Download Sumerians_Guided_Notes

Mesopotamian Society and the Sumerians
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What region did the Sumerians inhabit? ___________________________________________________________________
Arrived as early as 5300 BCE and lasted _____________years!
What present day country is Sumer located in? _____________________________________________________________
What did the Sumerians do to help control the flooding of the rivers?
Sumers are some of the first societies to use___________________ ____. That allowed some people to make their living in
ways other than farming.
Specialized jobs is division of____________, and it’s the basis of any advanced civilization.
What were the Ziggurats used for? _______________________________________________________________________
How many city-states where in Sumer? ___________________________________________________________________
What was the ensi? ____________________________________________________________________________________
How did writing begin? _________________________________________________________________________________
List 4 major developments of the Sumerians:
o Written_____________
o ___________Systems out of 60
o Bronze
o First ____________vehicles
PPT Notes
 Mesopotamia was located between _______________ rivers, the __________________River and the Euphrates River.
 Mesopotamia was located in the_____________________, and surrounded by desert.
 Why was this a perfect place for the 1st civilization?
o ____________________________- large arc of fertile land in the Middle East
o Cattle, ___________, goats & sheep were accessible
 The shape is somewhat similar to a ___________________(think of a crescent roll, or a crescent-shaped moon).
 Mesopotamia is located in the Middle East, which is located in____________________________.
o The first _______________________and examples of writing were found here..
o Mesopotamia is called the _______________of civilization because the first civilizations began there
 Many __________________formed along the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers in Mesopotamia.
o They each had their own form of_____________, and the people worshipped different ___________and goddesses.
o The region where the two rivers meet was called_______________.
 Because of fertile land, people were able to create ___________of food. They began doing other things, like ____________
a city.
o People began to worry about others coming and __________their city. They built________around their cities.
 _____________________first began in Sumerian cities.
o Sumerian schools taught _____________the new invention of writing. Professional writers:______________.
o _____________: “Wedge-Shaped” Writing: _______________known form of written expression
 Sumerian cities
o ______________ Streets
o Sumerian houses faced ______________ from crowded streets. Instead, they faced onto courtyards
o Sumerians even had_________________!
o They burned ____________ ______________for light at night.
 Sumerians worshipped many gods, not just one. This belief in many gods is called_____________________.
o “Poly” means __________ and “Theism” means ____________.
o Ziggurats were built in the _____________ of the city. They had steps and ramps, and it was believed that the gods
descended to the Earth using the ziggurat as a_________________.
 Sumerian myths, or stories, explained people’s_______________.
 Each of the Sumerian city-states had a__________, and these city-states began fighting each other.
o They fought over land and the use of___________ _______________.
 Since the Sumerians were constantly at _________with each other, they became weak.
o By 1759 BC, Sumer was conquered by another group of people – the _______________________.
Mesopotamian Society and the Sumerians
BrainPop Snippet
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

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
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What region did the Sumerians inhabit? ___________________________________________________________________
Arrived as early as 5300 BCE and lasted _____________years!
What present day country is Sumer located in? _____________________________________________________________
What did the Sumerians do to help control the flooding of the rivers?
Sumers are some of the first societies to use___________________ ____. That allowed some people to make their living in
ways other than farming.
Specialized jobs is division of____________, and it’s the basis of any advanced civilization.
What were the Ziggurats used for? _______________________________________________________________________
How many city-states where in Sumer? ___________________________________________________________________
What was the ensi? ____________________________________________________________________________________
How did writing begin? _________________________________________________________________________________
List 4 major developments of the Sumerians:
o Written_____________
o ___________Systems out of 60
o Bronze
o First ____________vehicles
PPT Notes
 Mesopotamia was located between _______________ rivers, the __________________River and the Euphrates River.
 Mesopotamia was located in the_____________________, and surrounded by desert.
 Why was this a perfect place for the 1st civilization?
o ____________________________- large arc of fertile land in the Middle East
o Cattle, ___________, goats & sheep were accessible
 The shape is somewhat similar to a ___________________(think of a crescent roll, or a crescent-shaped moon).
 Mesopotamia is located in the Middle East, which is located in____________________________.
o The first _______________________and examples of writing were found here..
o Mesopotamia is called the _______________of civilization because the first civilizations began there
 Many __________________formed along the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers in Mesopotamia.
o They each had their own form of_____________, and the people worshipped different ___________and goddesses.
o The region where the two rivers meet was called_______________.
 Because of fertile land, people were able to create ___________of food. They began doing other things, like ____________
a city.
o People began to worry about others coming and __________their city. They built________around their cities.
 _____________________first began in Sumerian cities.
o Sumerian schools taught _____________the new invention of writing. Professional writers:______________.
o _____________: “Wedge-Shaped” Writing: _______________known form of written expression
 Sumerian cities
o ______________ Streets
o Sumerian houses faced ______________ from crowded streets. Instead, they faced onto courtyards
o Sumerians even had_________________!
o They burned ____________ ______________for light at night.
 Sumerians worshipped many gods, not just one. This belief in many gods is called_____________________.
o “Poly” means __________ and “Theism” means ____________.
o Ziggurats were built in the _____________ of the city. They had steps and ramps, and it was believed that the gods
descended to the Earth using the ziggurat as a_________________.
 Sumerian myths, or stories, explained people’s_______________.
 Each of the Sumerian city-states had a__________, and these city-states began fighting each other.
o They fought over land and the use of___________ _______________.
 Since the Sumerians were constantly at _________with each other, they became weak.
o By 1759 BC, Sumer was conquered by another group of people – the _______________________.