley. It includes all of Mesopotamia, present-day Iraq, Israel, Lebanon, Syria, and western Iran. It is called the “Fertile Crescent” because it is shaped like a crescent moon and because of the rich, fertile soil found in the region. The Fertile Crescent gave birth to, and sustained, many great civilizations, including those of the Assyrian, Sumerians, Canaanites, Philistines, Phoenicians/Carthaginians, Hyksos, Akkadians, Hittites, Hurrians, Mitanni, Kassites, Aramaeans, Amorites, Seleucids, Nabateans, Lakhmids, Ghassanids, Ummayyads, and Abbasids. Lagash, Ur, Eredu, and Uruk were the main cities of Sumer. Kish and Babylon were the major cities of Babylonia. The city of Ur was the capital of the Mesopotamian civilization. The fertile Mesopotamian river valleys and plains were desirable for settlement, but this was the very thing that made Mesopotamia susceptible to attack. The richness of this area attracted neighboring peoples who were ready and willing to become the occupants of this area. But first they had to take it from those already living there. The early Mesopotamian states needed self-defense as well as irrigation; this led them to build walled settlements for protection and canals for irrigation. Mesopotamia was the birthplace of the varied civilizations that developed writing, schools, libraries, and written law codes. The Sumerians, Akkadians, Chaldeans, Hittites, Babylonians, Israelites, Phoenicians, Lydians, Assyrian, and Persians established the foundaUnderlined text refers to Internet link at http://Homeschool-Books.com 112 Unit 2: Mesopotamia tions for future civilizations. Their contributions included brick cities, the wheel, glass, the sail, coinage, calendars, bronze, iron, monotheism, epic poetry, mathematics, farming, and irrigation. Each Mesopotamian city-state was like a separate country. The ancient names of its cities continue in the world today: Ur of the Chaldees, Babylon, and Nineveh. The Sumerians first lived in southern Mesopotamia and Uruk (biblical Erech). The Babylonians came after them, and for a time Babylon was the center of the world. For the Assyrians, Ashur was their most ancient capital, Nineveh their royal residence, and Harran their final seat of royalty. These civilizations that developed between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers are now Iraq and Kuwait. The names of countries and cities change with the empires that move in and out, but the names of the rivers stay the same. In the middle of Iraq lie the ruins of Nebuchadnezzar's Hanging Gardens of Babylon (one of the seven wonders of the ancient world). Mesopotamia had four dominant forces at different times throughout its history: the Sumerians, the Babylonians, the Assyrians, and the Persians. Each influenced the Greek and Roman civilizations that followed them. Browse through library books and Web sites to find maps of this time period in the ancient Near East. As you go through the books and sites, take notes of things you would like to learn about. Use any resource from the “Mesopotamia Resources” section, or an encyclopedia, non-fiction book, historical novel, or the Internet. Books The Victor Journey through the Bible kh Read: Skim stories and view maps on pages 18-54. BC BC BC Encyclopedia of the Bible (Nelson’s Illustrated) k h Skim Part 2 “People and Empires” (50-67). Exploring Ancient Cities of the Bible h Read: “Mesopotamia: Home of the Empires” (18-20). Resources recommended in dseveral lessons, sseveral units, hother HOW Units. k Key Resource (see beginning of unit or page 32). Heart of Wisdom Publishing 113 Ancient History: Adam to Messiah First Civilizations (Cultural Atlas for Young People) d Read: “Introduction” (4-5); “Table of Dates” (6-7). Browse through “Part 2: Kingdoms and Empires” (52-91). BC Mesopotamia and the Fertile Crescent d Read: “Introduction” (6-8); “From Hunters to Farmers” (9-15) (ignore dates); “From Villages to Empires” (15-25). B Internet Sources Ancient Mesopotamia A seventh-grade World History/World Geography unit designed to be used by both students and teachers. I The Fertile Crescent - Cradle of Nine Civilizations An overview of the Fertile Crescent by high-school teacher Larry Larsen. Includes quizzes and information on the following topics: geography, Sumerians, Akkadians, Babylonians, Hittites, Phoenicians, Hebrews, Assyrian, Chaldeans, and Persians. I Introduction to Mesopotamia Published for the British History National Curriculum, this site was published to be a resource for primary-school educators who are teaching a unit on ancient Mesopotamia. Includes time line, maps, facts, and more. I Learning Family Studies - Ancient Mesopotamia The Learning Family founders, the Reisers, share their field trip adventures in Mesopotamia. I Odyssey Online: The Near East From Emory University, this award-winning educational Web site aimed at middle-school students explores ancient Near Eastern, Egyptian, Greek, and Roman cultures. Includes puzzles, games, and worksheets. I Step 3 Expand Activity: Make a Map (Do not skip this activity.) Make a map of the ancient Near East. Trace the one in this unit or print one from our Web site: http://Heartofwisdom.com/maps.htm. You will need several copies of this map for the remaining lessons, as you’ll be adding labels and coloring sections to indicate various civilizations. GC Underlined text refers to Internet link at http://Homeschool-Books.com 114 Unit 2: Mesopotamia The Fertile Crescent Memorize the bodies of water and color them blue (use colored pencils so you can view the text through the shading): Tigris River, Euphrates River, Mediterranean Sea, Sea of Galilee, Jordan River, Dead Sea, Nile River, Red Sea, and the Persian Gulf. Memorize and mark each area of land: Mesopotamia, Canaan, Persia, Egypt, Babylon, Assyria, and the city of Ur. For this lesson you will review the last unit, Adam to Abraham. Place symbols showing the the approximate locations (some of the exact locations are not known) of: the Garden of Eden (Gen. 2:10-14), the Tower of Babel (Gen. 2:11-14), where the ark landed (Gen. 8:4), and Abraham’s journeys from Ur to Canaan and into Egypt, then back to Canaan. As you work through the Civilization lessons you will need a map for each lesson. You will color or shade the empires that ruled Canaan and the surrounding areas. Step 4 Excel Share your map with a friend or family member. Point out the locations of the major events you learned about in the last unit. Name all the bodies of water on your map. Correct written work to demonstrate correct punctuation and spelling, and effective use of grammar. Add corrected written work or any illustrations to your portfolio. Resources recommended in dseveral lessons, sseveral units, hother HOW Units. k Key Resource (see beginning of unit or page 32). Heart of Wisdom Publishing 115