Download Mesopotamia The Birthplace of The Worlds First Civilizations What

Mesopotamia
The Birthplace of The Worlds First Civilizations
What is a civilization?
Civilizations (SIH•vuh•luh•ZAY•shuhns)
are complex societies. They have
developed advanced cultural, political,
and social organizations (ex. cities,
organized governments, art, religion,
class divisions, writing system, etc.)
Mesopotamia
In Greek, means: “between the rivers”.
Mesopotamia
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Mesopotamia was the birthplace of the
world’s first civilizations.
The two rivers that allowed Mesopotamia
to succeed were the Tigris and Euphrates.
This area was also called the Fertile
Crescent because of how rich the soil
around these two rivers were, allowing for
luscious crop growth.
Why were river valleys important?
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Farming – Large amounts of people could
be fed, and less people had to work.
Trade – Goods and ideas moved from
place to place.
Cities – Began in these valleys and
became the centers of civilizations.
Sumer
The first major civilization in
Mesopotamia was in a region called
Sumer. Those who lived in this area
were called the Sumerians. We know
most about the Sumerians because
many of their written records have
survived.
The Sumerians
They built large
cities such as:
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Ur
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Uruk
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Lagash
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Kish
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Nippur
City-States
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Each Sumerian city and the land around it
became a separate city-state.
A city-state was a city that, with its
surrounding area, formed an independent
state.
This meant that it had its own government
and laws, and was not part of any larger
unit (such as a country).
Kings of City-States
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The Sumerians believed their cities had been
created by deities (gods or goddesses).
The lands and people belonged to these
deities, and the king acted on their behalf.
Often, the kings were both religious (cultural
purposes) and military (protection purposes)
leaders, and claimed to rule by “divine
right”.
Kings of City-States
Religion in Sumer
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The Sumerians worshipped about
three thousand deities (gods or
goddesses), including the ones they
believed founded their cities.
There were also deities for all natural
things, such as: the sky, the water,
the air, and the sun.
Religion in Sumer
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To please their deities, the Sumerians
built a great number of huge temple
complexes.
At the centre of many of these were
pyramid-like towers called ziggurats
[ZIG-u-RATS].
Ziggurat
Farming in The Fertile Crescent
In the Spring of each year, the rivers flooded.
As the flood waters receded and drained
back into the rivers, they left a new layer of
soil and dead plants rich in nutrients excellent soil for farming.
Farming in The Fertile Crescent
The problem was that the
flooding was very
unpredictable. It might
flood one year, but not
the next. Every year,
farmers worried about
their crops.
Irrigation
Over time, the farmers learned to build
dams and channels to control the
seasonal floods. They also built walls,
waterways, and ditches to store water
and bring it to their fields. This way of
watering crops is called irrigation.
Irrigation allowed the farmers to grow
plenty of food and support a large
population.
Irrigation
Food in Sumer
The Sumerians grew several kinds of crops.
The most valuable being barley which
was used to make porridge, and wheat
which was used to make bread.
Food in Sumer
Dates were also very valuable to the
Sumerians. They were eaten once ripe or
else they were dried for future
consumption. Dates also made an
excellent wine.
Social Classes in Sumer
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Upper Class - Kings, priests, warriors, and
government officials.
Middle Class - Artisans, merchants,
farmers, and fishers. These people made
up the largest group.
Lower Class - Enslaved people who
worked on farms or in the temples.
Writing
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The most important
invention of the
Sumerians was writing.
The writing of the
Sumerians was called
cuneiform.
The Development of Writing
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Writing language developed in Sumer
because of the needs of religion, trade,
and government.
Ex. As villages grew to become cities, their
governments had to have records of the
taxes that were collected.
Ex. Traders and merchants had to have
records of the items they bought and sold.
Cuneiform Alphabet
Other Sumerian Inventions
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Wagon Wheel
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Plough (Bronze Blade)
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Sailboat
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Number system based on 60
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Geometry
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12 Month Calendar
Sailboat
Plough
Wagon Wheel
The Epic of Gilgamesh
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The most famous piece of literature from
Sumer is the Epic of Gilgamesh.
An epic is a long poem that tells the story
of a hero. The hero, Gilgamesh, is a king
who travels around the world with a
friend and performs great deeds. When
his friend dies, Gilgamesh searches for a
way to live forever.
The Epic of Gilgamesh
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2pGhEu9elnA