Download WHICh2Mesopotamia-Review and Study Guide

Ch2, MESOPOTAMIA
A. Geography
1. F______ C________: arc of fertile land
2. M_________: land between the T____ & E__________ Rivers (be able to locate on a map), part
of the F________ C_________.
3. The T______ & E_______ overflow about once a year, depositing fertile s___, but unlike the Nile,
the Nile, the flood is unpredictable in time (can be anytime between March & June) and size.
4. Mesopotamians came to think of the gods as ______________________________________
5. Mesopotamia is surrounded by land that is dry but not desert, like the lands around Egypt, so it did
not protect them from i___________.
6. Mesopotamia was much less stable than Egypt, with more i________, so empires rose and fell.
7. Be able to locate on a map: Tigris, Euphrates, Mesopotamia, Fertile Crescent, Asia Minor,
Mediterranean, Black Sea.
B. S_____ : the civilization that emerged in the southeastern Mesopotamia
1. By 3000BC: invented writing called c___________, inscribed with a stylus on c______ tablets.
2. Epic of G_________: world’s oldest known written story; about G________, king of Uruk and his
quest for immortality.
3. Invented: pl_______ and wh_________, which they used on carts & for the potter’s wh______
4. Probably invented the metal b________, a combination of copper & tin
5. Z____________: step shaped temples with a shrine to a god on top
6. Number system based on _ _ (basis for our clocks & circles)
7. Not one unified country like Egypt, but made up of many independent c____-_____: a city and the
surrounding farm land, each ruled by its own king.
8. Society: King, High P____ & Nobles; Lower P_____, Scribes, Merchants, Artisans; Farmers, Slaves
9. City of U_ , excavated by Sir Leonard Woolley, included the un-looted tomb of Queen P________
10. Religion was p________ (many gods), including A___ (sky), E_____(air), E____(water) &
I_______ or I______, (love).
11. Viewed the afterlife as ____________________________, with no punishment or reward.
12. Be able to locate Sumer on a map
C. A__________ Empire (about 2330-2180BC)
1. Founded by the conqueror S_________; world’s first known empire
2. Capital was the city of A__________& empire included most of Mesopotamia.
3. E______________ was S________’s daughter & the first writer whose name is known.
4. After the A_______ Empire fell, the cities of S_____ were temporarily independent again, then
fell to the next Empire.
D. Old B____________ Empire (about 1790-1600BC)
1. Founded by H___________, who conquered most of Mesopotamia; capital: the city of B_______.
2. Famous for H___________ code, a collection of 282 laws, including “an e___ for an e_____”
Be able to give examples of the laws of Hammurabi.
3. Culture similar to S_________; built temples called z_________; writing was c___________,
used a number system based on _ _.
4. Very active in trade & traded with other people of Fertile Crescent, as well as E____ & I______.
5. Religion similar to Sumerians; chief god was M________; believed in a “shadowy” afterlife.
6. Were known for skill in a__________(stars) and could predict eclipses.
E. H___________ Empire (about 1400s-1200sBC)
1. Homeland was A______ M______ (now called Turkey); conquered northern M__________
2. Discovered how to extract i_____ from i_____ ore, & making the first i___ tools & weapons
3. L_____ were less harsh than those of other empires at the time; only the most serious crimes got
the d_______ penalty.
4. 1200’s Empire fell because of attacks by the S___ People (mysterious Mediterranean pirates).
F. A___________ Empire (about 900BC-612BC)
1. Homeland in northern M_________; conquered a large empire that included M_________, Syria,
Palestine & E____________.
2. Warfare
a. Known for being f_________ warriors & using brutal tactics;
b. Often killed, enslaved or d____________ (forced to move) the people they conquered.
c. First to use c_________ (warriors on horseback) and s_________ towers
3. First to effectively govern a large e________; King appointed governors over conquered lands.
4. First capital was Ashur; then made N_________ their capital, which was a large walled city.
5. Collected clay tablets from around their empire & had the world’s first known l______ in N______
6. Weakened by a c____ war; then conquered by the Ch_________ led by N_________.
G. Ch__________ Empire (about 612-539BC)
1. Based in the city of B________,(rebuilt); often called the N__-B_________ Empire; included
most of the F________ Crescent.
2. Founded by N______________, who defeated the Assyrians & rebuilt B________.
3. Capital was B__________ which was a beautiful city famous for the H______ G_________ built
by N________ for his wife.
4. Were known for skill in a__________(study of the planets & stars) and could predict eclipses.
5. Conquered by the P____________
H. P__________ Empire (about 539-331BC revived again after 226AD)
1. Located in what is now I____. Originally two groups: the P_____ lived in central & southern I___,&
the M____ in northern I___
2. Founded by C______ the Great, who united the P____ & M______ & defeated the Ch________.
3. Huge empire that extended from what is now A__________ in the east to what is now T______ in
the west, and even a little bit of Europe. It included lower (northern) E_________.
4. Famous successors included D_____ & X_______
5. Known for treating conquered people b_____ than previous empires and allowing r____ freedom.
6. Government was well organized & efficient:
a. the “Great King” was an a_________ ruler.
b. Empire divided into provinces called s______, each with a governor called a s_______
appointed by the king from among the local people.
c. King had secret agents called his “e____ & e_____of the king” who checked up on the
s_______ and made sure they were loyal and governing fairly.
7. Built many r_______ to unite the Empire; most famous-the “R____ R_____” from Sardis to
S_______.
8. Established the world’s first known p______ system, in which messages were carried in relay by
couriers stationed along the roads.
9. Religion was Z__________, which was founded by the prophet Z_________ about 600BC
a. Z__________ is a m__________ (one God) religion..
b. God called A______ M________ & demon called A______ are at war.
c. Our good deeds help A________ M________ & our bad deeds help A________
d. Eventually A______ M_______ will win & the world will e____; souls will be resurrected; the
good people will be rewarded and the evil punished.
10. Persian Empire was conquered by A__________ the Great, but revived again later.
11. Be able to locate Persia & draw the approximate boundaries of the Persian Empire on a map (p. 39)
I. P___________
1. Lived on the eastern shore of the M_______ Sea where Lebanon is now.
2. Formed a loose alliance of independent c___-s_____; most famous were T____ & S_____
3. Were excellent s________ and the most important t________ of the ancient world
4. Sailed as far as B_________ (island in the North Sea) and the west coast of A____________.
5. Established trading c_________around the Mediterranean, the most famous being C______ on
North Africa.
6. Famous products which they produced & sold included: l_____ (from c____ trees); g_______
(they invented g_____ blowing); p________ (used for making books) and p________ dye made
from a snail, which became the symbol of wealth and royalty
7. Most important cultural contribution was their a_________
a. invented & used by traders to draw up contracts & keep business records
b. only _ _ letters each of which stood for a single sound; was revolutionary in its simplicity
c. spread through tr_____; adopted by almost everyone they traded with.
d. Basis for many modern alphabets, including ours.
* Be able to locate Phoenicia on a map (p. 41)
J. L_________
1. Located on the western coast of A______ M_______ (now called Turkey)
2. Invented c_______ m________
a. Previously, people traded through b_______ (exchange of goods for goods)
b. Some used “commodity” m________ (a thing like salt or shells used for exchange)
c. Finally c_____ m______was invented; the first Lydian coins were a bean shaped mixture
of g_____ & s______ with the picture of a ruler or god stamped on it.
d. The Perians conquered the Lydians, adopted the use of money, and spread it.
K. H__________ & origins of J_________
1. Earliest events may be considered history, religion or myth. Dates are educated guesses.
2. 2000BC: Founded by A____________, who left Sumer and settled in C_________.
a. A________ believed in a single God with no body or form
b. God made a c________ (agreement) with A________, under which he would obey God
and God would make his descendants a great nation which would be a blessing to the world
3. A________’had 2 sons, Ishmael & Isaac, & his descendants though Isaac were known as H______.
4. The H______ moved from C_________to Egypt because of a f______ in C___________
5. Eventually became slaves in E_______ and were led out of slavery by the leader M_____
6. M_____ received from God the 10 C________ , which were put in the A_____ of the Covenant.
He also received over 600 other laws.
7. The H______re-settled in Canaan. At first they were a loose coalition of tribes & chose J_______
to be their leaders. Later they united as a single nation, I_________ and were ruled by kings,
Their first king was Saul, then D_____, who established J______ as the capital & then Solomon,
who built their t___________ in J____________.
8. Because of a dispute over leadership, they split into two parts: northern part kept the name
I_______; southern part was called J_______
9. I______ was conquered & annihilated by the A_______, but they did not conquer J_______
10. J_______ was later conquered and taken into captivity by the Ch_________
11. When the Ch_____ were conquered by C_______ the Great of P___________, he allowed the
Jews to return to their homeland.
12. Religion of J_________
a. Holiest scripture is called the T_________ (1st 5 books of the Old Testament)
b. Law was similar to H________ “s Code, but required charity to the p_____
c. First viewed God as a force to be feared, later believed God should be obeyed out of love
d. Believed that God gives people f_____ w_____ to choose good or evil
e. Viewed God as a spirit, with no physical body or form
f. Gave to the world their e_________ (view of right and wrong). Their religion is a form of
e__________ monotheism.
Write Key words and ideas-Mesopotamia
Geography
(1)Sumer
(3) Old Babylonian Empire
(6) Chaldean Empire
(2)Akkadian Empire
(4) Hittite Empire
(5) Assyrian Empire
(7) Persian Empire
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Phoenician culture (overlapped chronologically)

Hebrews (overlapped)
* Lydian Culture (overlapped)